Science.gov (United States)

... sgqoqpwmwm}nfkmjk vrry^vi}likkulfooxkgqsrqsz lrtvs lq~wsly zuxqjrij{t p}tmv{ q{ ny{rnbsv xxtn{ zvwp| xokzz}k {otw|n |xmrv qrxznn}dl jry~| yhavyjjnemuj} ...

Science.gov (United States)

... In the same year, the Revere Copper and Brass Company of America introduced the tandem cold mill, soon followed by ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The Department of Defense (DOD) will soon issue a directive to test all incoming military personnel for the presence of hemoglobin S. The military testing program for hemoglobin S is an occupational...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

What has been accomplished does not die, but too often, alas, the personality of those who have handed the torch from one generation to another soon fades into oblivion.—...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Serial studies of iron transport in patients on maintenance dialysis showed normal or raised values in almost all subjects and a transient increase soon after the start of dialysis in three. These...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Congenital woolly hair is a disorder with structural defects of the hair shafts. Curled hairs are noticed at birth or soon after birth and often improve with age. Some cases of woolly hairs are associated...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Large-scale cancer genome projects will soon be able to sequence many cancer genomes to comprehensively identify genetic changes in human cancer. Genome-wide association studies have also identified...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Governments around the world will soon make decisions on policies that could determine the fate of the ozone layer-the Earth's shield from harmful ultraviolet radiation. The Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer, signed on March 22, 1985, created a framework for scientific cooperation and information exchange that will form the basis for a protocol for controlling substances thought to threaten the ozone layer. As of mid-1987, 29 countries had signed the Convention, including the major producers and users of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), the most important of suspect chemicals.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The aim of British coal liquefaction research is to produce premium products such as transport fuels and chemical feedstocks. Government support has been promised for two 25 tpd pilot plants. Badger estimate that the finished products would cost 25% more than petroleum products. Countries with no indigenous oil are likely to commence commercial coal liquefaction soon.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Two thirds of the neutrinos produced in the sun are not detected. In the last decade several experiments have allowed to give a limit to the neutrino mass and in some cases a negative value of the square of the mass was proposed. A negative value is inconsistent theoretically except in the case of tachyons which are particles allowed to travel faster than light. Consider neutrinos as tachyons could be a solution to find the answers to some of the riddles set by neutrinos. (A.C.)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

To obtain Pinus wood-plastic composites, wood samples were impregnated with methyl methacrylate and polymerized by the use of gamma rays from a /sup 60/Co at different dose exposure and total dose. The best percentage of polymerization was obtained with the exposure of 2.0 MR of gamma radiation. It was found that the impregnation and polymerization, determined by the density values along the samples were uniform. The density became 2.6 times higher in relation to the control samples. The storage of the impregnated wood samples showed losses of the monomer, even when wrapped with aluminum or polyethylene film. It is recommended that the wood samples should be irradiated soon after impregnation.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Describes temperature and humidity sensing devices used in mine rescue operations. Chemical indicators use chemical substances that melt at predetermined temperatures and display the actual temperature in the range of 40-50 C. Electronic temperature monitoring devices release acoustic signals as soon as a temperature of 40 or 45 C has been exceeded. A more recent piece of equipment combines the ULR rescue communication set with remote temperature sensing. A digital meter that measures temperature and humidity in the range of -100 to +200 C and 3 to 98% respectively has also been developed. The Central Mine Rescue Station in Bytom, Poland has developed equipment that permits body temperature and pulse rate of a rescuer to be measured and transmitted by radio over a distance of up to 50 m. Safe threshold values can be set for each individual rescuer.

CERN Document Server

RFID technology is gaining adoption on an increasing scale for tracking and monitoring purposes. Wide deployments of RFID devices will soon generate an unprecedented volume of data. Emerging applications require the RFID data to be filtered and correlated for complex pattern detection and transformed to events that provide meaningful, actionable information to end applications. In this work, we design and develop SASE, a com-plex event processing system that performs such data-information transformation over real-time streams. We design a complex event language for specifying application logic for such transformation, devise new query processing techniques to effi-ciently implement the language, and develop a comprehensive system that collects, cleans, and processes RFID data for deliv-ery of relevant, timely information as well as storing necessary data for future querying. We demonstrate an initial prototype of SASE through a real-world retail management ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The thermal transformation of Al-base icosahedral phases was studied in-situ by real time neutron powder diffraction. Different compositions have been selected in order to vary the initial phase morphology and change the neutron scattering contrast between species. Alloys with low silicon and large aluminium contents produce first the orthorhombic O-Al_6Mn modification. In alloys with larger silicon content, the #alpha#-AlMnSi cubic phase appears soon after the beginning of the transformation but is still preceeded by O-Al_6Mn. Depending on compositions, the crystallization of the icosahedral phase is controlled either by the diffusion of Al through its interface with the residual fcc aluminium or that of Si within the bulk. The results are discussed in the light of current structural models. (author) 40 refs., 14 figs., 3 tabs.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Most gas dynamic computations in industrial ducts are done in one dimension with cross-section-averaged Euler equations. This poses a fundamental difficulty as soon as geometrical discontinuities are present. The momentum equation contains a non-conservative term involving a surface pressure integral, responsible for momentum loss. Definition of this integral is very difficult from a mathematical standpoint as the flow may contain other discontinuities (shocks, contact discontinuities). From a physical standpoint, geometrical discontinuities induce multidimensional vortices that modify the surface pressure integral. In the present paper, an improved 1D flow model is proposed. An extra energy (or entropy) equation is added to the Euler equations expressing the energy and turbulent pressure ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This paper reports that only a few years ago superconducting magnetic separation was viewed as the next major market for superconducting magnets. The first commercial units had been installed, worked flawlessly, and demonstrated real economic viability. The potential market was seen as quite large, and many people believed that superconducting magnetic separation would soon show the same rapid growth that MRI had demonstrated after its initial success. These hopes even prompted IGC, one of the top MRI magnet builders, to form a separate division devoted to magnetic separation. Despite the existence of Magstream, IGC has not been overly active in the market. As a technology that has applications from the clay on the Earth to the soil on the moon, superconducting magnetic separation has yet to become widely used.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Within the past decade two important groups of radiopharmaceuticals labelled with /sup 123/I were introduced into the clinical application opening new areas of metabolic studies in nuclear medicine: radioiodinated fatty acids were developed for metabolic studies of the myocardium and radioiodinated amphetamine derivatives were prepared for studying brain diseases by means of SPECT. It must be emphasized that the radiochemical problems with both groups of compounds are practically the same since both are radioiodinated by a nucleophilic substitution mechanism using /sup 123/I directly in its anionic form. The clinical application of brain imaging agents, particularly the one of p-/sup 123/I-iodo-N-isopropylamphetamine, is important and will presumably increase as soon as the details of the individual biochemical steps, which are involved in brain uptake mechanisms, are evaluated. It is felt that the potential of the clinical IMP application is greater than the ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Utilisation of geothermal energy may soon become an important factor in power supply in Germany. The contribution discusses the utilisation of hydrothermal low-pressure systems, the geological boundary conditions, the technical design of the thermal water cycle, and the current status of the hot dry rock technology. [German] Die Nutzung der Energie ausd Erdwaerme kann in naher Zukunft eine wichtige Rolle in der Energieversorgung Deutschlands spielen. Der vorliegende Artikel gibt einen Ueberblick ueber die Nutzung hydrothermaler Niederdrucksysteme, die geologischen Rahmenbedingungen, den technischen Aufbau des Thermalwasserkreislaufes sowie zum aktuellen Stand des Hot Dry Rock Verfahrens.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

There are many differences between industrial CT and industrial radiography, such as imaging principle, inspection time, radiation dose and the requirements for operators etc. The national standards for radiation protection of industrial detection are not applicable to the requirements of protection and safety for #gamma#-ray industrial CT to some extent now. In order to standardize the production and use for #gamma#-ray industrial CT, protect the safety of operators and the public, and to promote the popularization and application of #gamma#-ray industrial CT, it is significant to establish the national standards for radiation protection of #gamma#-ray industrial CT as soon as possible. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the contents of this standard, and specify some important terms. Then there is a brief discussion on the existing problems during establishing such standards. At last, the paper summarize the practice of the standards passed over the past ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

14 surgical patients with non-hepatobiliary diseases were studied with "9"9"mTc-EHIDA imaging to evaluate the effect of total parenteral nutrition (TPN) on the hepatobiliary function. Duration of TPN ranged from 6-56 days, 10 of the 14 patients Beijing within 10 days. The results showed that: (1) 11 of 14 patients had abnormal scintigraphic features. The most prominet findings were delayed liver excretion and prolonged blood clearance time. This fact suggests that not only the rate of excretion of the bile from the liver is decreased but the uptake ability of the hepatorcyte is also impaired. (2) The effect of TPN on liver function is reversible. It was concluded that in order to prevent irreversible damage of hepatobiliary function caused by TPN, the duration of TPN should not be too long and oral intake of nutrients should be resumed as soon as possible.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Acid mine drainage represents one of the most important environmental problem facing the mining industry. If the tailings contain sulphur, acid mine drainage will be generated as soon as the tailings are exposed to oxygen. In this paper, the authors discussed a technique for the storage of acid mine drainage generating tailings that delays and even eliminates the occurrence. It was suggested that tailings should be piled by incorporating, at regular intervals, compacted waste rock. Thermal convection and diffusion will prevent oxygen from reaching the tailings, and limit water circulation. The modelling of transfer processes (heat, water, oxygen) in a well known tailings dump, the Doyon Mine, was performed, and the results compared to the modelling where compacted waste rock had been incorporated at regular intervals. The results indicated that by remaining saturated, the layers acted as capillary barriers preventing oxygen from reaching the tailings, therefore ...

Scientific Electronic Library Online (English)

Abstract in english Cytokines are molecules that were initially discovered in the immune system as mediators of communication between various types of immune cells. However, it soon became evident that cytokines exert profound effects on key functions of the central nervous system, such as food intake, fever, neuroendocrine regulation, long-term potentiation, and behavior. In the 80's and 90's our group and others discovered that the genes encoding various cytokines and their receptors are e (more) xpressed in vascular, glial, and neuronal structures of the adult brain. Most cytokines act through cell surface receptors that have one transmembrane domain and which transduce a signal through the JAK/STAT pathway. Of particular physiological and pathophysiological relevance is the fact that cytokines are potent regulators of hypothalamic neuropeptidergic systems that maintain neuroendocrine homeostasis and which regulate the body's response to stress. The mechanisms ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

We are building the Schenberg gravitational wave detector at the Physics Institute of University of Sao Paulo as programmed by the Brazilian Graviton Project. The antenna and its vibration isolation system are already built, and we have made a first cryogenic run for an overall test, in which we measured the antenna mechanical Q (figure of merit). We also have built a 10.21 GHz oscillator with phase noise performance better than -120 dBc at 3.2 kHz to pump an initial CuAl6% two-mode transducer. We plan to prepare this spherical antenna for a first operational run at 4.2 K with a single transducer and an initial target sensitivity of h #approx# 2 x 10"-"2"1 Hz"-"1"/"2 in a 50 Hz bandwidth around 3.2 kHz soon. Here we present details of this plan and some recent results of the development of this project.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

During the past 15 years, 60 straw-fuelled and 25 wood-fuelled district heating stations were commissioned in Denmark, as well as 6 biomass-fuelled heating power stations. All of these plants are equipped with high-pressure boilers, heat exchangers for district heating, and steam turbines with generators. Today, 5 percent of the total energy consumed is provided by biomass fuels. With the new taxes on carbon dioxide emissions and measures to promote renewable energy sources, a 15 percent share can be expected soon. (orig/SR) [Deutsch] In Daenemark wurden in den letzten 15 Jahren 60 strohbefeuerte und 25 holzbefeuerte Fernwaermewerke in Betrieb genommen. Dazu sind in den letzten Jahren 6 biomassebefeuerte Heizkraftwerke gekommen. Alle Anlagen haben Hochdruckkessel, Waermetauscher fuer Fernwaerme und Dampfturbinen mit Generatoren. Heute werden in Daenemark 15 Prozent des Energieverbrauchs mit Biomasse gedeckt. Durch Besteuerung der Kohlendioxidabgabe und Foerderung ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sediment treatment and sediment storage may alter sediment toxicity, and consequently biotic response. Purpose of our study was to combine these three aspects (treatment-toxicity-biotic response) in one integrated approach. We used Acid Volatile Sulfide (AVS) concentrations as a proxy of the disturbance of the sediment. AVS and Simultaneously Extracted Metal (SEM) concentrations were compared to bioassay responses with the freshwater benthic macroinvertebrate Asellus aquaticus. Storage conditions and sediment treatment affected AVS but not SEM levels. AVS can be used as a proxy for sediment disturbance. The best way to pretreat the sediment for use in a bioassay in order to maintain initial AVS conditions was to sample the sediment with an Ekman grab, immediately store it in a jar without headspace, and freeze it as soon as possible. In a survey using seven different sediments, bioassay responses of A. aquaticus were correlated with SEM and AVS characteristics. - ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Full text: Tumour ablation with radiofrequency (RF) energy is a relatively new procedure for the treatment of focal malignant disease. At our institution this is currently being used in the treatment of certain liver and lung lesions with the patients involved being enrolled in clinical trials. The poster describes the technique used at our institution for the placement of the radiofrequency ablation electrode using CT fluoroscopy. Criteria for patient selection are included. Complications from the procedure are described, as well as follow up appearances and results. Our results from the treatment of primary and secondary lesions in the liver correlate well with published literature. Treatment is still not as successful as surgical resection but there is significantly less morbidity. Where this method may be appropriate is when the patient is not a candidate for surgical resection. The treatment of colorectal metastases in the lung shows early promise as a possible second line ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nine infants (six boys, three girls) with anorectal anomalies were examined in the immediate newborn period, prior to corrective surgery, with MRI. Three high, one intermediate and five low anomalies were found at MRI - one patient with a `low` lesion was subsequently found at surgery 2 months later to have a high anorectal anomaly. This infant had passed meconium per urethram soon after the MRI study, prompting the need for a protective colostomy and stressing the importance of a thorough clinical examination of babies with anorectal malformations. The MRI results and findings at surgery were in agreement in all other patients (n=8). Hydronephrosis was evident in two and renal agenesis in one patient. Sacrococcygeal hypoplasia was found in two and two hemivertebrae in one infant. No spinal cord lesion was identified. One fistula was evident on MRI but four were later found at surgery. Uniformly hyperintense T1 signal meconium was seen in all nine newborns, ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The AMSE Boiler Code development of design stresses and their optimization for alloys 800 and 800H for conventional and nuclear power plants have coincided with many successful trial installations of these grades of alloy 800. These trial installations, along with laboratory tests, have shown that alloy 800H can be used for long times with a retention of good mechanical properties, including ductility. While gamma prime can be formed, it soon loses its detrimental effect on ductility in service. Sensitization of the alloy also occurs but it, too, has a decreasing effect on corrosion resistance with time in service, especially at elevated temperatures. The authors discuss all of these aspects and conclude that alloy 800 perhaps with low carbon control in the annealed (1800 to 1950degF)(982 to 1066degC) condition gives the optimum combination of properties to 1050degF(566degC) and alloy 800H (.05 to .10%C) solution annealed at 2100 to 2200degF (1149 to 1204degC) has ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Recent seizures of nuclear materials, and particularly of fissionable nuclear materials, have resulted in an increased awareness of the need for fieldable instrumentation for the detection and characterization of suspect packages and materials. The ability to perform in-field assessments of materials contained in suspect packages is important for several reasons. First, and most importantly, determination of the type and quantity of material provides information critical to personnel safety. The personnel at potential risk may include both the general population in the area of the package and incident response personnel. Additionally, it would be advantageous to gain information that could result in attribution of the suspect package to a particular facility or pathway as soon as possible after interception. Limited access to a suspect package could also require the use of fieldable characterization instrumentation as opposed to transporting the package to another ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nano-wire arrays of Niobium were produced by small angle sputtering on facetted sapphire, using the self shadowing effect of the facets. A wire width of about 80 nm was adjusted, the mean (maximum) wire height was about 20 nm (30 nm), the length can be in the cm range. Meander-film morphologies of 20 nm mean (26 nm maximum) thickness were produced by conventional sputtering onto smooth sapphire substrates at elevated temperatures. The morphology of the wires was investigated with atomic force microscopy (AFM), using contact mode. Meander-films were studied by scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM). Hydrogen loading was performed by instantaneously increasing the hydrogen gas pressure above the solubility limit. Thus, an elongated hydride could be monitored in an about 30 nm thick wire. STM studies on meander-films show the presence of cylindrical hydrides. Local out-of-plane and in-plane expansion can be explained by the formation of hydrides, being coherent with the matrix. This was ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Detection of fatigue damage cracks in aircraft skin structures is an ongoing NDT challenge. Cracks growing rate is difficult to predict, and for this reason, it is important to detect them as soon as possible to avoid a catastrophic break. Eddy current methods are known and well-accepted techniques which are relatively simple to carry out. However, with conventional inspection of airframe structures using standard driver-pickup eddy current probes, it is difficult to detect small fatigue cracks initiated in the second layer of the skin and in the shadow region at fastener holes. Such difficulty is related to fasteners length and their spacing which reduces test sensitivity. This report explains the development of improved eddy current probe/technique to detect and visualize fatigue cracks in fasteners. In this study, an eddy current array probe was evaluated and new coil design was suggested. Several tests were conducted on an A-300 circumferential joint sample ...

Science.gov (United States)

One of the energy-saving devices used on gas cooking appliances to eliminate the standing pilot is a spark ignition system. For safety, an ignition system must start promptly and be active whenever flowing gas is not ignited. To minimize noise and nuisance shock hazard, ignition must occur quickly and the sparking must be stopped as soon as ignition occurs and remain off as long as the flame is present. To accomplish both of these requirements, ignition systems have been devised which use the electrical current rectification property of a flame to sense it. These systems spark whenever the gas valve is on and a flame is not present. The factors affecting the performance of a spark ignition system are numerous, complex, and transient. All of these properties make quantification of performance difficult. A system is described which can evaluate the overall performance of ignition systems over significant periods of time and varieties of operating conditions and ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

One of the most densely populated urban regions in the world is the Sao Paulo Metropolitan region (SPMR) in the State of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Air pollution is a real problem, mainly caused by vehicle exhaust fumes. The air pollution abatement measures adopted in the SPMR, such as the addition of ethanol to gasoline, the use of cars running on pure alcohol, the restrictions in the circulation of vehicles and the utilization of electronic fuel injection and catalyst have had a positive effect on the environment. The 25,000 buses and approximately 400,000 trucks, all operating on diesel, have not been affected by these measures, and it is believed that SPMR is the ideal location for testing new vehicular pollution reduction technologies. A project to this effect was launched by the Ministry of Mines and Energy in conjunction with a host of other partners, and it involved the operation of a fuel cell bus using hydrogen produced by electrolysis. The project was divided into four phases, and ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

There are many requirements for cost analysis and estimating within the Department of Energy (DOE). As projects go through the many stages of planning, source evaluation and selection, contracting, and construction, different estimating requirements exist and different techniques are available to the estimator. This cost guide illustrates how quantity takeoff estimating is performed when adequate design data are available, and it shows how statistics can be applied to obtain parametric cost estimates. Parametric techniques will become increasingly useful as the Department's cost data base and Cost Estimating Relationships (CERs) are developed. Other cost guides developed by the Independent Cost Estimating (ICE) Staff will be published and disseminated soon. The section on parametric cost estimating uses Department of Defense examples since the ICE Staff considered this information to be some of the best available on this subject. Also, we are indebted to ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The representative result as the global environmental problems caused by chemical substance is the ozone layer depletion of the stratosphere by chlorofluorocarbon (CFC). The regulation of the CFC began in 1989 based on 'Vienna Convention for the Ozone layer protection' (1985) and 'Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer' (1987). Production and consumption of CFC, tetrachloromethane, methylchloroform and halon have already been aborted, and the regulation of HCFC and bromomethane were also began to turn to the abolition. The increase of atmosphere average concentration such as CFC and methylchloroform has already blunted in such the international regulation. The chloride concentration of stratosphere from substance of the ozone layer depletion would reach a peak soon, and was prospected to be reduced after then. It is expected to drop to previous level before the South Pole ozone hole appeared after the middle ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

On 21 October 1994, three brothers entered a waste repository at Tammiku, Estonia, without authorization and removed a metal container enclosing a caesium-137 source. During the removal the source was dislodged and fell to the ground. One of the men picked up the source, placed it in his pocket and took it to his home in the nearby village of Kiisa. Very soon after entry into the repository he began to feel ill, and few hours later he began to vomit. The man was subsequently admitted to hospital with severe injuries to his leg and hip and died on 2 November 1994. The injury and subsequent death were not attributed to radiation exposure, and the source remained in the man's house with his wife and stepson and the boy's great-grandmother. The boy was hospitalized on 17 November with severe burns on his hands, and these were identified by a doctor as radiation induced. The authorities were alerted, and the Estonian Rescue Board recovered the source from the house. The ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Transmission line faults must be located accurately to allow maintenance crews to arrive at the scene and repair the faulted section as soon as possible. Rugged terrain and geographical layout cause some sections of power transmission lines to be difficult to reach. In the past, a variety of fault location algorithms were introduced as either an add-on feature in protective relays or stand-alone implementation in fault locators. In both cases, the measurements of current and voltages were taken at one terminal of a transmission line only. Under such conditions, it may become difficult to determine the fault location accurately, since data from other transmission line ends are required for more precise computations. In the absence of data from the other end, existing algorithms have accuracy problems under several circumstances, such as varying switching and loading conditions, fault infeed from the other end, and random value of fault resistance. Most of the ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pipeline automated ultrasonic testing (AUT) uses fully automated equipment that travels around a pipe on a welding band in a linear scan to allow array pulses to provide ultrasound information on weld zones. Pipeline AUT is also used for zone discrimination as well as with special calibration blocks, dual gate output displays, and rapid defect sizing. AUT allows for the inspection of welds soon after completion, and can save construction costs by process control when combined with engineering critical assessment (ECA) to minimize rejection rates. Ultrasonic phased arrays (UPA) use an array of elements that are all individually wired, pulsed, and time-shifted. Elements are pulsed in groups of approximately 16 elements at a time for pipeline welds. Phased arrays can be used to combine electronic scanning, sectorial scanning and precision focusing to give a practical combination of displays. Optimum angles can be selected for welds and other components, and the ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Global climate policy initiatives are now being proposed to compensate tropical forest nations for reducing carbon emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD). These proposals have the potential to include developing countries more actively in international greenhouse gas mitigation and to address a substantial share of the world's emissions which come from tropical deforestation. For such a policy to be viable it must have a credible benchmark against which emissions reduction can be calculated. This benchmark, sometimes termed a baseline or reference emissions scenario, can be based directly on historical emissions or can use historical emissions as input for business as usual projections. Here, we review existing data and methods that could be used to measure historical deforestation and forest degradation reference scenarios including FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations) national statistics and various remote sensing sources. The freely ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The purpose of the workshop was to determine the status of the field, to define instrumental and computational requirements, and to establish minimum specifications required by possible users. The most important message sent by implementers was the remainder that CMT is a tool. It solves a wide spectrum of scientific problems and is complementary to other microscopy techniques, with certain important advantages that the other methods do not have. High-resolution CMT can be used non-invasively and non-destructively to study a variety of hierarchical three-dimensional microstructures, which in turn control body function. X-ray computed microtomography can also be used at the frontiers of physics, in the study of granular systems, for example. With high-resolution CMT, for example, three-dimensional pore geometries and topologies of soils and rocks can be obtained readily and implemented directly in transport models. In turn, these geometries can be used to calculate fundamental physical ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Since 1998, Hydro Quebec Research Centre (IREQ), in collaboration with Gentilly-2, has been working on the development of inspection devices for the feeder tubes of CANDU power plants. The first tool to come out of this work was the Metar bracelet, now used throughout the CANDU utilities, consisting of 14 ultrasonic probes held in place in a rigid bracelet to measure the thickness of the pipes and moved around manually along the pipe. Following the success of the Metar, a motorized version, i.e. the Crawler, has been developed to inspect beyond the operator arm's reach to access hard to reach place or further down the pipes in the reactor. This new system has been tested at 3 different stations and will be commercially available soon. Finally, the same technology was used to develop a motorized 2-axis crack detection device to answer new concerns about the feeder. Other configurations, depending on the demands from the industry, could also be developed for ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In the developed world, grid-connected photovoltaics (PVs) are the fastest-growing segment of the energy market. From 1999 to 2009, this industry had a 42% compound annual growth-rate. From 2009 to 2013, it is expected to grow to 45%, and in 2013 the achievement of grid parity - when the cost of solar electricity becomes competitive with conventional retail (including taxes and charges) grid-supplied electricity - is expected in many places worldwide. Grid-connected PV is usually perceived as an energy technology for developed countries, whereas isolated, stand-alone PV is considered as more suited for applications in developing nations, where so many individuals still lack access to electricity. This rationale is based on the still high costs of PV when compared with conventional electricity. We make the case for grid-connected PV generation in Brazil, showing that with the declining costs of PV and the rising prices of conventional electricity, urban populations in Brazil will also ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The sixth AER benchmark is the second AER benchmark for couplings of the thermal hydraulic codes and three dimensional neutron kinetic core models. It concerns a double end break of one main steam line in a WWER-440 plant. The core is at the end of its first cycle in full power conditions. In VTT HEXTRAN2.9 is used for the core kinetics and dynamics and SMABRE4.8 as a thermal hydraulic model for the primary and secondary loop. The plant model for SMABRE consists mainly of two input models, Loviisa model and a standard WWER-440/213 plant model. The primary loop includes six separate loops, the pressure vessel is divided into six parallel channels in SMABRE and the whole core calculation is performed in the core with HEXTRAN. The horizontal steam generators are modelled with heat transfer tubes in five levels and vertically with two parts, riser and downcomer. With this kind of detailed modelling of steam generators there occurs strong flashing after break opening. As a sequence of the ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Homologous and heterologous arterial segments were implanted in Fisher rats subcutaneously for the purpose of examining the antibody titer of the recipients' serum after implantation by means of the immune-adherence hemagglutination method. The antibody titer after implantation both of homologous and heterologous grafts decreased to 1/8 by 2.0 million (M) rads irradiation of high voltage cathode rays. The results suggested that high voltage cathode ray irradiation was not enough for heterologous graft to suppress its tissue reaction. Homografts taken from dogs 3 or 6 hours after sacrifice were irradiated with 2.0 M rads and transplanted in canine carotid artery using the technic of end-to-end anastomosis. Angiograms 6 months after operation revealed excellent patency rate in all the grafts of 28 dogs. furthermore, findings of the grafts from 1 week to 5 years after operation on scanning and transmission electron microscopies were evaluated. Clinical application of bypass ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

With publication the fire design rules of the Eurocode and the national application documents (NAD) for the first time also calculation methods of constructive structural fire protection are available. This dimensioning of components and structures in fire case is based on the normal temperature design on Eurocodes and can be applied in the future as alternative to the classical fire design method of the German standard DIN 4102 part 4. In this contribution a view of the proof procedures of the Eurocode fire protection parts and the arrangements of the NADs is given as soon as the application of these fire design rules in Germany is described. (orig.) [German] Mit der Veroeffentlichung der Eurocode-Brandschutzteile als Vornormen und der zugehoerigen nationalen Anwendungsregelungen (NAD) als DIN-Fachberichte stehen erstmals auch rechnerische Nachweisverfahren fuer den konstruktiven baulichen Brandschutz zur Verfuegung. Diese brandschutztechnische Bemessung von ...

Science.gov (United States)

Processes for the hydrogenation of carbon monoxide have had commercial importance since about 1920, when the commercial production of methanol and higher alcohols on oxide catalysts began. Soon thereafter Fischer and Tropsch discovered that liquid hydrocarbons could be synthesized from carbon monoxide and hydrogen over Group VIII metal catalysts. Following extensive catalyst and process development efforts, this technology provided Germany with a source of liquid fuels during World War II. The period following the war saw an acceleration in research and development on the Fischer-Tropsch process, but the only commercial application that was to emerge was the SASOL process in the Union of South Africa. The oil crises of the 1970s have rekindled worldwide interest in indirect liquefaction technologies for the production of clean, high-quality motor fuels from coal. The development of more efficient coal gasification processes and the advent of molecular sieve ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

With the advance of science, rise of public interest in environmental matters, and continuing erosion of air quality, Federal and state regulators are demanding an increasing complex array of data concerning emissions produced by burning and detonating energetic materials. The US Department of Defense, one of the world`s largest consumers of energetic materials, now must characterize combustion products resulting from open burning/open detonation disposal operations. The catch-all phrase ``below detection limits`` no longer satisfies the regulators who now want testing to delve into the ppt level for volatile organic compounds and ppt level for semivolatile organic compounds. Regulators are also expanding their scope of interest and may soon be asking for emissions data on training operations such as artillery firing. Providing this type of information is no longer an impossibility. The Army, as the single manager of conventional munitions for the three military ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A comprehensive study of biomass production conversion and utilisation systems has been carried out to examine complete bio-energy systems from biomass in the forest to electricity delivered to the grid. Models have been derived for all of the key steps in an integrated process which have been compiled into an overall system model. Biomass production from short rotation forestry and from conventional forestry is modelled on an individual operation basis in terms of the performance and cost of each step. This includes planting, maintenance, harvesting, chipping, storage and transport. Biomass conversion includes pretreatment (reception, storage, handling, comminution, screening and drying); atmospheric gasification (generic gasifier, water scrubbing, gas engine); pressure gasification (generic gasifier, hot gas clean-up, gas turbine, HRSG, steam turbine); fast pyrolysis for liquid bio-fuel-oil (pyrolyser, oil storage, dual fuel engine); combustion (fluid bed combustor, steam turbine). ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Because of past military operations, lack of upkeep and looting there are now enormous radioactive waste problems in Iraq. These waste problems include destroyed nuclear facilities, uncharacterized radioactive wastes, liquid radioactive waste in underground tanks, wastes related to the production of yellow cake, sealed radioactive sources, activated metals and contaminated metals that must be constantly guarded. Iraq currently lacks the trained personnel, regulatory and physical infrastructure to safely and securely manage these facilities and wastes. In 2005 the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) agreed to organize an international cooperative program to assist Iraq with these issues. Soon after, the Iraq Nuclear Facility Dismantlement and Disposal Program (the NDs Program) was initiated by the U.S. Department of State (DOS) to support the IAEA and assist the Government of Iraq (GOI) in eliminating the threats from poorly controlled radioactive materials. ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This current world population has significantly added to the pressures placed upon our finite resources and our resulting ability to feed ourselves. In order to cope with current and future demands, the two established lines of action, that is, reduced population growth and expansion of agricultural production, must be supplemented with the parallel activity of reducing food losses during and after harvest. For developing countries in particular, enormous post-harvest losses result from spillage, contamination, pests and physiological deterioration during storage. Studies in these countries indicate that post-harvest losses are enormous and amount to tens of millions of tons per year valued at billions of dollars. Programs to reduce post-harvest losses, if applied properly, can result in realistic yield increases between 10 and 30%, which can be directly converted into increased consumption for humans. Post-harvest losses vary greatly and are a function of the crop variety, pest ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Full text of publication follows: A porous media solution PORFLO has been developed for the 3-dimensional two-phase flow by describing the process facility in Cartesian or cylindrical coordinates. The local porosity fraction is applied for distinguishing the fluid filled volumes from the solid structures. The solid structure contribute the two-phase flow through the wall friction, flow area and heat transfer. Optionally the solid structure may contain primary liquid of steam generators, steam in the higher temperature and pressure to be condensed or electrical heating power. By using these optional boundary conditions three different process facilities have been analysed. The thermohydraulic solution based on 5-equation approach, where the conservation equations are solved for the liquid and gas (vapour) mass, mixture momentum (giving the velocity only for the mixture), liquid and gas energy, is described shortly. In addition to that the principles modelling optional boundary ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Analyzing various SBLOCA with high pressure safety injection (HPSI) at VVER-440/213, we met a surprising phenomenon - a 'natural' circulation post SG heat transfer reversal. This is not usual, because normal natural circulation (NC) in primary circuit is connected with positive heat transfer at SG. If there is reverse heat transfer at SG (as soon as the break enthalpy outflow is sufficient for removal of reactor decay heat), it should obstruct any natural circulation. The question was, what is the driving force of this 'non-standard natural circulation'. After all we revealed that force - it is the density difference between the colder water in reactor downcomer (cold water from HPSI) and warmer water in inner reactor (lower plenum, core, upper plenum). This phenomenon could be confusing for operating personal, because there would be an opposite temperature difference at the loop than by normal natural circulation (under ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Full text: Radiotherapy treatment planning (RTP) relies heavily on medical imaging. Until recently, the most important planning tool was the treatment simulator. The kilovoltage radiographic capabilities in a treatment simulator enabled the boundaries of treatment fields to be visualized with respect to bony anatomic landmarks. Perhaps the most important advance in treatment planning in recent years is the ability to visualize the passage of the beams with respect to a more accurate geometrical representation of the tumor and other soft tissue structures. This 'virtual simulation' uses a computer-based representation of a patient to determine the extent of the disease and the location of radiation sensitive normal tissue. Computer tomographic (CT) imaging produces a high-resolution three-dimensional representation of anatomy that can be correlated with other image sets such as magnetic resonance images (MRI) of function. Positron emission tomographic (PET) imaging is beginning to be ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reporting of the first nuclear trafficking incidents began in the early 1990's. The incidents were handled on a national level, using the resources and expertise available in the respective states. However, it soon became evident that fighting this illicit movement of nuclear material across borders would require international cooperation and a systematic and methodological approach. To this end, the G-8 states encouraged the creation of a dedicated group of experts. The Nuclear Smuggling International Technical Working Group (ITWG) was created in the mid 1990's under the auspices of the G-8, following the 1995 Ottawa summit and the 1996 nuclear security summit held in Moscow. The group reports regularly to the Nuclear Safety and Security Group (NSSG) of the G-8. The ITWG has been working towards a sustainable mechanism to help resolve the international problem surrounding combating the illicit trafficking of nuclear material. In consequence, the technical focus ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The need for a Combustion and Melting Research Facility focused on the solution of glass manufacturing problems common to all segments of the glass industry was given high priority in the earliest version of the Glass Industry Technology Roadmap (Eisenhauer et al., 1997). Visteon Glass Systems and, later, PPG Industries proposed to meet this requirement, in partnership with the DOE/OIT Glass Program and Sandia National Laboratories, by designing and building a research furnace equipped with state-of-the-art diagnostics in the DOE Combustion Research Facility located at the Sandia site in Livermore, CA. Input on the configuration and objectives of the facility was sought from the entire industry by a variety of routes: (1) through a survey distributed to industry leaders by GMIC, (2) by conducting an open workshop following the OIT Glass Industry Project Review in September 1999, (3) from discussions with numerous glass engineers, scientists, and executives, and (4) during visits to ...