UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

A technique for quantitative determination of cephalothin and desacetylcephalothin in serum using a method based on high-pressure liquid chromatography is described. Both compounds were quantitatively...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The development and evaluation of a post-column reaction detector sensitive to platinum(II) complexes is presented in which sodium bisulfite is used as the derivatizing agent with potassium dichromate as an activating agent. The influences of mobile phase changes (i.e., pH, organic modifiers, electrolytes), oxygen, metal ions, and order of reagent addition on reaction kinetics and product yield are defined and used in optimization of detector response. Detection at lambda/sub max/ 290 nm results in an on-line post-column sensitivity of 40-60 ng/mL for selected cis-dichloroplatinum complexes and a sensitivity of 300-1200 ng/mL for four (substituted)-malonato-platinum complexes. The reaction detector is used to monitor the kinetics of aquation of cisplatin (CDDP) and to quantitate CDDP degradation in plasma. As the sensitivity for CDDP in plasma is comparable to that achieved from ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

As with science, so with security--in both arenas, the extraordinary sensitivity of cryogenic sensors enables high-confidence detection and high-precision measurement even of the faintest signals. Science applications are more mature, but several national and international security applications have been identified where cryogenic detectors have high potential payoff. International safeguards and nuclear forensics are areas needing new technology and methods to boost speed, sensitivity, precision and accuracy. Successfully applied, improved nuclear materials analysis will help constrain nuclear materials diversion pathways and contribute to treaty verification. Cryogenic microcalorimeter detectors for X-ray, gamma-ray, neutron, and alpha-particle spectrometry are under development with these aims in mind. In each case the unsurpassed energy resolution of microcalorimeters reveals ...

CERN Document Server

The auroras on Jupiter and Saturn can be studied with a high sensitivity and resolution by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) ultraviolet (UV) and far-ultraviolet (FUV) Space Telescope spectrograph (STIS) and Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) instruments. We present results of automatic detection and segmentation of Jupiter's auroral emissions as observed by HST ACS instrument with VOronoi Image SEgmentation (VOISE). VOISE is a dynamic algorithm for partitioning the underlying pixel grid of an image into regions according to a prescribed homogeneity criterion. The algorithm consists of an iterative procedure that dynamically constructs a tessellation of the image plane based on a Voronoi Diagram, until the intensity of the underlying image within each region is classified as homogeneous. The computed tessellations allow the extraction of quantitative information about the auroral features such as mean intensity, latitudinal ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A real time neutron radiography system has been developed at the University of Michigan Phoenix Memorial Laboratory (PML) and has recently been used to test the imaging capabilities of a neutron imaging device developed by Lixi, Inc. of Downers Grove, Ill. This device uses an input phosphor that is high in gadolinium to generate a light image which is then sent through an intensifier stage to provide images that can be viewed by eye, video camera, or standard 35 mm camera. It was determined that this device provides images of much higher resolution and sensitivity than those obtained with the imaging system currently being used at PML. Using computerized image enhancement techniques, the images obtained with the Lixi neutron imaging device can then be further enhanced or processed to obtain quantitative information on the object being imaged. (orig.).

Science.gov (United States)

Abnormal intracellular deposition of aggregated ?-synuclein is the characteristic feature of a number of neurological disorders, including Parkinson's disease (PD). Although ?-synuclein is typically known as a cytosolic protein, a small amount is secreted by exocytosis in both monomeric and aggregated forms. The extracellular forms of ?-synuclein in human body fluids, such as cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and blood plasma, might be a diagnostic target for PD and related diseases. Here, we characterized a new set of monoclonal antibodies against ?-synuclein, and using different combinations of antibodies, we established ELISA systems to specifically detect human ?-synuclein, mouse and human ?-synuclein together, and multimeric forms of ?-synuclein in biological samples. By employing the Tyramide signal amplification method, the sensitivity of the assay was significantly improved to detect a concentration as low as ?12.5 pg/ml. These assays might be useful tools for ...

Science.gov (United States)

... HIGH FREQUENCY, WIRE, ATMOSPHERIC MOTION, SENSITIVITY, PLATINUM, FREQUENCY RESPONSE, AMPLIFIERS, MULTIVIBRATORS. ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The need for noninvasive sensitive techniques for the diagnosis and follow-up of metabolic bone disease in dialysis patients has stimulated the author's interest in the efficacy of more detailed quantitative bone scintigraphy. Using hemodialysis to reduce elevated soft-tissue activity at scintigraphy, an attempt was made to assess the diagnostic sensitivity of quantitative bone scintigraphy as compared to qualitative bone scintigraphic, biochemical, radiographic and bone histologic studies. The second aim of these studies was to determine if one of the two major components of renal osteodystrophy is a major determinant for skeletal radiotracer uptake. The clinical observations on the efficacy and possible specificity of quantitative bone scintigraphy in the diagnosis and follow-up during treatment of renal osteodystrophy are presented briefly in this chapter. Thus, the use of ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The detection and quantification of defined reaction products of chemical mutagens and carcinogens (and of many cancer chemotherapeutic agents) with DNA require highly sensitive analytical techniques. The exceptional capability of immunoglobulins to recognize subtle alterations of molecular structure (especially when monoclonal antibodies are used to maximize specificity), outstanding sensitivity of immunoanalysis by high-affinity antibodies, and the fact that radioactively-labelled agents are not required suggest the utility of a radioimmunoassay to recognize and quantitate alkylated DNA products. We have recently developed a set of high-affinity monoclonal antibodies (secreted by mouse x mouse as well as by rat x rat hybridomas; antibody affinity constants, 10"9 to > 10"1"0 lmol) specifically directed against several DNA alkylation products with possible ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Trichlorfon is an organophosphorus insecticide, which is extensively being used for protection of fruit crops. Trichlorfon is a thermal labile compound, which cannot be easily determined by gas chromatography (GC) and has no suitable group for sensitive detection by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). In this study, a {sup 31}P nuclear magnetic resonance ({sup 31}P NMR) has been described for monitoring of trichlorfon without any separation step. The quantitative works of {sup 31}P NMR spectroscopy has been performed in the presence of an internal standard (hexamethylphosphoramide). Limit of detection (LOD) for this method has been found to be 55 mg L{sup -1}, without any sample preparation, and the linear working range was 150-5500 mg L{sup -1}. Relative standard deviation (R.S.D.%) of the method for three replicates within and between days was obtained {<=}9%. The average recovery efficiency was ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Purpose To investigate the influence of timolol maleate 0.5% gel-forming solution and brinzolamide 1% ophthalmic suspension on contrast sensitivity, ocular higher-order aberration (HOA), and corneal surface light scattering. Design Prospective, comparative study. Participants Forty normal volunteers were enrolled in this study. Methods We evaluated contrast sensitivity, ocular HOA, and corneal light scattering before and 2, 5, 10, and 15 minutes after instillation of antiglaucoma eyedrops. Contrast sensitivity function was assessed with the CSV-1000RN chart (Vector Vision Co., Greenville, OH). Higher-order aberration was measured for a 4-mm pupil using the Hartmann-Shack aberrometer (KR-9000PW; Topcon, Tokyo, Japan). Corneal surface light scattering was quantitatively evaluated by using th...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The Pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei, is the most important shrimp species in volume in world aquaculture. However, in recent decades, outbreaks of diseases, especially viral diseases, have led to significant economic losses, threatening the sustainability of shrimp farming worldwide. In 2004, Brazilian shrimp farming was seriously affected by a new disease caused by the Infectious myonecrosis virus (IMNV). Thus, disease control based on rapid and sensitive pathogen detection methods has become a priority. In this study, a specific quantitation method for IMNV was developed using real-time PCR with SYBR Green chemistry and viral load of the principal target tissues of chronically infected animals was quantified. The quantitative analysis revealed that mean viral load ranged from ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Forty-four patients with small cell carcinoma of the bronchus underwent CT and MR studies of the brain to detect cerebral metastases. All patients were studied with contrast-enhanced CT scans, short (T1-weighted) and long (T2-weighted), spin-echo (SE) and FLASH 90 grades sequences were also obtained. A quantitative comparison of the results was carried out to assess the sensitivity of the different techniques in the detection of brain metastases according to lesion diameter. Metastases were identified in 19/44 patients (43%). All techniques detected the lesions >2 cm; of the metastases <2 cm, 63/124 (51%) were detected only by GdDTPA SE-T1 and FLASH sequences and 11 more (9%) only by Gd-DTPA SE-T1 scans. All the lesions identified oh enhanced CT scans or on T2-weighted images were easily detected by Gd-DTPA scans. CT sensitivity was higher than that of pre-contrast SE-T1 and FLASH studies and only slightly lower than ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spontaneous and ultraviolet-induced changeabilities of wine yeasts from the killer state to sensitive one have been studied. Observed often spontaneous changes of killer and neutral phenotypes under laboratory store conditions as well as high mutation frequency of genetic elements responsible for the killer indication on ultraviolet irradiation testify that often encounterability in nature and in the production of sensitive yeasts is attributed to high frequency of mutation changes of the killer and neutral phenotypes to the sensitive state.

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Detection and quantification of prion infectivity is a crucial step for various fundamental and applied aspects of prion research. Identification of cell lines highly sensitive to prion infection led...Full Text Available

Science.gov (United States)

This article introduces a predictive capability for Hg retention in any Ca-based wet flue gas desulfurization (FGD) scrubber, given mercury (Hg) speciation at the FGD inlet, the flue gas composition, and the sulphur dioxide (SO2) capture efficiency. A preliminary statistical analysis of data from 17 full-scale wet FGDs connects flue gas compositions, the extents of Hg oxidation at FGD inlets, and Hg retention efficiencies. These connections clearly signal that solution chemistry within the FGD determines Hg retention. A more thorough analysis based on thermochemical equilibrium yields highly accurate predictions for total Hg retention with no parameter adjustments. For the most reliable data, the predictions were within measurement uncertainties for both limestone and Mg/lime systems operating in both forced and natural oxidation mode. With the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Information Collection Request (ICR) database, the ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Striped bass (Morone saxatilis) in the Chesapeake Bay are currently experiencing a very high prevalence of mycobacteriosis associated with newly described Mycobacterium...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Chemoreceptors are crucial components in the bacterial sensory systems that mediate chemotaxis. Chemotactic responses exhibit exquisite sensitivity, extensive dynamic range and precise adaptation....Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

We present a technique for identifying the amino acids responsible for a loss of immunoreactivity in response to treating an antigen with a chemical modifier. This is of particular interest...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In nuclear fuel, in approximately one quarter of the fissions, one of the two formed fission products is gaseous. These are mainly the noble gases xenon and krypton with isotopes of xenon contributing up to 90% of the product gases. These noble fission gases do not combine with other species, and have a low solubility in the normally used uranium oxide matrix. They can be dissolved in the fuel matrix or precipitate in nanometer-sized bubbles within the fuel grain, in micrometer-sized bubbles at the grain boundaries, and a fraction also precipitates in fuel pores, coming from fuel fabrication. A fraction of the gas can also be released into the plenum of the fuel rod. With increasing fission, and therefore burn-up, the ceramic fuel material experiences a transformation of its structure in the 'cooler' rim region of the fuel. A subdivision occurs of the original fuel grains of few microns size into thousands of small grains of sub-micron sizes. Additionally, larger ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The convolution/superposition algorithm for computing dose from photon beams in radiation therapy planning requires knowledge of the energy spectrum. The algorithm can compute the dose for a polyenergetic beam as the weighted sum of the individual dose contributions from monoenergetic beams. In this study we exploit interface effects apparent in the dose distributions to discriminate among spectra of high energy photon beams. We have studied the sensitivity of the depth dose distribution to the energy components using a hypothetical beam for various field sizes and depths in water and water-lung-water media. Six theoretical spectra were simulated. We compared depth dose data from these spectra using three quantitative measures which are inherently free of normalization ambiguities: for homogeneous water, the ratio D_2_0/D_1_0 and a logarithmic derivative in the buildup region LD_b_u_i_l_d_-_u_p and for inhomogeneous ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

First, the problem of food packaging waste is introduced and one of the solutions, the Tetra Pak, is completely described. The article highlights the political sensitivity concerning the landfilling of packaging waste, as is done with the efforts of the Tetra Pak producer concerning the collection of used Tetra Paks and the results of these efforts. The document also informs us about the different recycling options for Tetra Paks, the qualitative prevention (using cleaner packaging), the quantitative prevention (using less packaging) and the sustainable development (using loner lasting packaging). The proposed four-step plan for a communication strategy is company-specific.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Josephson effect heterodyne mixers with external local oscillators are very promising low noise mm-wave receivers for applications such as radio astronomy. Experiments at 36 GHz have shown that both the noise and the conversion efficiency of mixers made using Nb point contacts are in quantitative agreement with values calculated from the resistively shunted junction (RSJ) model. Preliminary measurements at 140 GHz suggest that this agreement extends to higher frequencies. In this paper the theoretical limits to the sensitivity of such receivers are explored as a function of the signal frequency. (Auth.).

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The NREL Sensitized Solar Cell (SSC) Core Program supports the Solar America Initiative by: (1) targeting new devices and processes for commercialization by 2015 that are less expensive, more efficient, highly reliable, and environmentally benign; (2) collaborating with DOE OS/BES to conduct basic research targeting breakthroughs in key areas, such as ultra-high efficiency and/or ultra-low cost materials and devices.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The authors experimentally study the separate stages of the determination of iodine in thyroidin by the combustion method in a flask with oxygen. The monotypic, conventional procedures and the procedure of Kolii and Pakhomov were studied. With addition of potassium iodide, a sixfold amount (compared with the initial) of iodine is liberated. Further, the liberated iodine is titrated by sodium thiosulfate. The authors find the degree of influence of a high nitrogen content on the determination of iodine in organic compounds. The procedure developed for the quantitative determination of the iodine in thyroidin by the combustion method is simple, fairly rapid, and can be used for the reliable control of the quality of thyroidin preparations and its starting raw material.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abstract only.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The identification of genes influencing sensitivity to stimulants and opioids is important for determining their mechanism of action and may provide fundamental insights into the genetics of drug abuse. We used a panel of C57BL/6J (B6; recipient)x A/J (donor) chromosome substitution strains (CSSs) to identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) for both open field activity and sensitivity to the locomotor stimulant response to methamphetamine (MA). Mice were injected with saline (days 1 and 2) and MA (day 3; 2 mg/kg i.p.). We analyzed the total distance traveled in the open field for 30 min following each injection. CSS-8, -11 and -16 showed reduced MA-induced locomotor activity relative to B6, whereas CSS-10 and -12 showed increased MA-induced locomotor activity. Further analysis focused on CSS...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The geothermal well-cost model developed by Sandia National Laboratories is being used to analyze the sensitivity of well costs to improvements in geothermal drilling technology. Three interim results from this modeling effort are discussed. The sensitivity of well costs to bit parameters, rig parameters, and material costs; an analysis of the cost reduction potential of an advanced bit; and a consideration of breakeven costs for new cementing technology. All three results illustrate that the well-cost savings arising from any new technology will be highly site-dependent but that in specific wells the advances considered can result in significant cost reductions.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

We review recent development in separations and mass spectrometric instrumentation for sensitive and high-throughput proteomic analyses. These efforts have been primarily focused on the development of high-efficiency (separation peak capacity of ~103) nanoscale liquid chromatography (nanoLC; e.g., flow rates extending down to ~20 nL/min at optimal separation linear velocities through narrow packed capillaries) in combination with advanced mass spectrometry (MS), including high sensitivity and high resolution Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FTICR) MS. This technology enables MS analysis of low nanogram-level proteomic samples (i.e., nanoscale proteomics) with individual protein identification sensitivity at the low zeptomole-level. The resultant protein measurement dynamic range can reach 106 for nanogram-sized proteomic samples, ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

An imaging position sensitive detector for charged particles, neutrons, X-and gamma rays has been developed. The novel feature of this scintillation imaging radiation detector is its ability to detect individual nuclear particle scintillations with a h igh degree of spatial resolution. The key elements of this detector system are a high gain, low noise image intensifier tube, a CCD camera and commercially available image processing hardware and software. This detector system is highly effective for applications such as low fluence and real time neutron radiography, mapping of radioactive contamination in nuclear reactor fuel rods, X-ray diffraction imaging, high speed autoradiography and in general position sensitive detection of nuclear radiation. Results of some of the exploratory experiments carried out using this detector system are presented in this paper. (orig.).

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The authors have developed a high-sensitivity real-time neutron radiography (NR) system by the use of the low power reactor of Kinki University. The system was constructed with a high efficiency neutron-photon converter, an image intensifier and a SIT TELEVISION camera. Some digital image processing techniques were applied for improving the quality of the real-time neutron images. By the use of this system, dynamic neutron imaging was performed successfully under the condition of a weak neutron field that was about two orders of magnitude lower than that of the standard NR system. The neutron flux, calculated from the fluctuation of the neutron response of the images, was nearly equal to the value measured by the foil activation method. From this fact, the efficiency for the neutron detection of the imaging system was estimated to be almost 100%. For the purpose of developing a system with higher sensitivity, consideration ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The effect of the polyamine oxidase (PAO)-polyamine system on some helminths was examined in vitro. Both Schistosoma mansoni schistosomula and Dirofilaria immitis microfilariae were highly sensitive...Full Text Available

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

SummaryThis paper examines the sensitivity and uncertainty of evaporation estimates from Nasser Lake, south of Egypt using data collected at the floating station Raft, 2km upstream of the Aswan High Dam, and 12 evaporation models. Based on their approach the evaporation models were ranked in five classes, respectively the Bowen ratio energy budget (BREB) approach, three energy-aerodynamic based methods, a mass transfer method, two temperature and five solar radiation-temperature approaches. State dependent parameter models were used to estimate the sensitivity indices of the different evaporation estimation methods at daily and monthly frequencies. A drastic reduction in the cost of the sensitivity analysis was obtained when coupled with efficient sampling methods, producing quasi-Monte Ca...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Results are described of the study of the analytical applicability of a highly efficient ion source developed for a mass spectrometer. Its ionizer is in the form of a partially closed cavity with a small aperture for leading out ions, heated to a high temperature. The new ion source increases the sensitivity of the apparatus in operations with transuranium elements by almost two orders of magnitude. It is possible to perform isotopic analyses with a high salt content in the sample, and to study the characteristics of nuclear fuel, even without chemical separation of the sample elements.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brain development during the first year of life was assessed quantitatively using apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) images constructed from diffusion-weighted MR image data. The imaging plane was coronal at the section of the pons. The cerebral peduncle, internal capsule, corona radiata, superior longitudinal fasciculus and thalamus were selected for evaluation of their ADC values. A diffusion sensitive gradient was added in the anteroposterior direction. Thus the orientation of nerve fibers in the cerebral peduncle, internal capsule and corona radiata was perpendicular to it, and that in the superior longitudinal fasciculus was parallel to it. In neonates, the cerebral peduncle and internal capsule, having been moderately myelinated at birth, showed the slowest diffusion. The corona radiata and superior longitudinal fasciculus, having been unmyelinated at birth, showed the fastest diffusion. The thalamus had intermediate diffusion. These ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Modern digital radiographic 'flat panel' detectors can exhibit a progressive form of image degradation arising from non-functioning pixels. The effect of these 'dead pixels' on the quantitative image quality measures of modulation transfer function (MTF), noise power spectrum (NPS) and detective quantum efficiency (DQE) is investigated by a simulated degradation of images obtained from an Hologic EPEX system. The effects on the semi-quantitive measures obtained from contrast threshold test objects and resolution gratings are also investigated. Results suggest that the contrast-detail tests often employed in quality assurance measures are not sufficient to reveal the presence of dead pixels until well beyond the recommended replacement point for the flat panel detector. However, measurements of spatial resolution using a line pairs phantom were found to be more sensitive to pixel loss. Measurement of the MTF, NPS and DQE can ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

A fast and sensitive LC-ESI-MS method is described for the comparative quantification of 16 estrogen metabolites based on the derivatization of estrogens with a novel derivatizing reagent, N-methyl-nicotinic...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

To analyse the binding of sugar chains to proteins, viruses and cells, the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) technique is very convenient and effective because it is a real-time, non-destructive detection...Full Text Available

Science.gov (United States)

Photon migration provides sensitive tissue oximetry in which the optical pathlength is known. Phase array gives the precise location of a subnanomolar amount of hidden absorber in highly scattering medium. PMID:8079713

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

There is no gold standard diagnostic test for the detection of bovine cryptosporidiosis. Infection is usually highest in 2-week-old calves, and these calves also excrete high numbers of oocysts. These...Full Text Available

CERN Document Server

Spectroscopy of antihydrogen has the potential to yield high-precision tests of the CPT theorem and shed light on the matter-antimatter imbalance in the Universe. The ALPHA antihydrogen trap at CERN's Antiproton Decelerator aims to prepare a sample of antihydrogen atoms confined in an octupole-based Ioffe trap and to measure the frequency of several atomic transitions. We describe our techniques to directly measure the antiproton temperature and a new technique to cool them to below 10 K. We also show how our unique position-sensitive annihilation detector provides us with a highly sensitive method of identifying antiproton annihilations and effectively rejecting the cosmic-ray background.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

High energy ion backscattering analysis in combination with recently-developed resonance scattering analysis is described, with a stress on precise and quantitative oxygen analysis and its successful application to the characterization and quality estimation of high T_c oxide superconductors. Particularly, the present status of high energy ion backscattering analysis, the review of analytical results for YBa_2Cu_3O_7 _- _x, the estimation of composition and crystalline quality of (La_1 _- _xSr_x)_2CuO_4 by 7 MeV alpha particle backscattering analysis are described.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

A simple, sensitive and rapid method for analysis of granisetron in human plasma, utilizing liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), has been developed and validated to satisfy FDA guidelines for bioanalytical methods. The analyte and internal standard (IS) were isolated from 100ml plasma samples by liquid-liquid extraction (LLE). A Varian 1200l tandem mass spectrometer equipped with an electrospray ionization source was operated in selected reaction monitoring (SRM) mode with the precursor-to-product ion transitions m/z 313.4/138 for granisetron and m/z 270/201 for the IS used for quantitation. The assay exhibited a linear dynamic range of 0.02-20ng/ml for granisetron in human plasma. The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) was 0.02ng/ml with a relative standard deviati...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The purpose of this study was to validate through natural exposure a cut-off level of varicella zoster IgG as protective against infection with varicella zoster virus (VZV). Laboratory testing to determine VZV immune status of pregnant women exposed to varicella is recommended. Quantitative assays are now available which are sensitive and specific. More than 200 consecutive requests for screening in pregnant patients with recent varicella contacts were followed-up by questionnaire. DiaSorin LIAISON and VZV time resolved fluorescence immuno assay (VZV TRFIA) were used to measure VZV antibody level. One hundred fifty out of 209 (72%) questionnaires were returned; 14 patients developed varicella, 129 did not and seven were not known. Patients who had been given VZIG and developed varicella on...

CERN Document Server

We present in this article a detailed quantitative discussion of the measurement of the leptonic mixing angle theta_13 through currently scheduled reactor neutrino oscillation experiments. We thus focus on Double Chooz (Phase I & II), Daya Bay (Phase I & II) and RENO experiments. We perform a unified analysis, including systematics, backgrounds and accurate experimental setup in each case. Each identified systematic error and background impact has been assessed on experimental setups following published data when available and extrapolating from Double Chooz acquired knowledge otherwise. After reviewing the experiments, we present a new analysis of their sensitivities to sin^2(2 theta_13) and study the impact of the different systematics based on the pulls approach. Through this generic statistical analysis we discuss the advantages and drawbacks of each experimental setup.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In the framework of the development of burnup calculation method for commercial fast reactors, a sensitivity analysis was carried out to clarify the dependence of fuel burnup characteristics on nuclear data libraries (NDLs). The following NDLs were compared: JEF-2.2, ENDF/B-VI Release 5, JENDL-3.2 and JENDL-3.3. The NDL-dependence of material balance for main heavy metal nuclides ("2"3"5U, "2"3"8U, "2"3"9Pu, "2"4"0Pu and "2"4"1Pu) was small, since the number densities at the end of one-cycle burnup did not change over 1 or 2% among the above-mentioned libraries. Relatively large differences were found for minor actinide nuclides, especially for "2"3"6U, "2"3"7Np, "2"4"2"mAm, "2"4"3Am and curium isotopes. The number densities for these nuclides after burning up showed remarkable NDL-dependence over 5% through 50%. A burnup sensitivity analysis system based on the generalized perturbation theory enabled us to find out ...

Science.gov (United States)

Spectrophotometric method, using a ratio-recording ultraviolet-absorption spectrophotometer, permits analysis of NaMBT in ethylene glycol-water solutions with high accuracy. It reduces analysis time, requires smaller samples, and is able to detect extremely small concentrations of mercaptobenzothiazole.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Proteins with a high propensity to aggregate can be largely prevented from doing so with surprisingly small changes to their primary structure. By using a combination of rational design and quantitative measurements of aggregation rates, we show that adding a single charge in specific "gatekeeper" regions is sufficient to change the timescale for amyloid fibril growth from minutes to weeks, thereby dramatically reducing the efficiency of this process.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In this report, the quantitative relation between the height equivalent to a theoretical plate (HETP) and the size of ion exchange resin is studied by enriching lithium isotopes with high pressure ion exchange displacement chromatography. The dependence of HETP on the size of the resin can be expressed as H = C x (anti r)sup( ) in which = 2.4 and it is found that Snyder's equation is suitable for such a system of isotope separation as may be explained by the simple displacement mechanism.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

In this paper we present the results of time series analysis for a coal mining region based on partial unmixing. We test the method also known as mixture tuned matched filtering on an eight image Landsat 5 TM and Landsat 7 ETM+ time series covering the period from 1987 to 2003. Common change detection methods often include the comparison of two interactively generated classification results, such as derived from Maximum Likelihood classification. These approaches often yield highly accurate results. However, disadvantages include a strong analyst bias and hardly repeatable results. For a quantitative monitoring of a single surface class' development over time they are often not recommendable. Our goal was to test an unbiased quantitative way to assess the development of coal surfaces, such...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Nowadays there are many sun-protection cosmetics incorporating organic or inorganic UV filters as active ingredients. Chemically stable inorganic sunscreen agents, usually metal oxides, are widely employed in high-SPF (sun protection factor) products. Titanium dioxide is one of the most frequently used inorganic UV filters. It has been used as a pigment for a long period of cosmetic history. With the development of micronization techniques, it has become possible to incorporate titanium dioxide in sunscreen formulations without the previous whitening effect, and hence its use in cosmetics has become an important research topic. However, there are very few works related to quantitation of titanium dioxide in sunscreen products. In this research, we analysed the amounts of titanium dioxide i...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The in situ assembly states of the glucose transport carrier protein in the plasma membrane and in the intracellular (microsomal) storage pool of rat adipocytes were assessed by studying radiation-induced inactivation of the D-glucose-sensitive cytochalasin B binding activities. High energy radiation inactivated the glucose-sensitive cytochalasin B binding of each of these membrane preparations by reducing the total number of the binding sites without affecting the dissociation constant. The reduction in total number of binding sites was analyzed as a function of radiation dose based on target theory, from which a radiation-sensitive mass (target size) was calculated. When the plasma membranes of insulin-treated adipocytes were used, a target size of approximately 58,000 daltons was obtained. For adipocyte microsomal membranes, we obtained target sizes of approximately 112,000 and 109,000 daltons prior ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The diffusion of ion beam injected self-interstitials (I) and their interaction with impurities in crystalline Si has been investigated and modeled. In particular, the I-substitutional carbon (C) interactions have been studied, using a molecular-beam-epitaxy grown Si_1_-_yC_y layer interposed between the shallow I-source and a deeper B-spike (marker for I-concentration). Substitutional C atoms are shown to trap I's, to be removed from their substitutional sites, and to form stable precipitates into the C-rich region. The I-trapping mechanism was quantitatively studied by a simulation code. The reactions causing trapping and deactivation are described. In addition, the boron markers approach was extended to the two dimensional (2D) diffusion. High resolution scanning capacitance microscopy was used for quantitative measurements of the 2D boron transient enhanced diffusion induced on a boron delta array by the I's ion beam ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Experiments in a homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) engine have been conducted with four gasoline surrogate fuel blends. The pure components in the surrogate fuels consisted of n-heptane, isooctane, toluene, ethanol and diisobutylene and fuel sensitivities (RON-MON) in the fuel blends ranged from two to nine. The operating conditions for the engine were p{sub in}=0.1 and 0.2 MPa, T{sub in}=80 and 250 C, {phi}=0.25 in air and engine speed 1200 rpm. A semidetailed chemical kinetic model (142 species and 672 reactions) for gasoline surrogate fuels, validated against ignition data from experiments conducted in shock tubes for gasoline surrogate fuel blends at 1.0{<=} p{<=}5.0MPa, 700{<=} T{<=}1200 K and {phi}=1.0, was successfully used to qualitatively predict the HCCI experiments using a single zone modeling approach. The fuel blends that had higher fuel sensitivity were more resistant to autoignition for ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In not infected knee prostheses bone scintigraphy is a possible method to diagnose mechanical loosening, and therefore, to affect treatment regimes in symptomatic patients. However, hitherto studies showed controversial results for the reliability of bone scintigraphy in diagnosing loosened knee prostheses by using asymptomatic control groups. Therefore, the aim of our study was to optimize the interpretation procedure and to evaluate the accuracy using results from revision surgery as standard. Methods: Retrospectively, we were able to examine the tibial component in 31 cemented prostheses. In this prostheses infection was excluded by histological or bacteriological examination during revision surgery. To quantify bone scintigraphy, we used medial and lateral tibial regions with a reference region from the contralateral femur. Results: to differentiate between loosened and intact prostheses we found a threshold of 5.0 for the maximum tibia to femur ratio of the both tibial regions and ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This paper described the application of an AC surface probe, similar to presently used eddy current probes, to the measurement of DC transport critical currents and critical state dissipation in high T_c superconductors. It has been shown that the probe can provide quantitative measurement of the full field penetration in superconducting samples by measuring the response of AC induced screening currents for superconducting materials in the form of tapes with overlayers of silver. In this manner, the AC probe can be used to replace the contact DC probe for determining critical currents in a noncontacting and local manner suitable for scanning over or along the sample.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A method is proposed for the quantitative high-temperature isolation of /sup 111/In from silver irradiated by ..cap alpha..-particles into a gas phase containing a mixture of HCl and H/sub 2/O with a total pressure of about 3 Pa for these gases. It is shown that the indium evolved into the gas phase probably occurs in the form of at least three compounds, viz.., the trichloride, monochloride, and oxychloride, which have adsorption temperatures on quartz of around 385, 475, and 655 K, respectively. All these compounds are readily washed from the surface of quartz apparatus by a weak (0.05 M) solution of hydrochloric acid.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The electrochemical behaviour and fracture morphology of homogenized and sensitized type SAE 304 stainless steel U bent specimens, in 3% NaCl solution, at pH=2.0 and pH=7.0 both at room temperature and 100"0C was studied. Polarization curves, galvanostatic and potentiostatic experiments were run. It could be observed that high temperature and low pH favour transgranular cracking and longer sensitization times lower fracture time and tend to give rise to intergranular fracture. Light sensitization can produce transgranular cracking even at room temperature, when the homogenized alloy does not present stress-corrosion cracking for the same condition. (Author).

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Abstract Lyme neuroborreliosis (LNB) is a serious but treatable disease. The diagnosis of LNB poses a challenge to clinicians, and improved tests are needed. The C6-peptide ELISA is frequently used on serum but not on cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Data on the sensitivity of the C6-peptide ELISA in CSF in patients suffering from LNB have been conflicting. Serum-CSF pairs from 59 LNB patients, 36 Lyme non-neuroborreliosis cases, 69 infectious meningitis/encephalitis controls and 74 neurological controls were tested in a C6-peptide ELISA. With the optimal cut-off of 1.1, the sensitivity of the C6-peptide ELISA for LNB patients in CSF was 95%, and the specificity was 83% in the Lyme non-neuroborreliosis patients, 96% in the infectious controls, and 97% in the neurological controls. These results ...

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A method of patterning n-type GaAs, InP, InGaAs, and InGaAsP by photoelectrochemical (PEC) etching in conjunction with a submicron focused ion beam (FIB) at low dose is described. The ion beam is used to produce damage in a desired pattern in the material. Subsequent PEC etching of the material reveals the ion induced features in relief. The procedure is highly sensitive, requiring a dose of only 5 x 10/sup 9/ ions/cm/sup 2/ for the differential etch to become apparent. The sensitivity allows rapid pattern generation in our FIB system.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The proposed Sudbury Neutrino Observatory is based on a Cherenkov detector which has a total of 1000 tonne of heavy water and 1800 tonne of light water for its sensitive volume. The detector is optimized for the measurement of extra-terrestrial low energy electron neutrinos and electron antineutrinos spectra as well as the total neutrino flux independent of neutrino flavours. It will delineate the Standard Solar Model and neutrino propagation aspects of the solar neutrino problem, provide detailed information on the dynamics of stellar collapse and measure neutrino masses and oscillation parameters with high sensitivity.

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The time-temperature-precipitation diagrams and the resulting time-temperature-sensitization diagrams have been established and are presented for today's current nickel-chromium-molybdenum alloys C-4, C-276, 22 and the recently developed alloy 59. Compared to those materials alloy 625 behaves differently due to its high niobium content. In addition, also the precipitation and sensitization of alloy G-3 has been established. Under the materials considered alloy C-276 has the strongest tendency to precipitate the intermetallics Mu and P together with the carbide M{sub 6}C at intermediate temperatures, followed by the alloys 22 and 59. The tendency to sensitization in the sense of the 50{mu}m (2 mils) intercrystalline penetration criterion when exposed to the ASTM G-28, method A test solution is greatest with alloy C-276, and decreases over the alloys 22, 59 and G-3 to alloy 625. ...

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The authors have localized and characterized 2-125I-iodomelatonin binding sites in the chicken brain using in vitro quantitative autoradiography. Binding sites were widely distributed throughout the chicken brain, predominantly in regions associated with the visual system. The specific binding of 2-125I-iodomelatonin to discrete chicken brain areas was found to be saturable, reversible, and of high affinity. The specific binding of 2-125I-iodomelatonin (75 pm) was quantitated for 40 identifiable brain regions. Eight brain regions were chosen for binding characterization and pharmacological analysis: optic tectum, Edinger-Westphal nucleus, oculomotor nucleus, nucleus rotundus, ventral supraoptic decussation, ventrolateral geniculate nucleus, neostriatum, and ectostriatum. These regions showed no rostral-caudal gradient in 2-125I-iodomelatonin specific binding, and saturation analysis revealed a single class of ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Cardiac tumours may display diverse symptoms through potential involvement of any structure of the heart. We describe a case of a highly malignant thymoma with involvement of different cardiac structures with important haemodynamic compromise. With the high sensitivity of transthoracic echocardiography for detection of intracardiac masses, computed tomography and magnetic resonance add essential structural preoperative information on the tumour and surrounding tissue as vessels, pleura, lung and mediastinum.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Using high resolution and high sensitivity IRAS data at 12 and 25 microns low mass stars were studied which have recently formed in the Ophiuchus, Corona Australis, and IC1396 dark clouds. The successful application of these techniques to the Rho Ophiuchi infrared cluster is briefly described. The status of research performed is also presented.

Science.gov (United States)

Four-enzyme section of the shikimate pathway (Aro B, D, E, and K) of Streptococcus pneumoniae has been studied. Kinetic properties of the individual enzymes and three- and four-enzyme linked reactions have been characterized in vitro. On the basis of the data measured in spectrophotometric and LC-MS experiments, kinetic mechanisms of the enzymes have been suggested and all kinetic parameters have been identified. Kinetic models for these three- and four-enzyme sections of the shikimate pathway have been constructed and validated. The model of the four-enzyme section of shikimate pathway has been employed to design an inhibition-sensitive reconstituted pathway for a high-throughput screening effort on the shikimate pathway. It was demonstrated that using the model it was possible to optimize this reconstituted pathway in such a way to provide equal sensitivity of the enzymes to inhibition. PMID:16921527

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In this work, a highly-sensitive polymeric membrane ion selective electrode for determination of tetracycline was constructed by using molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) particles as quasi-ionophore. The water-compatible MIP particles targeting tetracycline were synthesized with tetracycline as a template molecule, methacrylic acid as a functional monomer, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as a cross-linker, 2,2?-azobisisobutyronitrile as an initiator and lanthanum ion as a mediator. Benefited from the distinctive performance of the quasi-ionophore and the optimized composition of the membrane and the inner filling solution, the lower detection limit of the electrode was decreased to about 1 ? 10?8 mol/l. It exhibited a good electrode slope 59.8 mV/decade near the theoretical Nernstian one, ...

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Analyses of food-borne pathogens are of great importance in order to minimize the health risk for customers. Thus, very sensitive and rapid detection methods are required. Current conventional culture techniques are very time consuming. Modern immunoassays and biochemical analysis also require pre-enrichment steps resulting in a turnaround time of at least 24 h. Biomagnetic separation (BMS) is a promising more rapid method. In this study we describe the isolation of high affine and specific peptides from a phage-peptide library, which combined with BMS allows the detection of Salmonella spp. with a similar sensitivity as that of immunomagnetic separation using antibodies.

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This paper summarizes the current scientific evidence that improved indoor environmental quality can improve work performance and health. The review indicates that work and school work performance is affected by indoor temperature and ventilation rate. Pollutant source removal can sometimes improve work performance. Based on formal statistical analyses of existing research results, quantitative relationships are provided for the linkages of work performance with indoor temperature and outdoor air ventilation rate. The review also indicates that improved health and related financial savings are obtainable from reduced indoor tobacco smoking, prevention and remediation of building dampness, and increased ventilation. Example cost-benefit analyses indicate that many measures to improve indoor temperature control and increase ventilation rates will be highly cost effective, with benefit-cost ratios as high as 80 and annual ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

We report on a promising approach to high-sensitivity anisotropy measurements using a high-finesse cavity locked by optical feedback to a diode laser. We provide a simple and effective way to decouple the weak anisotropy of interest from the inherent mirror's birefringence whose drift may be identified as the key limiting parameter in cavity-based techniques. We demonstrate a shot-noise-limited phase shift resolution previously inaccessible in an optical cavity, readily achieving the state-of-the-art level of 3x10"-"1"3 rad.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A method is proposed for the quantitative isolation of radiothallium in gas form from proton-bombarded lead of mass up to 20 g. The molten lead is kept at about 800 K in hydrofluoric-acid vapor (HF/H_2O #approx =# 1) at a reduced pressure (#<=#4 Pa). We used 99.9% lead with the U-240 cyclotron at the Nuclear Research Institute, Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR, or the phasotron at the Join Nuclear Research Institute, which gave protons at 65 and 680 MeV correspondingly.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Biomonitoring requires the application of batteries of different biomarkers, as environmental contaminants induce multiple responses in organisms that are not necessarily correlated. Omic technologies were proposed as an alternative to conventional biomarkers since these techniques quantitatively monitor many biological molecules in a high-throughput manner and thus provide a general appraisal of biological responses altered by exposure to contaminants. As the studies using omic technologies increase, it is becoming clear that any single omic approach may not be sufficient to characterize the complexity of ecosystems. This work aims to provide a preliminary working scheme for the use of combined transcriptomic and proteomic methodologies in environmental biomonitoring. There are difficulti...

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An apparatus was designed and built for the purpose of exposing samples of solid polymers to varying temperatures, atmospheres and stress levels while quantitatively recording the resulting chemiluminescence. Preliminary data were acquired with this apparatus that show a correlation between an enhanced chemiluminescence signal at a low level of applied stress and a decrease in tensile strength for the most commonly used epoxy resin in high performance fiber composites, TGMDA DDS. The studies with cellular silicone cushions (which are used to accommodate thermal expansion and contraction) have defined the temperature regimes in which accelerated aging tests are valid for extrapolation to ambient temperature. Preliminary data on Kevlar fibers is also discussed.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Full text. Here we present a status report of the Schenberg antenna, which started commissioning runs in September 2006 under the full support of FAPESP. In its first commissioning runs we tested three preliminary parametric transducer systems, which did not achieve a high enough performance for placing the antenna sensitivity in the range of the calibrator capacitor. Instead of improving the calibrator, making it capable of introducing a larger input force, we decided to go to a radical upgrading operation: replacing the three transducers for a complete set of six transducers, with better sensitivity and arranged according to the truncated icosahedron configuration, plus two extra ones; starting to install the dilution refrigerator; installing wires, cables, and amplifiers for the complete set of transducer circuits; and a new suspension and vibration isolation system for the cabling and microstrip antennas. We also have ...

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The synovial and bone uptake of tracer in the knees of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) was quantified using {sup 99}Tc{sup m}-hexamethyl propylene amine oxime-labelled leucocytes and {sup 99}Tc{sup m}-methylene diphosphonate (MDP), respectively. Significant neutrophil migration and MDP uptake occurred in the knees of patients with RA irrespective of the disease duration. In all but one patient neutrophil migration was reduced after intra-articular steroid injection. The change in MDP uptake after steroid injection was variable. There was a significant correlation between the percentage reduction in neutrophil migration and pain score, while the latter correlated poorly with the change in MDP uptake. The quantification of the neutrophil component of the inflammatory process is a sensitive index for monitoring RA activity and response to pharmacological interventions, while quantitative bone scintigraphy should not be employed to monitor ...

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Hepatobiliary scintigraphy is the only non-invasive technique providing real-time assessment of hepatocytes function and bile progression from the liver to the intestine; for this reason it is of great importance in the study of jaundice and many other disorders of the liver and the biliary tract in children. Ultrasonography is the initial method of evaluating the intra- and extrahepatic bile ducts dilatation: the differential diagnosis between biliary atresia and neonatal hepatitis cannot however be done without hepatobiliary scintigraphy. Cystic fibrosis patients also require hepatobiliary scintigraphy; liver and biliary tract disease can really occur independently of the underlying disease severity and the presence of steatorrhoea. Hepatobiliary imaging in children who have undergone liver transplantation is of major importance; it can assess vascularity, parenchymal function biliary drainage, possible presence of a bile leak and obstruction; it has very good ...

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Gene analysis was used to determined the presence, abundance and phylogenetic affiliation of methanogens that exist in gas-hydrate-bearing sediment samples obtained from 23 drill cores from the JAPEX/JNOC/GSC et al. Mallik 5L-38 gas hydrate research well. Rates of methane production were examined using sediment-inoculated enrichments containing {sup 14}C-labeled carbon substrates, carbon dioxide and acetate. Archaeal 16S rDNA was only detected in 6 of the samples, resulting in 8 sequences with relationships to the Miscellaneous Crenarchaeotic Group (7 clones) and the Subsurface Euryarchaeotic Group (1 clone). The single Euryarchaeota sequence did not appear to be related to methanogens. Subsamples from the cores showed variable results upon DNA extraction and amplification. Methanogenic Coenzyme M (CoM) was detected in 13 of the 20 cores, but methanogenic methyl CoM reductase genes were not amplified from the samples when using a sensitive ...

Science.gov (United States)

Varying load can cause changes in a measured gearbox vibration signal. However, conventional techniques for fault diagnosis are based on the assumption that changes in vibration signal are only caused by deterioration of the gearbox. There is a need to develop a technique to provide accurate state indicator of gearbox under fluctuating load conditions. This paper presents an approach to gear fault diagnosis based on complex Morlet continuous wavelet transform under this condition. Gear motion residual signal, which represents the departure of time synchronously averaged signal from the average tooth-meshing vibration, is analyzed as source data due to its lower sensitiveness to the alternating load condition. A fault growth parameter based on the amplitude of wavelet transform is proposed to evaluate gear fault advancement quantitatively. We found that this parameter is insensitive to varying load and can correctly indicate early gear fault. ...

Science.gov (United States)

Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) causes 25-30% of cases of antibiotic associated diarrhea and most cases of pseudomembranous colitis. Patients presenting with diarrhea after hospitalization for 3 or more days should be tested for C. difficile. There are many options available for testing, each of which has inherent advantages and disadvantages. Most laboratories perform toxin testing using an enzyme immunoassay method. In general these tests have sensitivities ranging from 60 to 70% and specificities of 98%. When using these methods, symptomatic patients with negative tests should be tested by another more sensitive method. Until recently, cell culture cytotoxicity neutralization assays (CCNAs) were considered the gold standard in the U.S. A two-step algorithm using an EIA for glutamate dehydrogenase detection followed by testing positives using CCNA, offered an improved alternative until the availability of molecular assays. Although early ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Molybdenum dioxo bis acetylacetonate shows a retention of about 31% for both "9"9Mo and "1"0"1Mo, with reactor irradiations at ambient temperature. But its radiolytic stability and resistance to hydrolysis are too low for application to "9"9Mo enrichment. The molybdenum (II) carboxylates and the arene molybdenum (O)tricaronyls show high retentions. These complexes are also air and water sensitive in solution. (orig.).

Wastenet

...) Abstract: Fluorescence microscopic imaging is widely used in biomedical research to study molecular and cellular processes in cell culture or tissue samples. This is motivated by the high inherent sensitivity of fluorescence techniques, the spatial resolution that compares favorably with cellular dimensions, the stability of the fluorescent labels used and the sophisticated strategies that have been developed for selectively labeling target molecules. More recently, two and ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Due to biological effects of magnetic fields of high voltage transmission lines and induced effects on has pipe line, telecommunication system and interference with sensitive electronic equipment, many effort have been done to reduce transmission lines magnetic fields and several ideas have been introduced. In this paper we review three methods: phase split, shielded and compacted line methods. With aid of a developed software programme these methods are then applied to transmission lines and the results are analyzed.

Science.gov (United States)

In this work, energy-based features for gear fault diagnosis and prediction are proposed. The instantaneous energy density is shown to obtain high values when defected teeth are engaged. Three methods are compared in terms of sensitivity, reliability and computation effectiveness. The Wigner Ville distribution is contrasted to the wavelet transform and the newly proposed empirical mode decomposition scheme. It is shown that all three methods are capable of a reliable prediction. An empirical law, which relates the energy content to the crack magnitude is established.

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A simple arrangement of standard horizontal coaxial Ge(Li) detectors with the aim of constructing a Compton linear-polarimeter was tested. High polarization sensitivity and detection efficiency were achieved. The characteristics of the polarimeter and analysis of the observed quantities in terms of the linear-polarization mixing coefficient Hsub(l)(LL') are described.

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The report investigates a number of joining techniques, i.e. isothermal solidification, ultrasonic welding, thermocompression, and glueing. (HW) [Deutsch] In diesem Vorhaben wurden verschiedene Verbindungstechniken untersucht: Isotherme Erstarrung; Ultraschall-Schweissen; Thermokompression; Leitkleben. (HW)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The first step in the protection of the environment is the control of pollutant level in the components of the environment. The application is compared of radionuclide X-ray fluorescence analysis (RXFA) used for this purpose with polarographic and nuclear analytical techniques. The advantage of RXFA is its high sensitivity and selectivity, its low time and cost exactingness. The origins and development of RXFA are described. (Ha).

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Plutonium metal is produced by reducing PuF{sub 4} prepared from PuO{sub 2} by fluorination. Both fluorination and reduction are batch processes at the Los Alamos Plutonium Facility. The conversion of plutonium oxide to fluoride greatly increases the neutron yield, a result of the high cross section for alpha-neutron ({alpha},n) reactions on fluorine targets compared to the (more than 100 times) smaller {alpha},n yield on oxygen targets. Because of the increase, total neutron counting can be used to monitor the conversion process. This monitoring ability can lead to an improved metal product, reduced scrap for recycle, waste reduction, minimized reagent usage, and reduce personnel radiation exposures. A new stirred-bed fluorination process has been developed simultaneously with a recent evaluation of an automated neutron-counting instrument for quantitative process monitoring. Neutrons are counted with polyethylene-moderated {sup 3}He-gas ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A new microdensitometry method for quantitative assessment of bone mineral content using Fuji computed radiography (FCR) was developed and the results were compared with those obtained by the conventional film-screen method. Using both methods, X-ray pictures of the 2nd metacarpal bone were taken with a reference aluminum step wedge in nine normal subjects and nine parameters representing the width and density of bone marrow and cortex were calculated in middle of the bone shaft. Interobserver reproducibility assessed for three parameters was significantly higher in the FCR method than the conventional one. The value of #SIGMA#GS computed by the FCR method, that is equivalent to the net bone density of the transverse section of the shaft, showed higher correlation with the one obtained by computed tomography in comparison with the conventional method. In our FCR method, moreover, interobserver reproducibility and accuracy was improved by employing automatic ...

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Microstructural evolution due to thermal effects was studied in micro solder joints (55 {+-} 5 {micro}m). The composition of the Sn/Pb solder studied was found to be hypereutectic with a tin content of 65--70 wt%.This was determined by Energy Dispersive X-ray analysis and confirmed with quantitative stereology. The quantitative stereological value of the surface-to-volume ratio was used to characterize and compare the coarsening during thermal cycling from 0--160 C to the coarsening during annealing at 160 C. The initial coarsening of the annealed samples was more rapid than the cycled samples, but tapered off as time to the one-half as expected. Because the substrates to which the solder was bonded have different thermal expansion coefficients, the cycled samples experienced a mechanical strain with thermal cycling. The low-strain cycled samples had a 2.8% strain imposed on the solder and failed by 1,000 cycles, despite undergoing less ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Genetic analysis of resistance of plant introduction (PI) 438489B to soybean cyst nematode (SCN) have shown that this PI is highly resistant to many SCN HG types. However, validation of the previously detected quantitative trait loci (QTL) has not been done. In this study, 250 F2:3 progeny of a Magellan (susceptible)??PI 438489B (resistant) cross were used for primary genetic mapping to detect putative QTL for resistance to five SCN HG types. QTL confirmation study was subsequently conducted using F6:7 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) derived from the same cross. Simple sequence repeat (SSR) and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers were employed for molecular genotyping. Interval mapping (IM), permutation tests, cofactor selection, and composite interval mapping (CIM) were performe...

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In the search for new brain imaging agents for use with single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), quantitative structure activity relationship (QSAR) analysis of the correlations between initial brain uptake and physicochemical parameters like lipophilicity, log P, molecular weight, log MW and log U/D (undissociated/dissociated), of the {sup 99m}Tc-DADT (diaminedithiol) complexes and {sup 99m}Tc-PAO (propyleneaminoxime) complexes have been analyzed. High correlations are found for both the {sup 99m}Tc-DADT complexes (r = 0.94) and for the {sup 99m}Tc-PAO complexes (r = 0.83) which are significant at 99.9 and 99.5 percentile level, respectively. These results will help the further design of better ligands for {sup 99m}Tc in brain imaging. (author).

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Classical methods for the study of complex fluid phase behavior include static and dynamic equilibrium cells that usually require vapor and liquid recirculation. These are sophisticated, costly apparatus that require highly trained operators, usually months of labor-intensive work per mixture, and the data analysis is also rather complex. Simpler approaches to the fundamental study of azeotropes are highly desirable, even if they provide only selected cuts through the phase diagram. Recently, we introduced an advanced distillation curve measurement method featuring: (1) a composition explicit data channel for each distillate fraction (for both qualitative and quantitative analysis), (2) temperature measurements that are true thermodynamic state points that can be modeled with an equation o...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The alloy type 'alloy 800' with its different variants is used for numerous components in high-temperature reactor (HTR) plants, e.g. for hot-gas conductors, the high-pressure part of steam generators, superheaters, steam collecting vessels and live steam conductors. This study deals with the evaluation of creep rupture tests on 28 welded joints of alloy 800 with an accumulated test duration of 410 years, with the objective to obtain quantitative information on a possible loss of strength in comparison with the unwelded material. The longest test period of an individual test amounted to 98,000 h and the analyzed test temperature range lay between 550"0 and 1000"0C. (orig./MM).

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Effect of strain rate, temperature and grain size in the climb-controlled dislocation creep region for AZ31 magnesium alloy was examined at lower temperature of {proportional_to}473 K. The flow stress was not affected by the difference in grain size. The strain rate sensitivity, m, was obtained 0.14 and 0.2 at low temperatures in high strain rate and at high temperature in low strain rate, respectively. It was found that the notion of effective diffusivity could express the dominant diffusion process during climb-controlled dislocation creep behavior uniquely. (orig.)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

High temperature deformation behavior of an alpha + beta titanium alloy Ti-3Al-4V has been investigated at 910 deg. C. by using the method of cross head speed cycling. On the basis of flow stress, strain rate and strain rate sensitivity data, the alloy was found to exhibit strain hardening at this temperature which resulted in degradation in superplastic properties of the alloy. A high beta-phase volume fraction and grain-growth in both alpha and beta phases were considered responsible for the observed hardening effect. (author)

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Characteristics of lead-zirconate-titanate (PZT) elements were studied by directly irradiating them with a 400 MeV/n Xe beam. The elements were sensitive to 10{sup 4} Xe ions and their output amplitudes were proportional to the beam intensity. An ensemble of those output amplitudes displayed a Bragg-curve-like response towards the range of 400 MeV/n Xe ion. We discuss the potential of PZT elements as a radiation detector and their application to high-intensity and high-energy detectors. (author)

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Quantitative microscopy has been extensively used in biomedical research and has provided significant insights into structure and dynamics at the cell and tissue level. The entire procedure...Full Text Available

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stable boiloff of core water during a severe LWR accident, that is, boiloff driven only by the decay power generated below the water level, is tractable analytically and is relatively insensitive to axial power distribution. As might be expected, calculated accident event times are sensitive to the fidelity of the decay power model. During later stages of boiloff, heat transfer or transport of energy from above the water level to the residual water can result in an unstable condition during which the boiloff rate increases greatly. The unstable boiloff phenomenon illustrates the highly nonlinear influence of core heat transfer during meltdown and emphasizes the great accuracy requirements which attend the modeling of the accident during periods of enhanced heat transfer when significant zirconium oxidation is possible.

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Many nondestructive beam position monitors are known. However, these devices can not be used for DC particle beam diagnostics. We investigated a method of beam diagnostics applicable for the operative control of DC high power e-beam inside closed waveguide. A design of the detector for determination of{open_quote} center of mass {close_quote} position of DC particle beam was developed. It was shown that the monitor can be used as a nondestructive method for the beam position control in resonators. Magnetic field of the particle beam outside a resonator is used. The detector consists of the steel yokes and magnetic field sensors. The sensors measure magnetic fluxes in the steel yokes fixed outside the resonator. When the particle beam changes its position, these magnetic fluxes also change. Beam displacement sensitivity of the monitor depends on the steel yoke dimensions. The detector sensitivity is equal to 1 Gauss/mm for ...

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Methods for improving the sensitivity of scintillation cells for radon concentration measurements were studied with emphasis on improving light collection efficiency. This allows the length and hence the volume of the cell to be increased. Variables studied were choice of scintillator material, its method of application and thickness, length of cell, cell material, type and configuration of reflectors, choice of photomultipliers, and factors affecting background. Response from various areas of the cell surface was studied with an alpha source and with radon filling. Coating the window with phosphor was found to be counter-productive. The optimum results obtained were with the inside of the cell (other than the window) covered with a thick layer of ZnS(Ag), or with a thick layer of reflective material coated with a thin layer of phosphor. With it, a 10 cm diameter plexiglass cell can be extended to at least 50 cm length without difficulty from insufficient pulse ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A poly(ether urethane) (PEUR)/poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO)/SiO2 based nanocomposite polymer is prepared and employed in the construction of high efficiency all-solid-state dye-sensitized nanocrystalline solar cells. The introduction of low-molecular weight PEUR prepolymer into PEO electrolyte has greatly enhance the electrolyte performance by both improving the interfacial contact properties of electrode/electrolyte and decreasing the PEO crystallization, which were confirmed by XRD and SEM characteristics. The effects of polymer composition, nano SiO2 content on the ionic conductivity and I3- ions diffusion of polymer-blend electrolyte are investigated. The optimized composition yields an energy conversion efficiency of 3.71% under irradiation by white light (100 mW cm-2).

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death specially among elderly. Coronary angiography is the best diagnostic method in the patients, but is unfortunately an invasive procedure with its inherent risks. Myocardial perfusion scan is a noninvasive and sensitive method for evaluation of Coronary artery disease and is suggested by many investigators in recent years. In this study, 64 patients who had a Tc99m-MIBI SPECT myocardial perfusion study at our department, underwent coronary angiography within 4 months. Correlation of the methods revealed that SPECT Tc99m -MIBI had a high sensitivity and specificity in our hand, which is comparable with international findings.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Luminescent materials are widely used for imaging and sensing owing to their high sensitivity, rapid response and facile detection by many optical technologies. Typically materials must be chemically tailored to achieve intense, photostable fluorescence, oxygen-sensitive phosphorescence or dual emission for ratiometric sensing, often by blending two dyes in a matrix. Dual-emissive materials combining all of these features in one easily tunable molecular platform are desirable, but when fluorescence and phosphorescence originate from the same dye, it can be challenging to vary relative fluorescence/phosphorescence intensities for practical sensing applications. Heavy-atom substitution alone increases phosphorescence by a given, not variable amount. Here, we report a strategy for modulating ...

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The purified integral membrane protein, band 3, from human erythrocytes was inserted into egg lecithin liposomes. The insertion of band 3 was determined from thermal transition data from the analysis of the C-H stretching region bands recorded at temperatures from 25 to -22[sup o]C. Raman spectra show that band 3 considerably broadens and lowers the thermal transition of egg lecithin liposomes, suggesting the insertion of band 3. The band 3-inserted liposomes were irradiated with gamma-rays (40 Gy) and the radiation target groups were determined by the analysis of the structural sensitive Raman bands in the 1600-1700 cm[sup -1] (amide I), 1200-1300 cm[sup -1] (amide III) and 550-1030 cm[sup -1] (side chain amino groups) regions. The radiation-sensitive groups as identified from Raman spectra in the region 550-1030 cm[sup -1] are tyrosines and cysteines. The radiation-induced changes in the secondary structure were determined from amide I and ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A high resolution Compton telescope has been identified by the Gamma Ray Astronomy Program Working Group (GRAPWG) as the highest priority major mission in gamma ray astrophysics following GLAST. This mission should provide 25-100 times improved sensitivity, relative to CGRO and INTEGRAL, for MeV gamma ray lines. It must have good performance for narrow and broad lines and for discrete and diffuse emissions. Several instrumental approaches are being pursued to achieve these goals. We discuss issues relating to this mission including alternative detector concepts, instrumental configurations, and background reduction techniques. We have pursued the development of position-sensitive solid-state detectors (Ge, Si) for a high spectral resolution Compton telescope mission. A #approx#1 m2 germanium Compton telescope of position-sensitive germanium detectors was the basis for one of the ...

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Protein motions on all timescales faster than molecular tumbling are encoded in the spectral density. The dissection of complex protein dynamics is typically performed using relaxation rates determined at high and ultra-high field. Here we expand this range of the spectral density to low fields through field cycling using the nucleocapsid protein of the SARS coronavirus as a model system. The field-cycling approach enables site-specific measurements of R{sub 1} at low fields with the sensitivity and resolution of a high-field magnet. These data, together with high-field relaxation and heteronuclear NOE, provide evidence for correlated rigid-body motions of the entire {beta}-hairpin, and corresponding motions of adjacent loops with a time constant of 0.8 ns (mesodynamics). MD simulations substantiate these findings and provide direct verification of the time scale and collective ...

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We tried to apply a quartz crystal as a sensor by using the resonant frequency and the resistance properties of quartz crystals. Four kinds of fatty acids that have the same head groups were coated on the surfaces of the quartz crystals, and the shift of the resonant frequency and the resistance were observed based on the lengths of the tail groups. Myristic acid (C{sub 14}), palmitic acid (C{sub 16}), stearic acid (C{sub 18}), and arachidic acid (C{sub 20}) were deposited on the surfaces of quartz crystals by using the Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) method. As a result, the resonant frequency change was more sensitive to high molecular-weight fatty acids than to low molecular-weight ones. We also observed the effect of temperature on stearic acid LB films, and the response properties of quartz crystals coated with stearic-acid LB films to organic gases were investigated. As a result, the sensitivity of quartz crystals to organic ...

Science.gov (United States)

Simple and low cost biosensor based on screen-printed electrode for sensitive detection of some alkylphenols was developed, by entrapment of HRP in a nanocomposite gel based on single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([BMIM][PF(6)]) ionic liquid. Raman and FTIR spectroscopy, CV and EIS studies demonstrate the interaction between SWCNTs and ionic liquid. The nanocomposite gel, SWCNT-[BMIM][PF(6)] provides to the modified sensor a considerable enhanced electrocatalytic activity toward hydrogen peroxide reduction. The HRP based biosensor exhibits high sensitivity and good stability, allowing a detection of the alkylphenols at an applied potential of -0.2V vs. Ag/AgCl, in linear range from 5.5 to 97.7?M for 4-t-octylphenol and respectively, between 5.5 and 140?M for 4-n-nonylphenol, with a response time of about 5s. The detection limit was 1.1?M for 4-t-octylphenol, and ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Radionuclide X-ray fluorescence analysis and fast neutron activation analysis were used for the determination of chromium. The excitation source for X-ray fluorescence analysis was a ring-shaped "2"4"1Am source with an activity of 18.5x10"9 Bq. SYNPOR filters of 35 mm in diameter were used for the measurement. The 5.414 keV Cr peak was measured with a Si(Li) detector. The sensitivity was 0.05 mg for a period of measurement of 1000 s. A neutron generator with an emission of 10"9 s"-"1 was used as the source of fast neutrons. "5"2V and "5"3V, the products of nuclear reaction with Cr, were measured gamma spectrometrically with a Ge(Li) detector. The sensitivity for Cr is 0.015 mg, in the presence of Mn which causes interference the sensitivity is a mere 0.075 mg. The mentioned methods were used to determine total Cr and Cr(VI) in welding aerosols. It was found that the most toxic form, i.e., Cr(VI), is released during manual ...

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This report compares the performance characteristics of /sup 10/B-lined and fission-neutron detectors in gamma-ray fluxes typical of the fields to be encountered during nondestructive testing of irradiated light-water fuel assemblies stored in water. Using the optimum time constants for each of the /sup 10/B-lined detectors, the 0.25-in.-dia detector had a 5% loss in neutron count sensitivity at 7000 rad/h. Similarly, the 0.5-in.-dia detector had a 7% loss at 13,000 rad/h and the 1-in.-dia detector had a 5% loss in sensitivity at 1000 rad/h. Uranium-235 fission chambers were operated successfully in fields above 100,000 rad/h with no loss in neutron counting sensitivity. Shielding calculations were done to determine the appropriate shield thickness needed for a /sup 10/B-lined neutron detector to operate in a 50,000 rad/h field, typical of light-water-reactor spent-fuel assemblies stored in water. 7 refs., 4 figs., 9 tabs.

Science.gov (United States)

BackgroundXMRV (xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus) is the first known example of an exogenous gammaretrovirus that can infect humans. A limited number of reports suggest that XMRV is intrinsically resistant to many of the antiretroviral drugs used to treat HIV-1 infection, but is sensitive to a small subset of these inhibitors. In the present study, we used a novel marker transfer assay to directly compare the antiviral drug sensitivities of XMRV and HIV-1 under identical conditions in the same host cell type.ResultsWe extend the findings of previous studies by showing that, in addition to AZT and tenofovir, XMRV and HIV-1 are equally sensitive to AZddA (3'-azido-2',3'-dideoxyadenosine), AZddG (3'-azido-2',3'-dideoxyguanosine) and adefovir. These results indicate that specific 3'-azido or acyclic nucleoside analog inhibitors of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (RT) also block XMRV infection with comparable efficacy ...

Science.gov (United States)

Molecular genetic markers can be used to identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) for thermal resistance and this has allowed characterization of a major QTL for knockdown resistance to high temperature in Drosophila melanogaster. The QTL showed trade-off associations with cold resistance under laboratory conditions. However, assays of thermal tolerance conducted in the laboratory may not necessarily reflect performance at varying temperatures in the field. Here we tested if lines with different genotypes in this QTL show different thermal performance under high and low temperatures in the field using a release recapture assay. We found that lines carrying the QTL genotype for high thermal tolerance were significantly better at locating resources in the field releases under hot temperatures while the QTL line carrying the contrasting genotype were superior at cold temperatures. Further, we studied ...

Science.gov (United States)

No Abstract Available

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Published in summary form only.

KoreaScience (Korea)

Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This report covers the progress made on the title project for the project period. Four major areas of inquiry are being pursued. Advanced solid state NMR methods are being developed to assay the distribution of the various important functional groups that determine the reactivity of coals. Special attention is being paid to methods that are compatible with the very high magic angle sample spinning rates needed for operation at the high magnetic field strengths available today. Polarization inversion methods utilizing the difference in heat capacities of small groups of spins are particularly promising. Methods combining proton-proton spin diffusion with [sup 13]C CPMAS readout are being developed to determine the connectivity of functional groups in coals in a high sensitivity relay type of experiment. Additional work is aimed at delineating the role of methyl group rotation in the proton NMR relaxation ...

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Structural silicides have important high temperature applications in oxidizing and aggressive environments. Most prominent are MoSi{sub 2}-based materials, which are borderline ceramic-intermetallic compounds. MoSi{sub 2} single crystals exhibit macroscopic compressive ductility at temperatures below room temperature in some orientations. Polycrystalline MoSi{sub 2} possesses elevated temperature creep behavior which is highly sensitive to grain size. MoSi{sub 2}-Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} composites show an important combination of oxidation resistance, creep resistance, and low temperature fracture toughness. Current potential applications of MoSi{sub 2}-based materials include furnace heating elements, molten metal lances, industrial gas burners, aerospace turbine engine components, diesel engine glow plugs, and materials for glass processing.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Abstract The brain is highly sensitive to environmental hypoxia. Little is known, however, about the neuropsychological effects of high altitude residence in the developing brain. We recently described only minor changes in processing speed in native Bolivian children and adolescents living at approximately 3700-m. However, evidence for loss of cerebral autoregulation above this altitude (4000-m) suggests a potential threshold of hypoxia severity over which neuropsychological functioning may be compromised. We conducted physiological and neuropsychological assessments in 62 Bolivian children and adolescents living at La Paz (-3700-m) and El Alto (-4100-m) in order to address this issue. Groups were equivalent in terms of age, gender, social class, schooling, parental education and genetic ...

CERN Document Server

Simple, one-zone models for inhomogeneous chemical evolution of the Galactic halo are used to predict the number fraction of zero-metallicity, Population III stars, which currently is empirically estimated at < 4e-4. These analytic models minimize the number of free parameters, highlighting the most fundamental constraints on halo evolution. There are disagreements of at least an order of magnitude between observations and predictions in limiting cases for both homogeneous Simple Model and Simple Inhomogeneous Model (SIM). Hence, this demonstrates a quantitative, unambiguous discrepancy in the observed and expected fraction of Population III stars. We explore how the metallicity distribution of the parent enrichment events f(z_0) drives the SIM and predictions for the Population III fraction. The SIM shows that the previously-identified "high halo" and "low halo" populations are consistent with a continuous evolutionary progression, and ...

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To make a quantitative comparison of risks between the SNR-300 and a modern PWR (Biblis B), the consequences of an accident or the extent of damage of a release of radionuclides to the environment due to an accident are estimated by computer programs for accident consequence models. The accident analysis includes an analysis of events for Bethe-Tait accidents with failure of the outer containment. The FGSB release rates are compared with those of the Society for Reactor Safety (GRS).

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The two main aspects of the concept proposed by the ICRP in recommendation 26 for the radiation risk, the differentiation of stochastic and non stochastic damages and the qualification of the stochastic risk, are discussed in its consequences for radiation protection in X-ray diagnostics. Quantitative results from the literature serve to demonstrate the risk factors for the various organs and their sum concerning the position of the layer. As special points of somatic risk appeared the mamma and the pelvic region. The particular risk of CT examination is determined by number and position of the layers and the scan parameters of the system. For typical CT examination the resulting risk factors are estimated in comparison with conventional X-ray diagnostics. The somatic risk of CT examination is relatively high and comparable to conventional examination with the highest risk, while the genetic risk - as in conventional diagnostics - depends on ...

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The fully depleted pn-junction charge coupled device (pn-CCD) has been developed as a detector for X-ray imaging and high-resolution spectroscopy for the X-ray satellite missions XMM and ABRIXAS. If the detector is exposed to a particle radiation environment, the energy resolution is degraded due to charge transfer losses and a dark current increase. In a first experiment, prototype devices were irradiated with 10 MeV protons. After completion of the detector development, the proton irradiation was repeated for a quantitative study of the radiation damage, relevant for the satellite missions. The irradiation test was extended by a 5.5 MeV {alpha}-particle and a 6 keV X-ray exposure of the pn-CCD, including the CAMEX preamplifier chip.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The radionuclide X-ray fluorescence analyzer consists of a source changer and a sample changer. "5"5Fe, "1"0"9Cd and "2"4"1Am are used as excitation sources. The radiation is detected with a semiconductor Si(Li) detector. The complete assembly of the apparatus consists of an imagine unit, a keyboard, a floppy disc drive, a printer, a console and a rack with analog and digital electronics. Its multichannel amplitude analyzer consists of power supplies, a high voltage supply, a linear amplifier, an analog-to-digital converter and a computer. The technical specifications are given. The control and data processing system is controlled with an MHB 8080A microprocessor. Software for semiconductor gamma spectrometry and for quantitative gamma spectrometry will be supplied with the equipment. (E.S.). 3 figs., 4 refs.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The expression of motor activity levels in response to novel situations is under complex genetic and environmental control. Several genetic loci have been implicated in the regulation of this behavioral phenotype, but their relationship to epigenetic and epistatic interactions is relatively unknown. Here, we report on a quantitative trait locus (QTL) on mouse chromosome 1 for novelty-induced motor activity in the open field, using chromosome substitution strains derived from a high active host strain (C57BL/6J) and a low active donor strain (A/J). The QTL for open field (horizontal distance moved) peaked at the location of Kcnj9, however, QTL detection was initially masked by an interplay of both grandparent genetic origin and genetic co-factors influencing behavior on chromosome 1. Our fi...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Abstract Lysis and extraction of cells are essential sample processing steps for investigations pertaining to metabolism of xenobiotics in cell culture studies. Of particular importance to these procedures are maintaining high lysis efficiency and analyte integrity as they influence the qualitative and quantitative distribution of drug and toxicant metabolites in the intra- and extracellular milieus. In this study we have compared the efficiency of different procedures viz. homogenization, sonication, bead beating, and molecular grinding resin treatment for disruption of HT-29 colon cells exposed to benzo(a)pyrene (BaP), a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) compound and a suspected colon carcinogen. Also, we have evaluated the efficiency of various procedures for extracting BaP parent c...

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The Atmospheric Release Advisory Capability (ARAC) at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory uses the U.S. Navy's Coupled Ocean/Atmosphere Mesoscale Prediction System (COAMPS) to supply high-resolution wind data for use in its real-time dispersion modeling system. ARAC has used COAMPS products to support several events and exercises, and COAMPS forecasts appear accurate, based on qualitative examination. Recently ARAC has developed a quantitative verification system which calculates COAMPS error and bias statistics, comparing COAMPS forecasts of various lengths with observational data. This paper shows how this system has been used to guide ARAC operators, who need an estimate of the likely behavior of COAMPS forecasts of various lengths in different regions, seasons, and weather patterns.

Science.gov (United States)

No abstract available.

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Purpose: To evaluate the diagnostic performance (colorectal lesions) of computed tomography (CT) colonography in 111 patients, a majority of whom were at high risk for colorectal neoplasia. Material and Methods: After bowel preparation, CT colonography was performed, immediately followed by conventional colonoscopy. The diagnostic performance of CT colonography was analyzed relative to lesion size, histological diagnosis, and diagnostic certainty. Results: The sensitivity of CT colonography increased with lesion size (P<0.001), and was 91% (21/23) for lesions > or = 10 mm. All 10 carcinomas and 86% (19/22) of adenomas > or = 5 mm were detected. Unconfirmed or false-positive CT findings were generally small and/or reported with low diagnostic certainty. The specificity of CT colonography would be 45% (30/66; 95% CI 34% to 57%) if patients with findings of any size and any diagnostic certainty were selected for follow-up, and ...

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Geological clay formations are investigated for use as final underground deposit for heat producing nuclear waste. Special kinds of clay (e.g. bentonite) can also be used for the construction of geotechnical barriers. For the long time safety prognosis of the nuclear waste repositories the development of geochemical transport models is indispensable. The transport of aqueous solutions in clay is a complex process. The three-layer-minerals bentonite and illite swell by the adsorption of water, if the volume is restricted a high swelling pressure develops. The excellent barrier effect of natural clay formations and geotechnical clay barriers is based on the high swelling pressure and the high adsorption capacity for radionuclides and other pollutants. The two-layer-mineral kaolinite has no swelling capacity. In contrast to sandy layers a special geochemical transport potential exists in clay besides the well known matrix ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

As the first step for development of the corrosion resistant superheater tube materials of 500 C, 100 ata used in high efficient waste-to-energy plants, field corrosion tests of six conventional alloys were carried out at metal temperatures of 450 C and 550 C for 700 and 3,000 hours in four typical Japanese waste incineration plants. The test results indicate that austenitic alloys containing approximately 80 wt% [Cr+Ni] show excellent corrosion resistance. When the corrosive environment is severe, intergranular corrosion of 40#approx#200 microm depth occurs in stainless steel and high alloyed materials. It is confirmed quantitatively that corrosion behavior is influenced by environmental corrosion factors such as Cl concentration and thickness of deposits on tube surface, metal temperature, and flue gas temperature. The excellent corrosion resistance of high [Cr+Ni+Mo] alloys such as Alloy 625 is ...

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Since several years, several manufacturers of circuit breakers from various countries (South Africa, UK, The Netherlands, USA..) try to impose in accommodations a highly sensitive electronic-type of differential circuit-breaker initially devoted to industrial installations where qualified and experienced professionals are present. This technical paper presents first the principles of the classical electromechanical circuit breakers and of the electronic circuit breaker, and then compares their relative efficiency and level of safety in residential use conditions (grounding schemes, voltage drops, rupture of the neutral conductor, rupture of the phase conductor, overvoltages). (J.S.)

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At future [gamma][gamma] colliders copious production of [ital t] [bar t] pairs is possible. This would allow for a detailed investigation of the interactions involving the top quark. We propose some correlations which are sensitive to [ital t] [bar t] final state interactions and we compute the QCD and standard model Higgs boson contributions to these correlations. A correlation resulting from the QCD induced transverse polarization of top quarks is found to be sizable and measurable at a high energy [ital e][sup +][ital e][sup [minus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

At future #gamma##gamma# colliders copious production of t bar t pairs is possible. This would allow for a detailed investigation of the interactions involving the top quark. We propose some correlations which are sensitive to t bar t final state interactions and we compute the QCD and standard model Higgs boson contributions to these correlations. A correlation resulting from the QCD induced transverse polarization of top quarks is found to be sizable and measurable at a high energy e"+e"- collider, which is operated as a photon collider through backscattering of laser photons, at an integrated luminosity of 10 fb"-"1.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Theoretical development for temperature measurements via narrow line, infrared absorption of carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) is presented. The proposed technique is based on rapid-scanning of two adjacent absorption line shapes. Spectroscopic considerations for sensitivity to temperature measurements are discussed. Several line pairs are evaluated, and the R(58) and R(60) transitions of the (00{sup 0}1){l_arrow}(00{sup 0}0) band are suggested for use in high temperature measurements for combustion systems.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In order to increase the sensitivity of photometric determination of tungsten and to find forms with high molar extinction coefficients, mixed-ligand complexes of tungsten with antipyrine and trihydroxyfluorone have been studied. The molar extinction coefficients have been determined for chloride associates of mixed-ligand complexes containing different trioxyfluorones: phenylfluorone, salicylflourone, p-bromphenylfluorone, anthrafluorone, dioxyfluorescein, and dioxyfluoroscein ethylate (DOFE). An associate formed by DOFE has the maximum molar extinction coefficient. It has been used for photometric determination of microgram amounts of tungsten impurity in vanadyl sulphate.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Initial clinical experience in gastrointestinal radiography using Fuji Computed Radiography(FCR) system was reported. Image quality of conventional film/screen radiography and FCR system on upper GI series and barium enema was compared. Reflecting wide dynamic range of the system, improved image quality was confirmed, particularity in visibility of fine mucosal pattern(area gastricae), folds and overall contour. High sensor sensitivity of the system could reduce radiation dose requirement significantly. Diagnostically acceptable images were obtained with approximately 1/5 of routine dose for conventional radiography except in cases of lateral view of the rectum. (author).

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

When searching for anisotropies in the arrival directions of Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays, one must estimate the number of events expected in each direction of the sky in the case of a perfect isotropy. We present in this article a new method, developed for the Auger Observatory, based on a smooth estimate of the zenith angle distribution obtained from the data itself (which is essentially unchanged in the case of the presence of a large scale anisotropy pattern). We also study the sensitivity of several methods to detect large-scale anisotropies in the cosmic ray arrival direction distribution : Rayleigh analysis, dipole fitting and angular power spectrum estimation.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A large scintillation chamber of 6.7 l volume for direct radon concentration measurements in gas is presented. With two 5 in. photomultipliers on opposite sides, working in coincidence, a concentration as low as about 0.5 mBq/l is detectable with 10% standard deviation after 1000 min measuring time. With the achieved background count rate of 0.42 counts/min and the counting efficiency of 0.607 for [sup 222]Rn and its progenies the absolute minimal detectable specific activity is reached with 0.17 mBq/l at about 12 000 min. The method to determine this minimum detectable activity is outlined. ((orig.))

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This study was performed to evaluate the diagnostic usefulness of double-phase Tc-99m MIBI parathyroid scintigraphy with single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) in patients with hyperparathyroidism. We also evaluated the relationship between Tc-99m MIBI uptake and oxyphil cell contents in parathyroid glands. The subjects were 28 parathyroid glands of 10 patients who underwent Tc-99m MIBI parathyroid scintigraphy and parathyroidectomy for clinically suspected hyperparathyroidism. Early and delayed pinhole images were obtained at 15 minutes and 2 hours after injection of Tc-99m MIBI, and SPECT images were followed. The weight and oxyphil cell contents of parathyroid tissue were obtained from pathologic specimen, and the scintigraphic findings were compared with histopathology. In surgical histopathology, 6 parathyroid adenomas and 9 parathyroid hyperplasias were confirmed. The sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value of early and delayed ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Objective was to assess the accuracy of a single versus combined use of ultrasound (US) or computed tomography (CT) in the localization of diseased parathyroid glands. Forty-one patients with hyper-parathyroidism treated surgically between January 2000 to December 2005 at Jordan University Hospital, Amman, Jordan were included in this study. Preoperative ultrasonographic and CT findings were reviewed and compared to the intraoperative and pathologic diagnosis of diseased parathyroid glands. The mean age of patients was 46 years (range 16-70; 15 males and 26 females). Parathyroid adenoma was confirmed in 33 patients and hyperplasia of the parathyroid glands in 8 patients. Preoperative evaluation was carried out in 32 patients (CT scan) and in 23 patients (US). In 18 cases, the diagnosis of parathyroid disease was based on CT findings alone and in 9 patients the diagnosis was based on a single US finding. Combined CT and US evaluation was carried out in 14 cases and accurate localization ...

Science.gov (United States)

Twenty-two landrace-derived inbred lines from the Spanish Barley Core Collection (SBCC) were found to display high levels of resistance to a panel of 27 isolates of the fungus Blumeria graminis that exhibit a wide variety of virulences. Among these lines, SBCC145 showed high overall resistance and a distinctive spectrum of resistance compared with the other lines. Against this background, the main goal of the present work was to investigate the genetic basis underlying such resistance using a doubled haploid population derived from a cross between SBCC145 and the elite spring cultivar Beatrix. The population was genotyped with the 1,536-SNP Illumina GoldenGate Oligonucleotide Pool Assay (Barley OPA-1 or BOPA1 for short), whereas phenotypic analysis was performed using two B. graminis isolates. A major quantitative trait locus (QTL) for resistance to both isolates was identified on the long arm of chromosome 6H (6HL) and ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Engineering materials for use in low heat rejection engines are required to function under stringent tribological conditions. Severe wear damage and high friction between the components of the tribosystem limit the number of potential materials suitable for such application conditions. The superalloys X-750 and 188 are composed of alloying elements that not only promote a high mechanical and chemical stability but may also result in a reduced wear rate and friction coefficient at elevated temperatures. As a part of the DOE-ECUT Tribology program at Argonne, the present study was undertaken to evaluate the tribological characteristics of these alloys that will also be utilized as the substrates for ion beam deposited lubricous coatings. A wear test rig that crudely simulated the sliding conditions between a piston ring and a cylinder liner in an operating engine was utilized for friction and wear studies. The test results indicated that the wear ...

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A new kind of receiver-reactor for high-temperature solar furnaces is proposed. The main body of the receiver component is an ellipsoid of revolution with specularly reflecting inner walls. The reactor component, a crucible, is placed at one focal point and the aperture at the other. With this arrangement, substantially all of the incident radiation from the concentrator should reach the reactor directly or after one reflection from the cavity walls. An analysis of the radiative exchange among the surfaces is presented. The analysis provides a tool for a parametric study and optimization of the design. It is found that, in contrast to that of conventional well-insulated cavity receivers, its collection efficiency is not very sensitive to the size of its aperture.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

For neutron radiography (NR), photographic techniques have been mainly used for many years. To observe a dynamic event and to test many samples, the real-time neutron radiography (i.e. neutron television - NTV) system has been introduced at the E-2 experimental tube of the Kyoto University Research Reactor (KUR). The NTV system has been practically applied to penetrating the side plates containing boron burnable poison to test MTR type reactor fuel, to investigation of moving objects and to neutron computed tomography (NCT). New approaches using some advanced neutron converters, a high sensitive and resolution TV camera and a high performance image processing system are being undertaken for standard indicators, visualization on air-water two-phase flow, NCT and so on. (author).

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A high-precision Li isotope analysis was developed for determining the Li"+ ion emitted from lithium phosphate as an ion source material by a Re double-filament ionization method in the thermal ionization mass spectrometry. In this method, Li isotopic fractionation is distinctly less sensitive to the filament temperature than those in the previous methods, and stable and high ion beam intensity of more than 8 x 10"-"1"1 A for "7Li is obtained. These advantages in determining the "7Li/"6Li ratio result in the analytical reproducibility of 0.26 per mille (1#sigma#). Furthermore, the sample preparation is simple and the low temperature (850degC) required by this method ensures the analysis of the isotopic composition of small amounts of Li with less influence of Li contamination to the sample, compared with the previous methods. (author).

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Positron emission tomography (PET) is the gold standard for non-invasive assessment of myocardial viability and allows accurate detection of coronary artery disease by assessment of myocardial perfusion. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) provides high resolution anatomical images that allow accurate evaluation of ventricular structure and function together with detection of myocardial infarction. Potential hybrid PET/MR tomography may potentially facilitate the combination of information from these imaging modalities in cardiology. Furthermore, the combination of anatomical MRI images with the high sensitivity of PET for detecting molecular targets may extent the application of these modalities to the characterization of atherosclerotic plaques and to the evaluation of angiogenetic or stem cell therapies, for example. This article reviews studies using MRI and PET in parallel to compare their performance in cardiac ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

InP-quantum dots (QDs) are promising sources of single-photons and as active laser medium, emitting in the red part of the visible spectrum and thus in the range of the highest sensitivity of current silicon detectors. The self assembled QDs were grown by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy and are embedded in between distributed Bragg reflectors (DBRs), afterwards the sample was processed by a Focused Ion Beam to fabricate micro-pillars. The DBRs and the high refractive index step between pillar and air results in a three dimensional mode confinement and highly directed emission and thus higher intensity. We have investigated the mode spectra by micro-photoluminescence measurements for different pillar diameters and compared the spectra with a theoretical model showing up good consistency. Q-factors up to 3600 were achieved.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Low pressure turbine blades (LPT) made by investment casting from intermetallic titanium aluminide alloys for aero-engine applications in lengths between 200 and 400 mm require very demanding and sophisticated process for their manufacturing. Middle line shrinkage porosity along the airfoil and dimensional tolerances by near-net-shape casting are especially sensitive issues concerning Quality assurance. Nevertheless the urgency to manufacture safer environmental-friendly high performance aero-engines requires the introduction of new high performance components like LPT blades made of TiAl, which are about 50% lighter than their nickel-based counterparts. The present work is based on process engineering taking into account different melting and casting technologies in order to develop a dep...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This paper presents experimental data and an computational model of the cold spray solid particle impact process. Copper particles impacting onto a polished stainless steel substrate are examined. The high velocity impact causes significant plastic deformation of both the particle and the sub- strate, but no melting is observed. The plastic deformation exposes clean surfaces that, under the high impact pressures, result in significant bond strengths between the particle and substrate. Experimental measurements of the splat and crater sizes compare well with the numerical calculations. It is shown that the crater depth is significant and increases with impact velocity. However, the splat diameter is much less sensitive to the impact velocity. It is also shown that the geometric lengths of the splat and crater scale linearly with the diameter of the impacting particle. It is hoped that the results presented will allow better ...

Science.gov (United States)

Sensitive and quick-response nonlinear inductance characteristics are found for high Tc superconducting (YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub 7-chi/) disk cores at 77K in which soft magnetic BH hysteresis loops are observed. Various quick response magnetic devices such as modulators, amplifiers and sensors are built using these cores. The magnetizing frequency can be set to more than 20 MHz, which is difficult for conventional ferromagnetic bulk materials such as Permalloy amorphous alloys and ferrite. New quick-response fluxgate type magnetic-field sensors are made using ac and dc voltage sources. The former is used for second-harmonic type sensors, while the latter is for voltage-output multivibrator type sensors. Stable and quick-response sensor characteristics were obtained for two-core type multivibrators.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Temperature measurement technique by using Raman scattering was developed for the liquid water at temperature of 20 - 90 degree C and atmospheric pressure. Strong relationship between Raman scattering characteristics and liquid temperature change was observed. Various kinds of measurement techniques, such as Peak Intensity, Peak Wavelength, FWHM (Full Width at Half Maximum), PMCR ( Polymer Monomer Concentration RAte), TSIR (Temperature Sensitive Intensity Ratio), IDIA (Integral Difference Intensity Area) were tested. TSIR has the highest accuracy in mean error or 0.1 deg C and standard deviation of 0.1248 deg C. This report is one of the results in developing process of Raman temperature measurement technique. Next research step is to develop Raman temperature measurement technique at the high temperature and high pressure conditions in single or two phase flows. (author). 13 refs., 3 tabs., 38 figs.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The detection and characterization of deeply buried fatigue damage in thick, multi-layer airframe components pose significant technical challenges to the aviation safety community. Currently, no nondestructive evaluation technique is available to reliably detect such potential damage from the exterior of the airframe, which is highly desirable in light of inspection cost as well as avoidance of structure damage. Recent technological advances in high-sensitivity magnetic sensors, i.e., spin-dependent tunneling (SDT) sensors, make it feasible to employ electromagnetic inspection techniques for deep fatigue crack inspection. In this work, we report on the development and fabrication of a low frequency eddy current probe based on a magnetically shielded SDT pickup sensor concentrically located...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The optically stimulated luminescent (OSL) radiation dosimeter technically surveys a wide dynamic measurement range and a high sensitivity. Optical fiber dosimeters provide capability for remote monitoring of the radiation in the locations which are difficult-to-access and hazardous. In addition, optical fiber dosimeters are immune to electrical and radio-frequency interference. In this paper, a novel remote optical fiber radiation dosimeter is described. The optical fiber dosimeter takes advantage of the charge trapping materials CaS:Ce, Sm that exhibit OSL. The measuring range of the dosimeter is from 0.1 to 100 Gy. The equipment is relatively simple and small in size, and has low power consumption. This device is suitable for measuring the space radiation dose and also can be used in high radiation dose condition and other dangerous radiation occasions. (authors)

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Human beings are confronted with another grievous disaster - coal fire. The monitoring on underground coal bed combustion relied on drilling supervising in the past, but this method is not good. By taking the coal fire of Gulaben mine in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region as an example, the monitoring methods of underground coal bed combustion were explored based on the hyperspectra and high-resolution remote sensing technology. By employing the OMIS imaging apparatus developed by Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics of Chinese Academy of Sciences, the airborne hyperspectral images and the characteristic spectra of different types were obtained and the temperature was measured synchronously on the ground. Then according to the correlation of DN value of the thermal infrared band and surface temperature, the image information was processed, the spectral features were analyzed, and the surface temperature retrieval model was built. Finally, by hyperspectral imagery ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A prototype trumpet type nonimaging secondary concentrator was designed and fabricated for use with the Cummins Power Generation (CPG) 7.5 kW{sub e} dish-Stirling system. A set of operational tests was carried out with a high temperature heat pipe receiver and gas-gap calorimeter. These tests have successfully alleviated any operational concerns about the effectiveness of active water cooling for such devices. The authors obtained over two full days of testing with the cavity receiver operating at its design temperature of 660 C while the trumpet throat temperature remained {approx_equal} or less than 100 C. In addition, these tests have shown that the thermal isolation of the trumpet from the hot receiver is very effective. Highly variable insolation, instabilities in the temperature controller on the calorimeter, and a poor match between the optical quality of the primary and the design of the trumpet have made detailed ...

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Silicon nitride based ceramics have attracted considerable attention as good candidates for structural applications due to their excellent mechanical properties including strength, hardness, fracture toughness, and high temperature strength. These properties are strongly influenced by grain size and morphology, and by the degree of crystallinity and chemistry of grain boundary phases. In this work, the microstructure of Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} densified with Nd{sub 2}O{sub 3}, Y{sub 2}O{sub 3} and Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} sintering additives was studied. Sintered samples were polished and plasma etched for microstructural analysis using scanning electron microscope. Quantitative evaluation of materials microstructure was accomplished using Quantikov software. Fracture toughness was measured by Vickers indentation method. The observed microstructure is typical of silicon nitride based materials and is characterized by high aspect ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The increasing price differential between natural gas and coal will create a demand for technology that can allow the displacement of natural gas with coal in power plants. Coal gasification is the standard approach suggested to allow coal to displace natural gas. However, the relatively high capital investment required for coal gasification will require fuel cost differentials higher than those anticipated in the near term before coal gasification replaces natural gas. One way of achieving shorter term displacement of natural gas by coal would be to develop technology that would allow coal to be used as the heat source for the endothermic reforming of natural gas. In a natural gas-fired combined cycle power plant, the endothermic heat of reforming, which would be provided by coal combustion, is recovered in the combined-cycle. Therefore, this portion of the coal`s energy would be converted to electrical power at the high efficiency of the ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This handbook presents information and data for high explosives (HEs) of interest to programs at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and other Department of Energy (DOE) facilities. It is intended to be useful to the scientist or engineer, the novice or expert, who needs to develop a new weapon system, design a physics experiment, or select and/or evaluate an existing explosive. This compilation is limited to production HEs and their components. High explosives are divided into two classes: initial detonating (or primary) and noninitiating (or secondary) explosives. The primary HEs, such as azides and fulminates, are extremely sensitive to ignition by heat, shock, and electrical discharge; ignition leads to high-order detonation of the material - even for milligram quantities. The use of these HEs is therefore limited to squibs and starting materials for low-energy detonators. Because ...

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There are two types of ionization chamber using magnetically levitated electrode: one is that by Tanaka et al. and the other, by authors'. The latter lacks the sensitivity relative to the former and thereby to solve the problem, authors made an improvement so that the electrode charge could be readout by noncontact after the leviated electrode was electrified by noncontact for an interval. This new type ionization chamber made it possible to measure the quite low dose radiation with stability and high sensitivity. Actually, the electrode was suspended by the teflon thread fixed on the steel cup levitated magnetically in the ionization chamber of which wall was covered by Al and equipped with an electrostatic charger for the electrode by noncontact. After measurement, the electrode was moved in the Faraday cage placed under the chamber to readout the voltage. For operation conditions of the apparatus, observation ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The accuracy is investigated of both lymphangiography and CT in detecting lymph nodes metastases in 59 patients evaluated preoperatively and subsequently submitted to surgery with selective/systemic pelvic and paraaortic lymphadenectomy. CT accuracy was also investigated in 46 patients with a clinically suspected relapse of ovarian cancer (verified by means of clinical and/or CT follow-up in 36 patients, by laparotomy in 7, by fine-needle biopsy in 1 and by necroscopy in the last 2). In the first group (previously untreated patients) the overall results in the pelvis were, respectively, for lymphangiography and CT: 94.9% vs 89.8% accuracy, 86.6% vs 60% sensitivity, 97.7% vs 100% specificity, and 92.8% vs 100%, 95.5% vs 88% positive and negative predictive values. In the paraaortic region the results were: 89.1% vs 86.5% accuracy, 73.3% vs 66.6% sensitivity, 100% specificity for both techniques, 100% positive predictive value, and 84.6% vs 81.5% ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Temperature and concentration profiles of CO in a laminar, axisymmetric, premixed methane-air Bunsen flame are measured using line-of-sight diode laser absorption spectroscopy and computer tomographic (CT) reconstruction. Absorption spectra for P(20) (v=2<-1) and P(27) (v=1<-0) vibrotational transitions of CO were measured at 21 evenly spaced positions over a 1.33 cm span for a 1.3 cm radius flame. CT reconstruction algorithm was based on Fourier convolution. The tomographically reconstructed normalized transmission profiles derived from absorption spectra, in conjunction with a quantum mechanical model for vibrotational behavior of CO, yielded both temperature and concentration profiles. The Bunsen flame had 3 distinct zones: an inner rich-premixed flame zone, an outer non-premixed flame zone and an unburnt core region. The reconstructed temperature profile showed that the core region temperature was close to ambient and rapidly increased to adiabatic flame temperature at the ...

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Various thiol reactive compounds, including phenylarsine oxide (PheAsO) and mersalyl, activate K/sup +/ transport into respiring mitochondria. Dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCCD) inhibits K/sup +/ influx. In the present studies, unidirectional fluxes of K/sup +/ or Mg/sup + +/ into respiring rat liver mitochondria were measured by means of /sup 42/K or /sup 28/Mg, with samples separated from incubation media by centrifugation through silicon. Experiments show that the % stimulation of K/sup +/ influx by PheAsO (8.5 nmol/mg protein) or by mersalyl (150 ..mu..M) was the same (53-55%) for control mitochondria as for samples pretreated with DCCD (30 nmol/mg protein). This means that DCCD caused the same % inhibition of K/sup +/ flux into control mitochondria and mitochondria in the presence of PheAsO or mersalyl (36-37%). Thus, the DCCD reactive site associated with the K/sup +/ influx mechanism appears to be independent of the thiol groups(s) responsible for the observed activation. Earlier ...

Science.gov (United States)

The epileptogenic and neurodegenerative effects of gamma-dendrotoxin, from Dendroaspis angusticeps, a specific blocker of a non-inactivating, voltage-sensitive K+ channel, were studied after focal injection into one dorsal hippocampus in rats pretreated with CGP040116, a N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, and in rats bearing a monolateral surgical lesion of the Schaffer collaterals whose terminals originate from CA3 pyramids and release glutamate in the CA1 hippocampal area. Administration of 35 pmol gamma-dendrotoxin elicited in all of the treated animals (n=8) bilateral EEG discharges and damage to the hippocampal formation. Quantitation of the damage revealed significant bilateral neuronal cell loss in the CA1, CA3 and CA4 pyramidal cell layers. The lowest dose (0.35 pmol; n=4) of the toxin used did not affect EEG activity and failed to cause significant hippocampal cell loss whereas the 3.5 pmol (n=6) dose caused EEG seizures ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nuclear Forensics is a key element in the response process which is initiated after detection of illicit nuclear or other radioactive material. Credible nuclear forensics relies on appropriate sampling procedures, on validated analytical methods and on thorough data analysis and interpretation. Nuclear forensics aims at providing clues on the history and the potential origin of the material. Elemental and isotopic composition of the material, as well as its macroscopic and microscopic appearance reflect the technological processes used for the fabrication of the material. The nuclear forensic analysis first of all results in measurement data. Through appropriate processing of these data information on the nature and the history of the material can be obtained. A number of data evaluation techniques serving this purpose are conceivable and have been applied. On the one side, statistical methods like principal component analysis (PCA) or classification and regression trees (CART) can be ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

OBJECTIVETo assess the new quantitative bone scan parameters as markers of Charcot neuroosteoarthropathy (CNO) activity.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSForty-two...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Effective small interfering RNA (siRNA)–mediated therapeutics require the siRNA to be delivered into the cellular RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC). Quantitative information of this essential...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

We have exploited ``progeny testing'' to map quantitative trait loci (QTL) underlying the genetic variation of milk production in a selected dairy cattle population. A total of 1,518 sires, with progeny...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Deficits in prepulse inhibition (PPI) are a biological marker for schizophrenia. To unravel the mechanisms that control PPI, we performed quantitative trait loci (QTL) analysis on 1,010 F2 mice derived...Full Text Available

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Because of the equivalence principle, a global measurement is necessary to distinguish gravity from acceleration of the reference frame. A gravity gradiometer is therefore an essential instrument needed for precision tests of gravity laws and for applications in gravity survey and inertial navigation. Superconductivity and SQUID (superconducting quantum interference device) technology can be used to obtain a gravity gradiometer with very high sensitivity and stability. A superconducting gravity gradiometer has been developed for a null test of the gravitational inverse-square law and space-borne geodesy. Here we present a complete theoretical model of this instrument. Starting from dynamical equations for the device, we derive transfer functions, a common mode rejection characteristic, and an error model of the superconducting instrument. Since a gradiometer must detect a very weak differential gravity signal in the midst of large platform ...

CERN Document Server

In this paper, we first calculate the realistic Earth matter effects on the detection of type II supernova neutrinos at the Daya Bay reactor neutrino experiment which is currently under construction. It is found that the Earth matter effects depend on the neutrino incident angle \\theta, the neutrino mass hierarchy \\Delta m_{31}^{2}, the crossing probability at the high resonance region inside the supernova, P_H, the neutrino temperature, T_{\\alpha}, and the pinching parameter in the neutrino spectrum, \\eta_{\\alpha}. We give the expression for the dependence of P_H on the neutrino mixing angle \\theta_{13}. With this we obtain the relations between \\theta_{13} and the event numbers for various reaction channels of supernova neutrinos. Using these relations, we propose a possible way to measure \\theta_{13} smaller than 1.5^\\circ. Such a sensitivity cannot be achieved by the Daya Bay neutrino experiment (the ...

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Waste form dissolution studies and preliminary performance analyses were carried out to contribute a part of the data needed for the selection of a waste form for the disposal of Savannah River Plant defense waste in a deep geologic repository. The first portion of this work provides descriptions of the chemical interactions between the waste form and the geologic environment. We reviewed critically the dissolution/leaching data for borosilicate glass and SYNROC. Both chemical kinetic and thermodynamic models were developed to describe the dissolution process of these candidate waste forms so as to establish a fundamental basis for interpretation of experimental data and to provide directions for future experiments. The complementary second portion of this work is an assessment of the impacts of alternate waste forms upon the consequences of disposal in various proposed geological media. Employing systems analysis methodology, we began to evaluate the performance of a generic waste ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laboratory dose-response experiments with organophosphate and pyrethroid pesticides, and dose-response experiments with increasing particle loads were used to determine which of these stressors were likely responsible for the toxicity and macroinvertebrate impacts previously observed in the Salinas River. Experiments were conducted with the amphipod Hyalella azteca, the baetid mayfly Procloeon sp., and the midge Chironomus dilutus (Shobanov, formerly Chironomus tentans). The results indicate the primary stressor impacting H. azteca was pesticides, including chlorpyrifos and permethrin. The mayfly Procloeon sp. was sensitive to chlorpyrifos and permethrin within the range of concentrations of these pesticides measured in the river. Chironomus dilutus were sensitive to chlorpyrifos within the ranges of concentrations measured in the river. None of the species tested were affected by turbidity as high as 1000 NTUs. The current ...

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The effect of dissolved oxygen and copper on denting corrosion at 280/sup 0/C in solutions of NaCl at pH 9 with ammonia was investigated using a packed tube/support plate crevice in a laboratory simulation. The onset of corrosion was detected with a hydrogen analyzer sensitive to 0.2 ppB. In the absence of copper, rapidly rising hydrogen concentrations were detected only when the product of the chloride and oxygen concentrations were detected only when the product of the chloride and oxygen concentrations in the boiler-water exceeded 25 (ppM)/sup 2/, but at these high concentrations, unheated low-carbon steel surfaces in the system were as sensitive to corrosion as the heated crevice. When copper metal was present in the feed system, corrosion of the heated crevice occurred in the absence of oxygen, provided the copper had previously been exposed to dissolved oxygen. Dosing hydrazine into the feedwater eventually suppressed ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This study was aimed at evaluating CT sensitivity in identifying the signs of pulmonary cystic fibrosis (CF). The chests of 39 patients (16 males and 23 females, mean age 19.1 years) were examined by CT: all patients had been given a clinical score according to Schwachman and Kulckzycki criteria. Thickened bronchial walls were observed in all cases, which are typical of peribronchitis. Bronchiectases were present in 87% of cases; their extent, pattern and localization were exactly shown on CT scans. Bronchoceles were seen on CT scans in 64% of patients; less frequent was the finding of atelectases and subpleural bullous emphysema. In a great number of patients (64% and 82%, respectively) pleural thickening and hilar adenopathy were demonstrated on CT scans. In conclusion, our results confirm CT as a more sensitive method than conventional radiography to identify and locate the signs of pulmonary CF. The early identification of the lesions of ...

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This paper describes Fuji computed radiography (FCR) of Fuji Film for NDT (non-destructive testing). Imaging plate (IP) is a two-dimensional detector of X-ray, and shows higher photographic sensitivity than X-ray film. The output emission of IP provides a good linear relationship to X-ray intensity in a wide intensity range. When this emission can be digitized, the X-ray intensity can be also digitized. IP is applied to NDT as an inspection using X-ray. FCR provides higher photographic sensitivity than the conventional X-ray film method, which results in one-fifth to one-twentieth of irradiation time. Images with stable density can be obtained independent of the intensity. Since IP has a wide dynamic range, the variation of X-ray intensity of 1:500 can be expressed in a single image by single shot. High density record including 1000 images can be done using a 5.25 inch optical disk through the digital image processing and ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Concerning high performance composite solid propellant BAMO and BAMO-based copolymers, synthetic method and properties of them were studied. Comparison graph of theoretical specific impulse for various propellants were shown, by that, reason why highest specific impulse BAMO was selected as direction of the study. As the orientation of synthesis, those were indicated that radicals at both ends should be hydroxyl so as urethane bonding was available, that liquid at normal temperature was required for easy handling, and that glass transition temperature is required to be low enough. Synthesis was conducted by ring-opening polymerization of ring ether detail procedures of which were explained. Measurements of properties was performed for thermochemical properties, thermal decomposition, combution heat, and friction sensitivity test to confirm safety. As the result, those were understood that thermal decomposition was divided into two phases, rapid ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986. p. 390-392. Germany Brecht-Krauss, D. Kusmierek, J. Adam, WE Ulm

KoreaScience (Korea)

Full Text Available

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Published in summary form only.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Safety standards for exposure to radiofrequency radiation must be based upon biologic consequences of exposure to such environments. Behavioral-based measures are considered to be the most-sensitive indices of biological effects. Current safety guidelines are based upon average power density and may not be relevant to the high-peak-power, short pulse width microwave radiation produced by newly developed high peak power microwave sources. The effects of exposure to high-peak-power radiation on reflexive responding and motor function in Fischer 344/N rats were assessed by measuring startle and general activity, and disruption of on-going performance of a rotarod task, respectively. The emitter used was the TEMPO repeat pulse axially extracted vircator. Exposure to single pulses resulted in significant startle responses. Exposure to 1 pps for 10 s produced significant alterations in baseline activity and ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Impact of some heavy metals like zinc, lead, copper, chromium and cadmium were studied at four spots on the macro-invertebrate fauna of the Thaddo stream, a tributary of Malir River. This was in correlation with an earlier study on the physico-chemical aspects of water which showed a severe pollution in this stream. Present data for the qualitative and quantitative analyses of macro-invertebrates and the ranges of heavy metals (Zn 0.5-3.5, Pb 0.90-1.42, Cu 0.35-0.93, Cr 0.0-0.08 and Cd 0.003-0.01 ppm) in the water samples also indicate high level of pollution in the stream. Macro-invertebrate fauna comprises only of aquatic insects which include larvae of Chironomus spp., adults of the Notonectus sp., and nymphs of Gomphus sp. (dragon fly) belonging to the order Diptera , Hemiptera and Odonata, respectively. Quantitatively Notonectus sp. predominated and followed by Chironomus larvae. The maximum concentrations of all heavy ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Diseases of the mandible affect the soft tissues aside from the osseous manifestation. This can be shown clearly and in great detail by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). MRI is the gold standard in the diagnostic evaluation of any internal derangement of the temporomandibular joint. Dental MRI requires high resolution techniques and in some cases also intravenous administration of contrast material. These techniques allow delineation of the neurovascular bundle. In the past few years new indications were formulated, for example, the evaluation of the integrity of the inferior alveolar nerve in trauma and in radicular cysts. New quantitative methods now enable insights into the pathophysiology. The objective of this review is to communicate accepted indications for MRI of the mandible and to present innovative applications. (orig.) [German] Mandibulaere Erkrankungen beteiligen neben dem Knochen Weichteilstrukturen, die sich mit der MRT klar und ...

Science.gov (United States)

We describe the cloning and characterization of a mutated thermostable DNA polymerase from Thermus aquaticus (Taq) that exhibits an increased reverse transcriptase activity and is therefore designated for one-step PCR pathogen detection using established real-time detection methods. We demonstrate that this Taq polymerase mutant (Taq M1) has similar PCR sensitivity and nuclease activity as the respective Taq wild-type DNA polymerase. In addition, and in marked contrast to the wild-type, Taq M1 exhibits a significantly increased reverse transcriptase activity especially at high temperatures (>60 degrees C). RNA generally hosts highly stable secondary structure motifs, such as hairpins and G-quadruplexes, which complicate, or in the worst case obviate, reverse transcription (RT). Thus, RT at high temperatures is desired to weaken or melt secondary structure motifs. To demonstrate the ability of Taq M1 ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In situ assembly states of rat adipocyte glucose transport protein in plasma membrane (PM) and in microsomal pool (MM) were assessed by measuring target size (TS) of D glucose-sensitive, cytochalasin B binding activity. High energy radiation inactivated the binding in both PM and MM by reducing the total capacity of the binding (B/sub T/) without affecting the dissociation constant (K/sub D/). The reduction in B/sub T/ as a function of radiation dose was analyzed based on classical target theory, from which TS was calculated. TS in the PM of insulin-treated adipocytes was 58 KDa. TS in the MM of noninsulin-treated and insulin-treated adipocytes were 112 and 109 KDa, respectively. With MM, however, inactivation data showed anomalously low radiation sensitivities at low radiation doses showing a shoulder in the semilog plots, which may be due to an interaction with a radiation sensitive inhibitor. With ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A real-time neutron radiography facility was constructed including the capability of neutron tomography. The neutron beam was measured for total neutron flux ((1.0 +/- 0.2) x 10"1"1 m/(m"2-sec)), gold cadmium ratio (52 +/- 3) and effective neutron temperature (83"0C +/- 8"0C). The angular divergence or nonparallelism of the neutron beam was measured to be 2.3"0 +/- 0.1"0 thereby providing a means of quantifying the collimator effectiveness. The resolution capabilities of both static film and real-time neutron radiographs were quantified using a Fourier transform algorithm to calculate the modulation transfer function of both types of radiographs. The contrast sensitivity of both types of radiographs. The contrast sensitivity of both types of radiographs was measured as 3.1% for film and 4.0% for real-time radiographs. Two tomography algorithms, the simultaneous iterative reconstruction technique (SIRT) and the convolution method, were ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The Mittelplate oilfield is located in the Waddensea tidelands 8 km off the north sea coast and represents Germany's largest oilfield. Since Mittelplate oil production has started in 1987, RWE Dea AG being the operator in a 50/50 joint venture with Wintershall AG, has continually implemented and improved the sophisticated technology required to exploit natural resources by using safe and environmentally compatible means in the sensitive tideland environment of Mittelplate. Besides the sucessful offshore operations from the man-made Mittelplate Drilling and Production Island, further onshore development has started in 2000 by producing from high-tech ERD wells drilled from onshore locations. The offshore oil production had been transported so far by specially designed tug and tow barges and had been restricted by weather and tide. To overcome this bottleneck and to enable an accelerated offshore drilling and production program a ...

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Applicability of a model to estimate radiofrequency electromagnetic field (RF-EMF) strength in households from mobile phone base stations was evaluated with technical data of mobile phone base stations available from the German Net Agency, and dosimetric measurements, performed in an epidemiological study. Estimated exposure and exposure measured with dosemeters in 1322 participating households were compared. For that purpose, the upper 10th percentiles of both outcomes were defined as the 'higher exposed' groups. To assess the agreement of the defined 'higher' exposed groups, kappa coefficient, sensitivity and specificity were calculated. The present results show only a weak agreement of calculations and measurements (kappa values between -0.03 and 0.28, sensitivity between 7.1 and 34.6). Only in some of the sub-analyses, a higher agreement was found, e.g. when measured instead of interpolated geo-coordinates were used to calculate the ...