Locating leaks in water mains using noise loggers

OpenAIRE

El-Abbasy, Mohammed S.; Mosleh, Fadi; Senouci, Ahmed; Zayed, Tarek; Al-Derham, Hassan

2016-01-01

Because of their potential danger to public health, economic loss, environmental damage, and energy waste, underground water pipelines leaks have received more attention globally. Researchers have proposed active leakage control approaches to localize, locate, and pinpoint leaks. Noise loggers have usually been used only for localizing leaks while other tools were used for locating and pinpointing. These approaches have resulted in additional cost and time. Thus, regression and artificial neu...

40 CFR 63.1086 - How must I monitor for leaks to cooling water?

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... monitor for leaks to cooling water? You must monitor for leaks to cooling water by monitoring each heat... system so that the cooling water flow rate is 51,031 liters per minute or less so that a leak of 3.06 kg... detected a leak. (b) Individual heat exchangers. Monitor the cooling water at the entrance and exit of each...

75 FR 76742 - Detecting Oil Leaks From Vessels Into the Water

Science.gov (United States)

2010-12-09

... to detect leaks from oil tanks into the water? (E) What is the threshold for detection, accuracy... than leak detection from oil cargo tanks into the water? (H) Are methods or equipment being applied for... DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY Coast Guard [Docket No. USCG-2010-1085] Detecting Oil Leaks From...

Application of acoustic leak detection technology for the detection and location of leaks in light water reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kupperman, D.S.; Prine, D.; Mathieson, T.

1988-10-01

This report presents the results of a study to evaluate the adequacy of leak detection systems in light water reactors. The sources of numerous reported leaks and methods of detection have been documented. Research to advance the state of the art of acoustic leak detection is presented, and procedures for implementation are discussed. 14 refs., 70 figs., 10 tabs

Pipeline leak detection using volatile tracers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thompson, G.M.; Golding, R.D.

1993-01-01

A method of leak detection for underground storage tanks and pipelines adds volatile tracers to the products in the tanks and analyzes the surrounding shallow soil gases for tracer vapors. This method has several advantages: the success of the test is not limited by the size and structural design of the vessels, tanks can be tested at any fill level without taking the tank out of service, the location of a leak along a pipeline is clearly marked by the location of the tracer, and liquid leaks as small as 0.2 liters per hour (lph) can be detected. A limitation is: the backfill material must have some degree of air permeability in the zone above the water table. Several field tests document the success achieved using this method. A tracer leak detection system was installed at Homestead AFB after several other testing methods failed to locate a leak at a valve pit location along approximately 4 kilometers of fuel transfer piping. The leak was detected to the side of the valve pit at a depth of approximately 2.5 meters below the ground surface. Another installation of Edwards AFB involved the collection of 415 soil gas samples along approximately 3,050 meters of 15.25-centimeter fiberglass pipeline. Fourteen separate leaks were detected

Water Leak Localisation and Recovery in Tore Supra

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martinez, A.; Samaille, F.; Chantant, M.; Hatchressian, J.-C.

2006-01-01

For almost 20 years, Tore Supra (TS) Tokamak uses water as a coolant for its plasma facing and in-vessels components. It can be considered as ITER relevant on this particular aspect. During plasma operation in TS, the water inlet temperature and outlet pressure are 120 o C and 2.4 MPa respectively, while baking is performed at 200 o C and 2 Mpa. It happened, that unexpected localized power deposits damaged in-vessels components leading to more or less large water leaks. In order to protect the vacuum vessel from over-pressurisation in case of large water leaks and to avoid the release of eventual activated materials, a pressure suppression system, composed of two rupture disks and a relief pipe header, has been designed. In the event of smaller leaks, the issue for Tore Supra operations is to apply methods capable of detecting and localising leaking water cooling circuits inside the vacuum vessel within an acceptable time. For this purpose, drainage and drying systems have been designed and manufactured to evacuate completely the water in the components and vacuum vessel, facilitating, in that way, leak testing procedure of the components. A new system allows the localization of the leaky circuit remotely by using the cooling loops monitoring system. The sub-circuits can be selected, isolated and de pressurized by the operator. Simultaneously the vacuum is monitored in the vessel and analyzed with a mass spectrometer. The water resulting from the steam condensation in the cold parts of the vacuum vessel is pumped by a new specific vacuum system in the lower parts of the machine and stored in tanks to avoid dissipation of activated products in the environment. Filters are implemented on the outlets lines of the pumps. The in-vessels components fed by the upper part of the cooling loop are connected in parallel and the water inlets and outlets are located on top of the machine, so some difficulties were encountered to drain-off completely this components. Presently

Leak Detectives Saving Money, Water in Virginia

Science.gov (United States)

“Circuit riders” from the Virginia Rural Water Association (VRWA) are traveling to small communities across the Commonwealth using special equipment financed by EPA to locate expensive and wasteful leaks in drinking water distribution systems.

40 CFR 63.424 - Standards: Equipment leaks.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

....424 Standards: Equipment leaks. (a) Each owner or operator of a bulk gasoline terminal or pipeline... location of all equipment in gasoline service at the facility. (c) Each detection of a liquid or vapor leak... replacement of leaking equipment shall be completed within 15 calendar days after detection of each leak...

Leaks in the internal water supply piping systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Orlov Evgeniy Vladimirovich

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Great water losses in the internal plumbing of a building lead to the waste of money for a fence, purification and supply of water volumes in excess. This does not support the concept of water conservation and resource saving lying today in the basis of any building’s construction having plumbing. Leakage means unplanned of water losses systems in domestic water supply systems (hot or cold as a result of impaired integrity, complicating the operation of a system and leading to high costs of repair and equipment restoration. A large number of leaks occur in old buildings, where the regulatory service life of pipelines has come to an end, and the scheduled repair for some reason has not been conducted. Steel pipelines are used in the systems without any protection from corrosion and they get out of order. Leakages in new houses are also not uncommon. They usually occur as a result of low-quality adjustment of the system by workers. It also important to note the absence of certain skills of plumbers, who don’t conduct the inspections of in-house systems in time. Sometimes also the residents themselves forget to keep their pipeline systems and water fittings in their apartment in good condition. Plumbers are not systematically invited for preventive examinations to detect possible leaks in the domestic plumbing. The amount of unproductive losses increases while simultaneous use of valve tenants, and at the increase of the number of residents in the building. Water leaks in the system depend on the amount of water system piping damages, and damages of other elements, for example, water valves, connections, etc. The pressure in the leak area also plays an important role.

Water Pipeline Monitoring and Leak Detection using Flow Liquid Meter Sensor

Science.gov (United States)

Rahmat, R. F.; Satria, I. S.; Siregar, B.; Budiarto, R.

2017-04-01

Water distribution is generally installed through underground pipes. Monitoring the underground water pipelines is more difficult than monitoring the water pipelines located on the ground in open space. This situation will cause a permanent loss if there is a disturbance in the pipeline such as leakage. Leaks in pipes can be caused by several factors, such as the pipe’s age, improper installation, and natural disasters. Therefore, a solution is required to detect and to determine the location of the damage when there is a leak. The detection of the leak location will use fluid mechanics and kinematics physics based on harness water flow rate data obtained using flow liquid meter sensor and Arduino UNO as a microcontroller. The results show that the proposed method is able to work stably to determine the location of the leak which has a maximum distance of 2 metres, and it’s able to determine the leak location as close as possible with flow rate about 10 litters per minute.

Heavy water leak detection using diffusion sampler

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joshi, M.L.; Hussain, S.A.

1990-01-01

In the Pressurrised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) detection of the sources of heavy water leaks is importent both for the purpose of radiation hazard control as well as for the reduction of escape/loss of heavy water which, is an expensive nuclear material. This paper describes an application of tritium diffusion sampler for heavy water leak detection. The diffusion sampler comprises an usual tritium counting glass vial with a special orifice. The counting vial has water vapour, deficient in HTO concentration. The HTO present outside diffuses in the vial through the orifice, gets exchanged with water of the wet filter paper kept at the bottom and the moisture in the vial atmosphere which has HTO concentration lower than that outside. This results in continuation of net movement of HTO in the vial. The exchanged tritium is counted in liquid scintillation spectrometer. The method has a sensitivity of 10000 dpm/DAC-h. (author). 2 figs., 2 ta bs

Some problems of leaks in sodium-water steam generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kozlov, F.A.; Sergeev, G.V.; Sednev, A.R.; Makarov, V.M.

1976-01-01

The paper contains data on wastage of steam generator structural materials and high-nickel alloys in the zone of water leakage into sodium as well as investigation results for self-enlargement of water leaks into sodium through defects in these materials. It is shown that the rate of material damage in the zone of sodium-water reaction and in the channel with water leaking-out decreases with increasing nickel content in steels and strongly depends on sodium temperature. The paper presents experimentally obtained dependences of leakage self-enlargement rates on sodium temperature and leakage size

Leak detectors for organic Rankine cycle power plants: On-line and manual methods

Science.gov (United States)

Robertus, R. J.; Pool, K. H.; Kindle, C. H.; Sullivan, R. G.; Shannon, D. W.; Pierce, D. D.

1984-10-01

Two leak detector systems were designed, built, and tested at a binary-cycle (organic Rankine cycle) geothermal plant. One system is capable of detecting water in hydrocarbon streams down to 100 ppm liquid water ion liquid isobutane. The magnitude of the leak is estimated from the frequency at which solenoid-operated valve opens and closes. The second system can detect the presence of isobutane on water or brine streams down to 2 ppm liquid isobutane in liquid water or brine. The unit first cools the liquid stream if necessary then reduces the pressure in an expansion chamber so the hydrocarbon will vaporize. In brine streams flashed CO2 carries the hydrocarbon to a non-dispersive infrared analyzer (NDIR). The NDIR was modified to be highly selective for isobutane. One can estimate the size of a leak knowing the total gas-to-liquid ratio entering the leak detection system and the concentration of hydrocarbon in the gas phase.

Technical basis for inner container leak detection sensitivity goals in 3013 DE surveillance

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Berg, John M. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

2017-08-11

Helium leak checking of 3013 inner container lids is under consideration for addition to DE Surveillance tasks as an improved means to detect any through-wall flaws that may have formed during storage. This white paper evaluates whether leak checking at DE could replace and improve upon the current method of comparing gas compositions and pressures within the inner and outer containers. We have used viscous and molecular flow equations in ANSI N14.5 to calculate what the measured standard helium leak rate would be for hypothetical leaks of three different sizes. For comparison, we have also calculated the effects on gas composition and pressure differences as a function of pre-DE storage time for the same three leak sizes, using molecular and viscous flow equations as well as diffusion equations to predict the relevant gas transport. For a hypothetical leak that would be measured at 1x10^-7 std cc/sec, likely an achievable sensitivity using helium leak checking at DE, the calculations predict no measurable effect on pressure difference or gas composition as measured by DE gas analysis. We also calculate that it would take over 200 years for water vapor to diffuse through a 10^-7 std cc/sec leak enough to raise the RH outer container to half the RH value in the inner container. A leak 100 times larger, which would be measured at 1x10^-5 std cc/sec, the same water vapor diffusion would take at least 14 years. Our conclusion is that helium leak checking will be useful even at a sensitivity of 1x10^-5 std cc/sec, and a significant improvement over current DE methods at a sensitivity of 1x10^-7 std cc/sec.

Application of leak-before-break criteria to pressurized water reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roege, P.; Day, B.; Beckjord, E.; Golay, M.

1986-01-01

The possibility of consequential damage to safety-related systems or components after postulated pipe breaks in Light Water Reactors has led to the installation of pipe restraints capable of withstanding the loads in such an accident. These restraints are a significant part of initial capital cost, and because of their size and location, impede plant maintenance. The Piping Review Committee of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has concluded that, subject to fulfillment of certain criteria, the pipe restraints for pressurized water reactor main coolant piping are not necessary, because the failure mode of this piping is such that it will leak before it will break, and the leakage of reactor coolant is large enough to detect. In this study, we examine the piping systems of a 4-loop 1,150 MWe pressurized water reactor, determining the crack size that would be stable from a fracture mechanics point of view, and the range of leak rates that would ensue. We then consider the sensitivity of conventional leak detection systems, and find that pipe sizes down to 45 cm in diameter would meet the leak-before-break criteria. Improvements in the sensitivity of conventional leak detectors would extend this range down to pipe sizes down to the range of 20 - 45 cm in diameter. The development of local leak detection systems which would respond to leaks in compartments or confined areas would make it possible to apply the criteria to sizes as low as 10 - 20 cm in diameter, which appear to be the limit of the net cost savings of eliminating pipe restraints and adding additional leak detection instrumentation. Extending the leak-before-break concept into this smallest pipe range may require improved precision in crack definition, flow modeling, and leak detection. Better detection of leaks may also require use of new detection methods coupled to novel approaches to piping system design. (J.P.N.)

Detection of steam generator tube leaks in pressurized water reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roach, W.H.

1985-01-01

This report addresses the early detection of small steam generator tube leaks in pressurized water reactors. It discusses the third, and final, year's work on an NRC-funded project examining diagnostic instrumentation in water reactors. The first two years were broad in coverage, concentrating on anticipatory measurements for detection of potential problems in both pressurized- and boiling-water reactors, with recommendations for areas of further study. One of these areas, the early detection of small steam tube leaks in PWRs, formed the basis of study for the last year of the project. Four tasks are addressed in this study of the detection of steam tube leaks. (1) Determination of which physical parameters indicate the onset of steam generator tube leaks. (2) Establishing performance goals for diagnostic instruments which could be used for early detection of steam generator tube leaks. (3) Defining the diagnostic instrumentation and their location which satisfy Items 1 and 2 above. (4) Assessing the need for diagnostic data processing and display. Parameters are identified, performance goals established, and sensor types and locations are specified in the report, with emphasis on the use of existing instrumentation with a minimum of retrofitting. A simple algorithm is developed which yields the leak rate as a function of known or measurable quantities. The conclusion is that leak rates of less than one-tenth gram per second should be detectable with existing instrumentation. (orig./HP)

Water leak detection in steam generator of SUPER PHENIX

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brunet, M.; Garnaud, P.; Ghaleb, D.; Kong, N.

1988-01-01

With the intent of detecting water leaks inside steam generators, we developed a third system, called acoustic detector, to complement hydrogen detectors and rupture disks (burst disks). The role of the acoustic system is to enable rapid intervention in the event of a leak growing rapidly which could rupture neighbouring tubes. In such a case, the detectable flow rate of the leak varies from a few tens of g/s to a few hundred g/s. At the SUPER PHENIX, three teams work in [20-100 kHz] and CEA/STA* [50-300 kHz]. The simulation of water leaks in the steam generator by the argon injections performed to date at 50% of the rated power has shown promising results. An anomaly in the evolution of the background noise at more than 50% loading of one of the two instrumented steam generators would make difficult any extrapolation to full power behaviour. (author)

Development of a portable heavy-water leak sensor based on laser absorption spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Lim; Park, Hyunmin; Kim, Taek-Soo; Kim, Minho; Jeong, Do-Young

2016-01-01

Highlights: • We developed a compact and portable laser sensor for a detection of heavy water leakage. • The sensor is wearable and also easy to use to search for the leak point. • It is sensitive enough to find invisible very tiny leaks. - Abstract: A compact and portable leak sensor based on cavity enhanced absorption spectroscopy has been newly developed for a detection of heavy water leakage which may happen in the facilities using heavy water such as pressurized heavy water reactor (PHWR). The developed portable sensor is suitable as an individual instrument for the measuring leak rate and finding the leak location because it is sufficiently compact in size and weight and operated by using an internal battery. In the performance test, the minimum detectable leak rate was estimated as 0.05 g/day from the calibration curve. This new sensor is expected to be a reliable and promising device for the detection of heavy water leakage since it has advantages on real-time monitoring and early detection for nuclear safety.

Japan Reports New Water Leak at Fukushima Daiichi; IAEA Sees No Danger to Public

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2014-01-01

Full text: Japanese authorities have informed the IAEA that a leak from an overflowing water storage tank at TEPCO's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station was detected in the late evening of 19 February 2014. About 100 cubic metres of radioactive water leaked to the ground adjacent to the tank storage area before the leak was stopped about six hours later. Based on the information provided, IAEA experts consider that the leak poses no danger to the public. IAEA experts also consider actions taken by Japan's Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) following the leak to be appropriate. These include an NRA recommendation that TEPCO remove soil contaminated by the leaked water, which will reduce the risk that contaminated water will be spread further through rain and groundwater. Japan has not asked the IAEA for any assistance in connection with the leak from the tank. The IAEA will continue monitoring developments. (IAEA)

Management of water leaks on Tore Supra actively cooled fusion device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hatchressian, J.C.; Gargiulo, L.; Samaille, F.; Soler, B.

2005-01-01

Up to now, Tore Supra is the only fusion device fully equipped with actively cooled Plasma Facing Components (PFCs). In case of abnormal events during a plasma discharge, the PFCs could be submitted to a transient high power density (run away electrons) or to a continuous phenomena as local thermal flux induced by trapped suprathermal electrons or ions). It could lead to a degradation of the PFC integrity and in the worst case to a water leak occurrence. Such water leak has important consequence on the tokamak operation that concerns PFCs themselves, monitoring equipment located in the vacuum vessel or connected to the ports as RF antennas, diagnostics or pumping systems. Following successive water leak events (the most important water leak, that occurred in September 2002, is described in the paper), a large feedback experience has been gained on Tore supra since more than 15 years that could be useful to actively cooled next devices as W7X and ITER. (authors)

Detection of steam generator tube leaks in pressurized water reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roach, W.H.

1984-11-01

This report addresses the early detection of small steam generator tube leaks in pressurized water reactors. It identifies physical parameters, establishes instrumentation performance goals, and specifies sensor types and locations. It presents a simple algorithm that yields the leak rate as a function of known or measurable quantities. Leak rates of less than one-tenth gram per second should be detectable with existing instrumentation

EBR-II water-to-sodium leak detection system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wrightson, M.M.; McKinley, K.; Ruther, W.E.; Holmes, J.T.

1976-01-01

The water-to-sodium leak detection system installed at EBR-II in April, 1975, is described in detail. Topics covered include operational characteristics, maintenance problems, alarm functions, background hydrogen level data, and future plans for refinements to the system. Particular emphasis is given to the failures of eight of the ten leak detectors due to sodium-to-vacuum leakage, and the program anticipated for complete recovery of the system

Bioventing - a new twist on soil vapor remediation of the vadose zone and shallow ground water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yancheski, T.B.; McFarland, M.A.

1992-01-01

Bioventing, which is a combination of soil vapor remediation and bioremediation techniques, may be an innovative, cost-effective, and efficient remedial technology for addressing petroleum contamination in the vadose zone and shallow ground water. The objective of bioventing is to mobilize petroleum compounds from the soil and ground water into soil vapor using soil vapor extraction and injection technology, and to promote the migration of the soil vapor upward to the turf root zone for degradation by active near-surface microbiological activity. Promoting and maintaining optimum microbiological activity in the turf root rhizosphere is a key component to the bioventing technique. Preliminary ongoing USEPA bioventing pilot studies (Kampbell, 1991) have indicated that this technique is a promising remediation technology, although feasibility studies are not yet complete. However, based on the preliminary data, it appears that proper bioventing design and implementation will result in substantial reductions of petroleum compounds in the capillary zone and shallow ground water, complete degradation of petroleum compounds in the turf root zone, and no surface emissions. A bioventing system was installed at a site in southern Delaware with multiple leaking underground storage tanks in early 1992 to remediate vadose zone and shallow ground-water contaminated by petroleum compounds. The system consists of a series of soil vapor extraction and soil vapor/atmospheric air injection points placed in various contamination areas and a central core remediation area (a large grassy plot). This system was chosen for this site because it was least costly to implement and operate as compared to other remedial alternatives (soil vapor extraction with carbon or catalytic oxidation of off-gas treatment, insitu bioremediation, etc.), and results in the generation of no additional wastes

Wastage-resistant characteristics of 12Cr steel tube material. Small leak sodium-water reaction test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shimoyama, Kazuhito

2004-03-01

In the water leak accident of a steam generator designed for a sodium cooled reactor in the Feasibility Study, the localization of tube failure propagation by using an advanced water leak detector will be required from the viewpoints of the safety and economical efficiency of the plant. So far, the conventional knowledge and analytical tools have been used in the investigation and evaluation of water leak phenomenon; nevertheless, there was neither test data nor the study of quantitative evaluation on the corrosion behavior, so-called wastage-resistant characteristics, of 12Cr steel tube material in sodium-water reactions. Wastage tests for the 12Cr steel tube material were conducted in small water leaks by use of the Sodium-Water Reaction Test Rig (SWAT-1R), and the data of wastage rate were obtained in the parameter of water leak rate under the constant sodium temperature and distance between leak and target tubes. The test results lead to the following conclusions: (1) The wastage-resistibility of 12Cr steel is 1.6 times greater than that of 9Cr steel and is 2.7 times greater than that of 2.25Cr-1Mo steel. (2)The wastage-resistibility of 12Cr steel increases in smaller water leaks; especially in water leak rates of 1 g/sec or less, it is more excellent than that of SUS321 stainless steel used as Monju superheater tube material. (3) Based on the correlation of wastage rate for the 9Cr steel, the correlation for the 12Cr steel has been obtained to be used for the evaluation of tube failure propagation. As the correlation of wastage rate for the 12Cr steel is based on the correlation for the 9Cr steel, it gives enough conservatism in smaller water leaks. To serve in accurately evaluating the tube failure propagation in smaller water leaks, it is necessary to obtain new correlation of wastage rate for the 12Cr steel based on the data in the wide range of water leak rates. (author)

What Good is Raman Water Vapor Lidar?

Science.gov (United States)

Whitman, David

2011-01-01

Raman lidar has been used to quantify water vapor in the atmosphere for various scientific studies including mesoscale meteorology and satellite validation. Now the international networks of NDACC and GRUAN have interest in using Raman water vapor lidar for detecting trends in atmospheric water vapor concentrations. What are the data needs for addressing these very different measurement challenges. We will review briefly the scientific needs for water vapor accuracy for each of these three applications and attempt to translate that into performance specifications for Raman lidar in an effort to address the question in the title of "What good is Raman water vapor Iidar."

Water leak detection in steam generator of Super Phenix

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kong, N.; Brunet, M.; Garnaud, P.; Ghaleb, D.

1990-01-01

With the intent of detecting water leaks inside steam generators, we developed a third system, called acoustic detector, to complement hydrogen detectors and rupture disks (burst disks). The role of the acoustic system is to enable rapid intervention in the event of a leak growing rapidly which could rupture neighbouring tubes. In such a case, the detectable flow rate of the leak varies from a few tens of g/s to a few hundred g/s. At the Super Phenix, three teams work in parallel in complementary frequency bands: EDF (0-20 kHz), CEA/SPCI (20-100 kHz) and CEA/STA (50-300 kHz). The simulation of water leaks in the steam generator by the argon injections performed to date at 50% of the rated power has shown promising results. An anomaly in the evolution of the background noise at more than 50% loading of one of the two instrumented steam generators would make difficult any extrapolation to full power behaviour. 5 refs, 6 figs, 1 tab

Acoustic detection for water/steam leak from a tube of LMFBR steam generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sonoda, Masataka; Shindo, Yoshihisa

1989-01-01

Acoustic leak detector is useful for detecting more quickly intermediate leak than the existing hydrogen detector and is available for identification of leak location on the accident of water/steam leak from a tube of LMFBR steam generator. This paper presents the overview of HALD (High frequency Acoustics Leak Detection) system, which is more sensitive for leak detection and lower cost of equipment for identification of leak location than a low frequency type detector. (author)

Mobile Sensor Networks for Leak and Backflow Detection in Water Distribution Systems

KAUST Repository

Suresh, M. Agumbe; Smith, L.; Rasekh, A.; Stoleru, R.; Banks, M.K.; Shihada, Basem

2014-01-01

Leak and backflow detection are essential aspects of Water Distribution System (WDS) monitoring. Most existing solutions for leak/backflow detection in WDSs focus on the placement of expensive static sensors located strategically. In contrast to these, we propose a solution whereby mobile sensors (i.e., their movement aided only by the inherent water flow in the system) detect leaks/backflow. Information about the leaks/backflow is collected from the sensors either by physically capturing them, or through wireless communication. Specifically, we propose models to maximize leak/backflow detection given a cost constraint (a limit on the number of sensors). Through extensive simulations, we demonstrate the superior performance of our proposed solution when compared with the state of the art solutions (e.g., algorithms/protocols and analysis).

Mobile Sensor Networks for Leak and Backflow Detection in Water Distribution Systems

KAUST Repository

Suresh, M. Agumbe

2014-05-01

Leak and backflow detection are essential aspects of Water Distribution System (WDS) monitoring. Most existing solutions for leak/backflow detection in WDSs focus on the placement of expensive static sensors located strategically. In contrast to these, we propose a solution whereby mobile sensors (i.e., their movement aided only by the inherent water flow in the system) detect leaks/backflow. Information about the leaks/backflow is collected from the sensors either by physically capturing them, or through wireless communication. Specifically, we propose models to maximize leak/backflow detection given a cost constraint (a limit on the number of sensors). Through extensive simulations, we demonstrate the superior performance of our proposed solution when compared with the state of the art solutions (e.g., algorithms/protocols and analysis).

Study of the characteristics of water into sodium leak acoustic noise in LMR steam generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Tae Joon; Jeong, Kyung Chai; Jeong, Ji Young; Hur, Seop; Nam, Ho Yun

2005-01-01

A successful time for detecting a water/steam leak into sodium in the LMR SG (steam generator) at an early phase of a leak origin depends on the fast response and sensitivity of a leak detection system. It is considered, that the acoustic system is intended for a fast detecting of a water/steam into sodium leak of an intermediate flow rate, 1∼10 g/s. This intention of an acoustic system is stipulated by a key impossibility of a fast detecting of an intermediate leak by the present nominal systems on measuring the hydrogen in the sodium and in the cover gas concentration generated at a leak. During the self-wastage of a water/steam into sodium leak in a particular instant, it is usual in 30∼40 minutes from the moment of a leak origin, there is a modification of a leak flow out regime from bubble regime to the steam jet outflow. This evolution occurs as a jump function of the self-wastage of a leak and is escorted by an increase of a leak noise power and qualitative change of a leak noise spectrum. Subject of this study is by means of two experiments, one is an acoustic leak noise analysis of the water into sodium leak results in no damage to the LMR SG tube bundle, and another is for prediction of the frequency band under a high outflow leak condition. We experimented with the Argon gas injection considered with the phenomena of secondary leaks in real

Detection of heavy-water leaks in nuclear reactors : a novel method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murthy, M.S.; Gor, M.K.

2002-01-01

Technical Physics and Prototype Engineering Division, BARC has designed, developed and produced several high sensitivity mass spectrometer helium leak detectors over a period of two decades. Sometimes back, when there was a problem of detecting heavy water leaks in situ in one of the nuclear power reactors of the Department of Atomic Energy, it was referred to this division for a technical solution. After discussing with the site engineers, the various problems involved in the on-line detection of heavy water leaks especially near the end fittings of the coolant assemblies, a novel method of leak detection was developed. Some of the salient features of the method and the results obtained in the laboratory tests are given in this paper. (author)

Vacuum leak detector and method

Science.gov (United States)

Edwards, Jr., David

1983-01-01

Apparatus and method for detecting leakage in a vacuum system involves a moisture trap chamber connected to the vacuum system and to a pressure gauge. Moisture in the trap chamber is captured by freezing or by a moisture adsorbent to reduce the residual water vapor pressure therein to a negligible amount. The pressure gauge is then read to determine whether the vacuum system is leaky. By directing a stream of carbon dioxide or helium at potentially leaky parts of the vacuum system, the apparatus can be used with supplemental means to locate leaks.

Small leak detection by measuring surface oscillation during sodium-water reaction in steam generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nei, Hiromichi; Hori, Masao

1977-01-01

Small leak sodium-water reaction tests were conducted to develop various kinds of leak detectors for the sodium-heated steam generator in FBR. The super-heated steam was injected into sodium in a reaction vessel having a sodium free surface, simulating the steam generator. The level gauge in the reaction vessel generated the most reliable signal among detectors, as long as the leak rates were relatively high. The level gauge signal was estimated to be the sodium surface oscillation caused by hydrogen bubbles produced in sodium-water reaction. Experimental correlation was derived, predicting the amplitude as a function of leak rate, hydrogen dissolution ratio, bubble rise velocity and other parameters concerned, assuming that the surface oscillation is in proportion to the gas hold-up. The noise amplitude under normal operation without water leak was increased with sodium flow rate and found to be well correlated with Froud number. These two correlations predict that a water leak in a ''MONJU'' class (300 MWe) steam generator could possibly be detected by level gauges at a leak rate above 2 g/sec. (auth.)

Water vapor profiling using microwave radiometry

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, J. R.; Wilheit, T. T.

1988-01-01

Water vapor is one of the most important constituents in the Earth's atmosphere. Its spatial and temporal variations affect a wide spectrum of meteorological phenomena ranging from the formation of clouds to the development of severe storms. The passive microwave technique offers an excellent means for water vapor measurements. It can provide both day and night coverage under most cloud conditions. Two water vapor absorption features, at 22 and 183 GHz, were explored in the past years. The line strengths of these features differ by nearly two orders of magnitude. As a consequence, the techniques and the final products of water vapor measurements are also quite different. The research effort in the past few years was to improve and extend the retrieval algorithm to the measurements of water vapor profiles under cloudy conditions. In addition, the retrieval of total precipitable water using 183 GHz measurements, but in a manner analogous to the use of 22 GHz measurements, to increase measurement sensitivity for atmospheres of very low moisture content was also explored.

Acoustic Leak Detection Testing Using KAERI Sodium-Water Reaction Signals for a SFR Steam Generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Tae-Joon; Jeong, Ji-Young; Kim, Jong-Man; Kim, Byung-Ho; Hahn, Do-Hee; Yugay, Valeriy S.

2009-01-01

The results of an experimental study of water in a sodium leak noise spectrum formation at 0.004-0.54 g/sec, various rates of water into a sodium leak, smaller than 1.0 g/sec, are presented. We focused on studying a micro leak detection with an increasing rate of water into sodium. On the basis of the experimental leak noise data manufactured in KAERI the simple dependency of an acoustic signal level from the rate of a micro and small leak at different frequency bands is presented to understand the principal analysis for the development of an acoustic leak detection methodology used in a K- 600 steam generator

Water leak localization and recovery in Tore Supra

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martinez, A.; Samaille, F.; Chantant, M.; Hatchressian, J.C.

2007-01-01

For almost 20 years at Tore Supra, plasma facing components (PFCs) are actively cooled by a pressurized water primary loop. Tore Supra can be considered as ITER relevant on this particular aspect. During plasma operation, it happened, that unexpected localized power deposits damaged a PFC leading to more or less large water leaks in the vacuum vessel. The improvement of the procedure to localize the leaky circuits, the investigation of technical solutions for minimizing the amount of water from steam condensation in the vacuum vessel and the optimisation of the quality of the draining and the drying of Tore Supra cooling loop circuits are the result of the experience gained during several years by the analysis of the water leak from plasma facing components (PFCs) and their consequences. Different new specific systems designed and installed during this year to fulfil these objectives are described in this paper

Implications of small water leak reactions on sodium heated steam generator design

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Smedley, J A

1975-07-01

Various types of sodium water reactions have been looked on as possibly causing hazard conditions in sodium heated steam generator units ranging from the very improbable boiler tube double ended guillotine fracture to the almost certain occurrence of micro-leaks. Within this range small water leaks reactions have attracted particular interest and the present paper looks at the principles of associating the reactions with detection and protection systems for Commercial Fast Reactors. A method is developed for assessing whether adequate protection has been provided against the effects of small water leak reactions in a steam generator unit. (author)

Methods and apparatus for measuring small leaks from carbon dioxide sequestration facilities

Science.gov (United States)

Nelson, Jr., David D.; Herndon, Scott C.

2018-01-02

In one embodiment, a CO.sub.2 leak detection instrument detects leaks from a site (e.g., a CO.sub.2 sequestration facility) using rapid concentration measurements of CO.sub.2, O.sub.2 and optionally water concentration that are achieved, for example, using laser spectroscopy (e.g. direct absorption laser spectroscopy). Water vapor in the sample gas may not be removed, or only partially removed. The sample gas may be collected using a multiplexed inlet assembly from a plurality of locations. CO.sub.2 and O.sub.2 concentrations may be corrected based on the water concentration. A resulting dataset of the CO.sub.2 and O.sub.2 concentrations is analyzed over time intervals to detect any changes in CO.sub.2 concentration that are not anti-correlated with O.sub.2 concentration, and to identify a potential CO.sub.2 leak in response thereto. The analysis may include determining eddy covariance flux measurements of sub-surface potential carbon.

Analyses on Water Vapor Resource in Chengdu City

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, B.; Xiao, T.; Wang, C.; Chen, D.

2017-12-01

Chengdu is located in the Sichuan basin, and it is the most famous inland city in China. With suitable temperatures and rainfall, Chengdu is the most livable cities in China. With the development of urban economy and society, the population has now risen to 16 million, and it will up to 22 million in 2030. This will cause the city water resources demand, and the carrying capacity of water resources become more and more serious. In order to improve the contradiction between urban waterlogging and water shortage, sponge city planning was proposed by Chengdu government, and this is of great practical significance for promoting the healthy development of the city. Base on the reanalysis data from NCEP during 2007-2016, the characters of Water Vapor Resources was analyzed, and the main contents of this research are summarized as follows: The water vapor resource in Chengdu plain is more than that in Southeast China and less in Northwest China. The annual average water vapor resource is approximately 160 mm -320 mm, and the water vapor resource in summer can reach 3 times in winter. But the annual average precipitation in Chengdu is about 800 mm -1200 mm and it is far greater than the water vapor resource, this is because of the transport of water vapor. Using the formula of water vapor flux, the water vapor in Chengdu is comes from the west and the south, and the value is around 50kg/(ms). Base on the calculation of boundary vapor budget, the water vapor transport under 500hPa accounted for 97% of the total. Consider the water vapor transport, transformation and urban humidification effect, the Water Vapor Resource in Chengdu is 2500mm, and it can be used by artificial precipitation enhancement. Therefore, coordinated development of weather modification and sponge city construction, the shortage of water resources in Chengdu plain can be solved. Key words: Chengdu; Sponge city; Water vapor resource; Precipitation; Artificial precipitation enhancement Acknowledgements

Distribution of tropical tropospheric water vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, De-Zheng; Lindzen, Richard S.

1993-01-01

Utilizing a conceptual model for tropical convection and observational data for water vapor, the maintenance of the vertical distribution of the tropical tropospheric water vapor is discussed. While deep convection induces large-scale subsidence that constrains the turbulent downgradient mixing to within the convective boundary layer and effectively dries the troposphere through downward advection, it also pumps hydrometeors into the upper troposphere, whose subsequent evaporation appears to be the major source of moisture for the large-scale subsiding motion. The development of upper-level clouds and precipitation from these clouds may also act to dry the outflow, thus explaining the low relative humidity near the tropopause. A one-dimensional model is developed to simulate the mean vertical structure of water vapor in the tropical troposphere. It is also shown that the horizontal variation of water vapor in the tropical troposphere above the trade-wind boundary layer can be explained by the variation of a moisture source that is proportional to the amount of upper-level clouds. Implications for the nature of water vapor feedback in global warming are discussed.

Automatic Leak Detection in Buried Plastic Pipes of Water Supply Networks by Means of Vibration Measurements

OpenAIRE

Martini, Alberto; Troncossi, Marco; Rivola, Alessandro

2015-01-01

The implementation of strategies for controlling water leaks is essential in order to reduce losses affecting distribution networks of drinking water. This paper focuses on leak detection by using vibration monitoring techniques. The long-term goal is the development of a system for automatic early detection of burst leaks in service pipes. An experimental campaign was started to measure vibrations transmitted along water pipes by real burst leaks occurring in actual water supply networks. Th...

Automatic Leak Detection in Buried Plastic Pipes of Water Supply Networks by Means of Vibration Measurements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alberto Martini

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The implementation of strategies for controlling water leaks is essential in order to reduce losses affecting distribution networks of drinking water. This paper focuses on leak detection by using vibration monitoring techniques. The long-term goal is the development of a system for automatic early detection of burst leaks in service pipes. An experimental campaign was started to measure vibrations transmitted along water pipes by real burst leaks occurring in actual water supply networks. The first experimental data were used for assessing the leak detection performance of a prototypal algorithm based on the calculation of the standard deviation of acceleration signals. The experimental campaign is here described and discussed. The proposed algorithm, enhanced by means of proper signal filtering techniques, was successfully tested on all monitored leaks, thus proving effective for leak detection purpose.

Analysis on signal properties due to concurrent leaks at two points in water supply pipelines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Young Sup

2015-01-01

Intelligent leak detection is an essential component of a underground water supply pipeline network such as a smart water grid system. In this network, numerous leak detection sensors are needed to cover all of the pipelines in a specific area installed at specific regular distances. It is also necessary to determine the existence of any leaks and estimate its location within a short time after it occurs. In this study, the leak signal properties and feasibility of leak location detection were investigated when concurrent leaks occurred at two points in a pipeline. The straight distance between the two leak sensors in the 100A sized cast-iron pipeline was 315.6 m, and their signals were measured with one leak and two concurrent leaks. Each leak location was described after analyzing the frequency properties and cross-correlation of the measured signals.

Analysis on signal properties due to concurrent leaks at two points in water supply pipelines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Young Sup [Dept. of Embedded Systems Engineering, Incheon National University, Incheon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-02-15

Intelligent leak detection is an essential component of a underground water supply pipeline network such as a smart water grid system. In this network, numerous leak detection sensors are needed to cover all of the pipelines in a specific area installed at specific regular distances. It is also necessary to determine the existence of any leaks and estimate its location within a short time after it occurs. In this study, the leak signal properties and feasibility of leak location detection were investigated when concurrent leaks occurred at two points in a pipeline. The straight distance between the two leak sensors in the 100A sized cast-iron pipeline was 315.6 m, and their signals were measured with one leak and two concurrent leaks. Each leak location was described after analyzing the frequency properties and cross-correlation of the measured signals.

IR analyzer spots heavy water leaks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1978-01-01

A correlation spectrometer developed by Barringer Research Ltd. (in collaboration with Atomic Energy of Canada and Ontario Hydro) is used to measure HDO concentrations in DTO in the final (distillation) stage of heavy-water production. A unit has been installed at Bruce Heavy Water Plant. Previously, such spectrometers had been installed to detect heavy-water leaks in CANDU reactors. The principle on which the instrument works is explained, with illustrations. It works by comparing the absorption at 2.9 μm, due to HDO, with that at 2.6 μm, due to both HDO and D 2 O. (N.D.H.)

Cumulus convection and the terrestrial water-vapor distribution

Science.gov (United States)

Donner, Leo J.

1988-01-01

Cumulus convection plays a significant role in determining the structure of the terrestrial water vapor field. Cumulus convection acts directly on the moisture field by condensing and precipitating water vapor and by redistributing water vapor through cumulus induced eddy circulations. The mechanisms by which cumulus convection influences the terrestrial water vapor distribution is outlined. Calculations using a theory due to Kuo is used to illustrate the mechanisms by which cumulus convection works. Understanding of these processes greatly aids the ability of researchers to interpret the seasonal and spatial distribution of atmospheric water vapor by providing information on the nature of sources and sinks and the global circulation.

SmartPipes: Smart Wireless Sensor Networks for Leak Detection in Water Pipelines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ali M. Sadeghioon

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Asset monitoring, specifically infrastructure monitoring such as water distribution pipelines, is becoming increasingly critical for utility owners who face new challenges due to an aging network. In the UK alone, during the period of 2009–2010, approximately 3281 mega litres (106 of water were wasted due to failure or leaks in water pipelines. Various techniques can be used for the monitoring of water distribution networks. This paper presents the design, development and testing of a smart wireless sensor network for leak detection in water pipelines, based on the measurement of relative indirect pressure changes in plastic pipes. Power consumption of the sensor nodes is minimised to 2.2 mW based on one measurement every 6 h in order to prolong the lifetime of the network and increase the sensor nodes’ compatibility with current levels of power available by energy harvesting methods and long life batteries. A novel pressure sensing method is investigated for its performance and capabilities by both laboratory and field trials. The sensors were capable of measuring pressure changes due to leaks. These pressure profiles can also be used to locate the leaks.

Modeling UTLS water vapor: Transport/Chemistry interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gulstad, Line

2005-01-01

This thesis was initially meant to be a study on the impact on chemistry and climate from UTLS water vapor. However, the complexity of the UTLS water vapor and its recent changes turned out to be a challenge by it self. In the light of this, the overall motivation for the thesis became to study the processes controlling UTLS water vapor and its changes. Water vapor is the most important greenhouse gas, involved in important climate feedback loops. Thus, a good understanding of the chemical and dynamical behavior of water vapor in the atmosphere is crucial for understanding the climate changes in the last century. Additionally, parts of the work was motivated by the development of a coupled climate chemistry model based on the CAM3 model coupled with the Chemical Transport Model Oslo CTM2. The future work will be concentrated on the UTLS water vapor impact on chemistry and climate. We are currently studying long term trends in UTLS water vapor, focusing on identification of the different processes involved in the determination of such trends. The study is based on natural as well as anthropogenic climate forcings. The ongoing work on the development of a coupled climate chemistry model will continue within our group, in collaboration with Prof. Wei-Chyung Wang at the State University of New York, Albany. Valuable contacts with observational groups are established during the work on this thesis. These collaborations will be continued focusing on continuous model validation, as well as identification of trends and new features in UTLS water vapor, and other tracers in this region. (Author)

Leak Detection in Water-Filled Small-Diameter Polyethylene Pipes by Means of Acoustic Emission Measurements

OpenAIRE

Alberto Martini; Marco Troncossi; Alessandro Rivola

2016-01-01

The implementation of effective strategies to manage leaks represents an essential goal for all utilities involved with drinking water supply in order to reduce water losses affecting urban distribution networks. This study concerns the early detection of leaks occurring in small-diameter customers’ connections to water supply networks. An experimental campaign was carried out in a test bed to investigate the sensitivity of Acoustic Emission (AE) monitoring to water leaks. Damages were artifi...

Ammonia Leak Locator Study

Science.gov (United States)

Dodge, Franklin T.; Wuest, Martin P.; Deffenbaugh, Danny M.

1995-01-01

The thermal control system of International Space Station Alpha will use liquid ammonia as the heat exchange fluid. It is expected that small leaks (of the order perhaps of one pound of ammonia per day) may develop in the lines transporting the ammonia to the various facilities as well as in the heat exchange equipment. Such leaks must be detected and located before the supply of ammonia becomes critically low. For that reason, NASA-JSC has a program underway to evaluate instruments that can detect and locate ultra-small concentrations of ammonia in a high vacuum environment. To be useful, the instrument must be portable and small enough that an astronaut can easily handle it during extravehicular activity. An additional complication in the design of the instrument is that the environment immediately surrounding ISSA will contain small concentrations of many other gases from venting of onboard experiments as well as from other kinds of leaks. These other vapors include water, cabin air, CO2, CO, argon, N2, and ethylene glycol. Altogether, this local environment might have a pressure of the order of 10(exp -7) to 10(exp -6) torr. Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) was contracted by NASA-JSC to provide support to NASA-JSC and its prime contractors in evaluating ammonia-location instruments and to make a preliminary trade study of the advantages and limitations of potential instruments. The present effort builds upon an earlier SwRI study to evaluate ammonia leak detection instruments [Jolly and Deffenbaugh]. The objectives of the present effort include: (1) Estimate the characteristics of representative ammonia leaks; (2) Evaluate the baseline instrument in the light of the estimated ammonia leak characteristics; (3) Propose alternative instrument concepts; and (4) Conduct a trade study of the proposed alternative concepts and recommend promising instruments. The baseline leak-location instrument selected by NASA-JSC was an ion gauge.

Detection of leaks in buried rural water pipelines using thermal infrared images

Science.gov (United States)

Eidenshink, Jeffery C.

1985-01-01

Leakage is a major problem in many pipelines. Minor leaks called 'seeper leaks', which generally range from 2 to 10 m3 per day, are common and are difficult to detect using conventional ground surveys. The objective of this research was to determine whether airborne thermal-infrared remote sensing could be used in detecting leaks and monitoring rural water pipelines. This study indicates that such leaks can be detected using low-altitude 8.7- to 11.5. micrometer wavelength, thermal infrared images collected under proper conditions.

Vacuum distillation/vapor filtration water recovery

Science.gov (United States)

Honegger, R. J.; Neveril, R. B.; Remus, G. A.

1974-01-01

The development and evaluation of a vacuum distillation/vapor filtration (VD/VF) water recovery system are considered. As a functional model, the system converts urine and condensates waste water from six men to potable water on a steady-state basis. The system is designed for 180-day operating durations and for function on the ground, on zero-g aircraft, and in orbit. Preparatory tasks are summarized for conducting low gravity tests of a vacuum distillation/vapor filtration system for recovering water from urine.

Water Vapor Remote Sensing Techniques: Radiometry and Solar Spectrometry

Science.gov (United States)

Somieski, A.; Buerki, B.; Cocard, M.; Geiger, A.; Kahle, H.-G.

The high variability of atmospheric water vapor content plays an important role in space geodesy, climatology and meteorology. Water vapor has a strong influence on transatmospheric satellite signals, the Earth's climate and thus the weather forecasting. Several remote sensing techniques have been developed for the determination of inte- grated precipitable water vapor (IPWV). The Geodesy and Geodynamics Lab (GGL) utilizes the methods of Water Vapor Radiometry and Solar Spectrometry to quantify the amount of tropospheric water vapor and its temporal variations. The Water Vapor Radiometer (WVR) measures the radiation intensity of the atmosphere in a frequency band ranging from 20 to 32 GHz. The Solar Atmospheric MOnitoring Spectrome- ter (SAMOS) of GGL is designed for high-resolution measurements of water vapor absorption lines using solar radiation. In the framework of the ESCOMPTE (ExpÊrience sur Site pour COntraindre les Mod- Éles de Pollution atmosphÊrique et de Transport d'Emissions) field campaign these instruments have been operated near Marseille in 2001. They have aquired a long time series of integrated precipitable water vapor content (IPWV). The accuracy of IPWV measured by WVR and SAMOS is 1 kg/m2. Furthermore meteorological data from radiosondes were used to calculate the IPWV in order to provide comparisons with the results of WVR and SAMOS. The methods of Water Vapor Radiometry and So- lar Spectrometry will be discussed and first preliminary results retrieved from WVR, SAMOS and radiosondes during the ESCOMPTE field campaign will be presented.

Leak Detection in Water-Filled Small-Diameter Polyethylene Pipes by Means of Acoustic Emission Measurements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alberto Martini

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The implementation of effective strategies to manage leaks represents an essential goal for all utilities involved with drinking water supply in order to reduce water losses affecting urban distribution networks. This study concerns the early detection of leaks occurring in small-diameter customers’ connections to water supply networks. An experimental campaign was carried out in a test bed to investigate the sensitivity of Acoustic Emission (AE monitoring to water leaks. Damages were artificially induced on a polyethylene pipe (length 28 m, outer diameter 32 mm at different distances from an AE transducer. Measurements were performed in both unburied and buried pipe conditions. The analysis permitted the identification of a clear correlation between three monitored parameters (namely total Hits, Cumulative Counts and Cumulative Amplitude and the characteristics of the examined leaks.

Monitoring tropospheric water vapor changes using radiosonde data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elliott, W.P.; Smith, M.E.; Angell, J.K.

1990-01-01

Significant increases in the water vapor content of the troposphere are expected to accompany temperature increases due to rising concentrations of the greenhouse gases. Thus it is important to follow changes in water vapor over time. There are a number of difficulties in developing a homogeneous data set, however, because of changes in radiosonde instrumentation and reporting practices. The authors report here on preliminary attempts to establish indices of water vapor which can be monitored. The precipitable water between the surface and 500 mb is the first candidate. They describe their method for calculating this quantity from radiosonde data for a network very similar to the network Angell uses for detecting temperature trends. Preliminary results suggest that the noise level is low enough to detect trends in water vapor at the individual stations. While a slight increase in global water vapor is hinted at in the data, and the data suggest there may have been a net transfer of water from the Southern Hemisphere to the Northern Hemisphere, these conclusions are tentative. The authors also discuss the future course of this investigation

Tritium-gas/water-vapor monitor. Tests and evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jalbert, R.A.

1982-07-01

A tritium gas/water-vapor monitor was designed and built by the Health Physics Group at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. In its prototype configuration, the monitor took the shape of two separate instruments: a (total) tritium monitor and a water-vapor monitor. Both instruments were tested and evaluated. The tests of the (total) tritium monitor, basically an improved version of the standard flow-through ion-chamber instrument, are briefly reported here and more completely elsewhere. The tests of the water-vapor monitor indicated that the novel approach used to condense water vapor for scintillation counting has a number of serious drawbacks and that further development of the instrument is unwarranted

Water vapor retrieval over many surface types

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Borel, C.C.; Clodius, W.C.; Johnson, J.

1996-04-01

In this paper we present a study of of the water vapor retrieval for many natural surface types which would be valuable for multi-spectral instruments using the existing Continuum Interpolated Band Ratio (CIBR) for the 940 nm water vapor absorption feature. An atmospheric code (6S) and 562 spectra were used to compute the top of the atmosphere radiance near the 940 nm water vapor absorption feature in steps of 2.5 nm as a function of precipitable water (PW). We derive a novel technique called ``Atmospheric Pre-corrected Differential Absorption`` (APDA) and show that APDA performs better than the CIBR over many surface types.

Outline of sodium-water reaction test in case of large leak with SWAT-3 testing equipments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sato, Minoru

1978-01-01

The key component in sodium-cooled fast reactors in steam generators, and the sodium-water reaction owing to the break of heating tubes may cause serious damages in equipments and pipings. The main factor controlling this phenomenon is the rate of leak of water. When the rate of water leak is small, the propagation of heating tube breaking may occur owing to ''wastage phenomenon'', on the other hand, when the rate of water leak is large, the phenomena of explosive pressure and flow occur due to the reaction heat and a large quantity of hydrogen generated by the reaction. In PNC, the testing equipments of SWAT-2 for small water leak and SWAT-1 for large leak were constructed, and the development test has been carried out to establish the method of safety design experimentally. The synthetic test equipment for the safety of steam generators, SWAT-3, was constructed to carry out the large water leak test in the scale close to actual plants. The object of the test, the outline of the test equipment, the phenomena of pressure and flow in the water injection test, the confirmation of the occurrence of secondary breaking of adjacent heating tubes, and the disposal of reaction products are described in this paper. This test is till going on, and the final conclusion will be reported later. (Kako, I.)

Autoregressive techniques for acoustic detection of in-sodium water leaks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hayashi, K.

1997-01-01

We have been applied a background signal whitening filter built by univariate autoregressive model to the estimation problem of the leak start time and duration. In the 1995 present benchmark stage, we evaluated the method using acoustic signals from real hydrogen or water/steam injection experiments. The results show that the signal processing technique using this filter can detect reliability the leak signals with a sufficient signal-to-noise ratio. Even if the sensor signal contains non-boiling or non-leak high-amplitude pulses, they can be classified by spectral information. Especially, the feature signal made from the time-frequency spectrum of the filtered signal is very sensitive and useful. (author). 8 refs, 14 figs, 6 tabs

Investigation of tailings water leak at the Ranger uranium mine. Supervising Scientist report 153

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2000-01-01

The purpose of this report has been to investigate and report on the leak of water from the Tailings Water Return Pipe at the Ranger uranium mine during the 1999/2000 Wet season with specific reference to: the origin of the leak and the adequacy of remediation measures taken to prevent similar occurrences in the future; the extent to which the people and the environment of Kakadu National Park have been adversely affected by the leak and the extent to which Energy Resources of Australia has complied with the reporting requirements specified in the Environmental Requirements. It describes the outcomes of the investigation and makes recommendations to address deficiencies identified in the environmental management systems at Ranger and in the supervisory and regulatory regimes applied to Ranger by the Supervising Scientist and NTDME. It has been established that the volume of water that leaked from the tailings water return pipeline was about 2000 cubic metres during the 1999/2000 Wet season. Of this, only a small fraction, about 85 cubic metres, entered the culvert which flows to thc Corridor Creek Wetlands. The remainder was collected in the tailings corridor sump and returned to the water management system. The failure of the pipeline to contain tailings water would not on itself normally have resulted in the discharge of this water to the external environment. That the leaked water did reach the external environment is due to a failure of the bunded corridor system to fully contain any spilled water. The cause of this failure was that the engineered structure between the roadway and a culvert that drains water from the nearby waste rock dump was not impermeable.The statutory monitoring program has been found to be deficient in two ways. First, other than visual inspection, it has not been designed to include monitoring locations within secondary containment systems that would indicate the failure of primary containment systems. In the present case, no statutory

Damage phenomena at target surface by small leak

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeong, Kyung Chai; Jeong, J. Y.; Kim, B. H.; Kim, T. J.; Choi, J. H.

2001-04-01

Design of the steam generator should be considered the safety about the sodium-water reaction occurred by water leak in heat transfer tube. Water leak mainly occurred from welding defect at the process of tube connection, the vibration of heat transfer tube bundle in steam generating system, fretting, and pin hole in original tube manufacturing. The classification of water leak divided to two parts, roughly, in case of the water leak studies. One is small leak phenomena analysis, and the other is it of large leak which was mainly treated to the evaluation on pressure increasing from hydrogen gas formed by sodium-water reaction in sodium system. In small water leak, the leak propagation phenomena and the development of leak detecting system at initial stage of small water leak were studied, mainly. In this study, the corrosion phenomena on the target tube surface appeared by sodium-water reaction was analyzed through the small water leak experiments, and, also, the jet phenomena formed by N 2 gas injection through the leak nozzle under water medium was observed

Calculation of wastage by small water leaks in sodium heated steam generators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tregonning, K.

1976-01-01

On the basis of mechanistic arguments it is suggested that the temperature of the wasting surface would provide a single physically meaningful parameter with which to correlate wastage data. A lumped parameter model is developed which predicts reaction temperature as a function of the major variables in the small water leak situation (Leak rate, tube spacing, sodium temperature). The calculated temperatures explain much of the observed behaviour of wastage rate with these variables and compare well with the limited temperature data available. Wastage rates are correlated with predicted temperature on a total activation energy basis. The results are encouraging and a first conservative method for the calculation of wastage by small water leaks in sodium-heated steam generators is produced

Physical and mathematical modeling of diesel fuel liquid and vapor movement in porous media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johnson, T.E.; Kreamer, D.K.

1994-01-01

Two-dimensional physical modeling of diesel fuel leaks was conducted in sand tanks to determine liquid and vapor migration characteristics. Mathematical modeling provided estimation of vapor concentrations at discrete times and distances from the vapor source and was compared to the physical experiment. The mathematical gaseous diffusion model was analogous to the Theis equation for ground-water flow, accounted for sorptive effects of the media, and was calibrated using measured concentrations from the sand tank. Mathematically different positions of the vapor source were tested to better relate observed liquid flow rates and media configuration to gaseous concentrations. The calculated diffusion parameters were then used to estimate theoretical, three-dimensional vapor transport from a hypothetical liquid leak of 2.0 1/hr for 30 days. The associated three-dimensional vapor plume, which would be reasonably detectable by commercially available vadose zone monitors, was estimated to have a diameter of 8 m with a vapor concentration of 50 ppm at the outside edge of the vapor plume. A careful application of the method and values can be used to give a first approximation to the number of vapor monitors required at a field site as well as the optimal locations for the monitors

Water vapor movement in freezing aggregate base materials.

Science.gov (United States)

2014-06-01

The objectives of this research were to 1) measure the extent to which water vapor movement results in : water accumulation in freezing base materials; 2) evaluate the effect of soil stabilization on water vapor movement : in freezing base materials;...

Pressure transients resulting from sodium-water reaction following a large leak in LMFBR steam generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rajput, A.K.

1984-01-01

The study of sodium water reaction, following a large leak, concerns primarily with the estimation of pressure/flow transients that are developed in the steam generator and the associated secondary circuit. This paper describes the mathematical formulations used in SWRT (Sodium Water Reaction Transients) code developed to estimate such pressure transients for FBTR plant. The results, obtained using SWRT have been presented for a leak in economiser (20m from bottom water header) and for a leak in super heater portions. A time lag of 50 m sec was considered for rupture disc takes to burst once the pressure experienced by it exceeds the set value. Also described in annexure to this paper is the mathematical formulation for two phase transient flow for the better estimation of leak rate from the ruptured end of the damaged heat transfer tube. This leak model considers slip but assumes thermal equilibrium between the liquid and vapour phases

In-Situ Remediation of Small Leaks in Water Pipes: Impacts of Water Chemistry, Physical Parameters and the Presence of Particles

OpenAIRE

Tang, Min

2017-01-01

Aging and leaking water infrastructure wastes water resources and creates public health risks. Upgrading of potable water systems represents a large financial burden for water utilities and private property owners. The conventional approaches of repair, rehabilitation and replacement are very effective, but will take decades to implement even if a financial commitment to do so was made immediately. A novel approach of in-situ remediation of leaks, achieved by harnessing the ability of water o...

Acoustic emission technique for leak detection in an end shield of a pressurized heavy water reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kalyanasundaram, P.; Jayakumar, T.; Raj, B.

1989-01-01

This paper discusses the successful application of the Acoustic Emission Technique (AET) for detection and location of leak paths present on the inaccessible side of an end shield of a Pressurized Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR). The methodology was based on the fact that air and water leak AE signals have different characteristic features. Baseline data was generated from a sound end-shield of a PHWR for characterizing the background noise. A mock up end-shield system with saw cut leak paths was used to verify the validity of the methodology. It was found that air leak signals under pressurisation (as low as 3 psi) could be detected by frequency domain analysis. Signals due to air leaks from various locations of a defective end-shield were acquired and analysed. It was possible to detect and locate leak paths. Presence of detected leak paths were further confirmed by alternate test. (orig.)

Effect of heat transfer tube leak on dynamic characteristic of steam generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun Baozhi; Shi Jianxin; Li Na; Zheng Lusong; Liu Shanghua; Lei Yu

2015-01-01

Taking the steam generator of Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station as the research object, one-dimensional dynamic model of the steam generator based on drift flux theory and leak model of heat transfer tube were established. Steady simulation of steam generator under different conditions was carried out. Based on verifying the drift flux model and leak model of heat transfer tube, the effect of leak location and flow rate under different conditions on steam generator's key parameters was studied. The results show that the drift flux model and leak model can reflect the law of key parameter change accurately such as vapor mass fraction and steam pressure under different leak cases. The variation of the parameters is most apparent when the leak is at the entrance of boiling section and vapor mass fraction varies from 0.261 to 0.163 when leakage accounts for 5% of coolant flow rate. The successful prediction of the effect of heat transfer tube leak on dynamic characteristics of the steam generator based on drift flux theory supplies some references for monitoring and taking precautionary measures to prevent heat transfer tube leak accident. (authors)

LEAK: A source term generator for evaluating release rates from leaking vessels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clinton, J.H.

1994-01-01

An interactive computer code for estimating the rate of release of any one of several materials from a leaking tank or broken pipe leading from a tank is presented. It is generally assumed that the material in the tank is liquid. Materials included in the data base are acetonitrile, ammonia, carbon tetrachloride, chlorine, chlorine trifluoride, fluorine, hydrogen fluoride, nitric acid, nitrogen tetroxide, sodium hydroxide, sulfur hexafluoride, sulfuric acid, and uranium hexafluoride. Materials that exist only as liquid and/or vapor over expected ranges of temperature and pressure can easily be added to the data base file. The Fortran source code for LEAK and the data file are included with this report

Eddy transport of water vapor in the Martian atmosphere

Science.gov (United States)

Murphy, J. R.; Haberle, Robert M.

1993-01-01

Viking orbiter measurements of the Martian atmosphere suggest that the residual north polar water-ice cap is the primary source of atmospheric water vapor, which appears at successively lower northern latitudes as the summer season progresses. Zonally symmetric studies of water vapor transport indicate that the zonal mean meridional circulation is incapable of transporting from north polar regions to low latitudes the quantity of water vapor observed. This result has been interpreted as implying the presence of nonpolar sources of water. Another possibility is the ability of atmospheric wave motions, which are not accounted for in a zonally symmetric framework, to efficiently accomplish the transport from a north polar source to the entirety of the Northern Hemisphere. The ability or inability of the full range of atmospheric motions to accomplish this transport has important implications regarding the questions of water sources and sinks on Mars: if the full spectrum of atmospheric motions proves to be incapable of accomplishing the transport, it strengthens arguments in favor of additional water sources. Preliminary results from a three dimensional atmospheric dynamical/water vapor transport numerical model are presented. The model accounts for the physics of a subliming water-ice cap, but does not yet incorporate recondensation of this sublimed water. Transport of vapor away from this water-ice cap in this three dimensional framework is compared with previously obtained zonally symmetric (two dimensional) results to quantify effects of water vapor transport by atmospheric eddies.

Basis UST leak detection systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Silveria, V.

1992-01-01

This paper reports that gasoline and other petroleum products are leaking from underground storage tanks (USTs) at an alarming rate, seeping into soil and groundwater. Buried pipes are an even greater culprit, accounting for most suspected and detected leaks according to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates. In response to this problem, the EPA issued regulations setting standards for preventing, detecting, reporting, and cleaning up leaks, as well as fiscal responsibility. However, federal regulations are only a minimum; some states have cracked down even harder Plant managers and engineers have a big job ahead of them. The EPA estimates that there are more than 75,000 fuel USTs at US industrial facilities. When considering leak detection systems, the person responsible for making the decision has five primary choices: inventory reconciliation combined with regular precision tightness tests; automatic tank gauging; groundwater monitoring; interstitial monitoring of double containment systems; and vapor monitoring

Assessment of Field Experience Related to Pressurized Water Reactor Primary System Leaks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ware, A.G.; Hsu, C.; Atwood, C.L.; Sattison, M.B.; Hartley, R.S.; Shah, V.N.

1999-01-01

This paper presents our assessment of field experience related to pressurized water reactor (PWR) primary system leaks in terms of their number and rates, how aging affects frequency of leak events, the safety significance of such leaks, industry efforts to reduce leaks, and effectiveness of current leak detection systems. We have reviewed the licensee event reports to identify the events that took place during 1985 to the third quarter of 1996, and reviewed related technical literature and visited PWR plants to analyze these events. Our assessment shows that USNRC licensees have taken effective actions to reduce the number of leak events. One main reason for this decreasing trend was the elimination or reportable leakages from valve stem packing after 1991. Our review of leak events related to vibratory fatigue reveals a statistically significant decreasing trend with age (years of operation), but not in calendar time. Our assessment of worldwide data on leakage caused by thermal fatigue cracking is that the fatigue of aging piping is a safety significant issue. Our review of leak events has identified several susceptible sites in piping having high safety significance; but the inspection of some of these sites is not required by the ASME Code. These sites may be included in the risk-informed inspection programs

Assessment of Field Experience Related to Pressurized Water Reactor Primary System Leaks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shah, Vikram Naginbhai; Ware, Arthur Gates; Atwood, Corwin Lee; Sattison, Martin Blaine; Hartley, Robert Scott; Hsu, C.

1999-01-01

This paper presents our assessment of field experience related to pressurized water reactor (PWR) primary system leaks in terms of their number of rates, how aging affects frequency of leak events, the safety significance of such leaks, industry efforts to reduce leaks, and effectiveness of current leak detection systems. We have reviewed the licensee event reports to identify the events that took place during 1985 to the third quarter of 1996, and reviewed related technical literature and visited PWR plants to analyze these events. Our assessment shows that USNRC licensees have taken effective actions to reduce the number of leak events. One main reason for this decreasing trend was the elimination or reportable leakages from valve stem packing after 1991. Our review of leak events related to vibratory fatigue reveals a statistically significant decreasing trend with age (years of operation), but not in calendar time. Our assessment of worldwide data on leakage caused by thermal fatigue cracking is that the fatigue of aging piping is a safety significant issue. Our review of leak events has identified several susceptible sites in piping having high safety significance; but the inspection of some of these sites is not required by the ASME Code. These sites may be included in the risk-informed inspection programs

Water vapor estimation using digital terrestrial broadcasting waves

Science.gov (United States)

Kawamura, S.; Ohta, H.; Hanado, H.; Yamamoto, M. K.; Shiga, N.; Kido, K.; Yasuda, S.; Goto, T.; Ichikawa, R.; Amagai, J.; Imamura, K.; Fujieda, M.; Iwai, H.; Sugitani, S.; Iguchi, T.

2017-03-01

A method of estimating water vapor (propagation delay due to water vapor) using digital terrestrial broadcasting waves is proposed. Our target is to improve the accuracy of numerical weather forecast for severe weather phenomena such as localized heavy rainstorms in urban areas through data assimilation. In this method, we estimate water vapor near a ground surface from the propagation delay of digital terrestrial broadcasting waves. A real-time delay measurement system with a software-defined radio technique is developed and tested. The data obtained using digital terrestrial broadcasting waves show good agreement with those obtained by ground-based meteorological observation. The main features of this observation are, no need for transmitters (receiving only), applicable wherever digital terrestrial broadcasting is available and its high time resolution. This study shows a possibility to estimate water vapor using digital terrestrial broadcasting waves. In the future, we will investigate the impact of these data toward numerical weather forecast through data assimilation. Developing a system that monitors water vapor near the ground surface with time and space resolutions of 30 s and several kilometers would improve the accuracy of the numerical weather forecast of localized severe weather phenomena.

Status of U.S. evaluations of acoustic detection of in-sodium water leaks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fletcher, F.L.; Neely, H.H.

1990-01-01

An overview of the United States testing program to evaluate acoustic leak detection and location systems on simulated water leaks in functional liquid sodium steam generators is provided. Testing was conducted on the modular hockey stick steam generator during the large leak test program in the LLTR, on the CRBR prototype hockey stick steam generators in SCTI, on a double wall tube steam generator installed in EBR-II and on the helical coil steam generator tested in SCTI. These test programs have demonstrated the acoustic leak detection system potential, however, additional development is required before the system can perform to its effective and required potential. (author). 6 figs

Measurement of atmospheric precipitable water using a solar radiometer. [water vapor absorption effects

Science.gov (United States)

Pitts, D. E.; Dillinger, A. E.; Mcallum, W. E.

1974-01-01

A technique is described and tested that allows the determination of atmospheric precipitable water from two measurements of solar intensity: one in a water-vapor absorption band and another in a nearby spectral region unaffected by water vapor.

Evaluation of water transport behavior in sodium fire experiment-II

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nakagiri, Toshio [Japan Nuclear Cycle Development Inst., Oarai, Ibaraki (Japan). Oarai Engineering Center

2000-02-01

Evaluation of water transport behavior in Sodium Fire-II (Run-D4) was performed. Results of other experiments performed in Oarai-Engineering Center were considered in the evaluation, and the results of the evaluation were compared with the calculated results of ASSCOPS code. The main conclusions are described below. (1) It was estimated that aerosol hydrates were not formed in the test cell in the experiment, because of high gas temperatures (200degC - 300degC), but water vapor absorption by the formation of aerosol hydrates and water vapor condensation were occurred in humility measure line, because of low gas temperature (20degC - 40degC). Therefore, it was considered appropriate that measured water vapor concentration in the humidity measure line was different from the real concentration in the test cell. (2) Water vapor concentration in the test cell was assumed to be about 35,000 ppm during sodium leak, and reached to about 70,000 ppm because of water release from heated concrete (over 100degC) walls after 190 min from sodium leak started. The assumed value of about 35,000 ppm during sodium leak almost agree with assumed value from the quantity of aerosol in the humidity measure line, but no support for the value of about 70,000 ppm after 190 min could be found. Therefore, water release rate from heated concrete walls can change with their temperature history. (author)

Airborne pipeline leak detection: UV or IR?

Science.gov (United States)

Babin, François; Gravel, Jean-François; Allard, Martin

2016-05-01

This paper presents a study of different approaches to the measurement of the above ground vapor plume created by the spill caused by a small 0.1 l/min (or less) leak in an underground liquid petroleum pipeline. The scenarios are those for the measurement from an airborne platform. The usual approach is that of IR absorption, but in the case of liquid petroleum products, there are drawbacks that will be discussed, especially when using alkanes to detect a leak. The optical measurements studied include UV enhanced Raman lidar, UV fluorescence lidar and IR absorption path integrated lidars. The breadboards used for testing the different approaches will be described along with the set-ups for leak simulation. Although IR absorption would intuitively be the most sensitive, it is shown that UV-Raman could be an alternative. When using the very broad alkane signature in the IR, the varying ground spectral reflectance are a problem. It is also determined that integrated path measurements are preferred, the UV enhanced Raman measurements showing that the vapor plume stays very close to the ground.

Correlations between water-soluble organic aerosol and water vapor: a synergistic effect from biogenic emissions?

Science.gov (United States)

Hennigan, Christopher J; Bergin, Michael H; Weber, Rodney J

2008-12-15

Ground-based measurements of meteorological parameters and water-soluble organic carbon in the gas(WSOCg) and particle (WSOCp) phases were carried out in Atlanta, Georgia, from May to September 2007. Fourteen separate events were observed throughout the summer in which WSOCp and water vapor concentrations were highly correlated (average WSOCp-water vapor r = 0.92); however, for the entire summer, no well-defined relationship existed between the two. The correlation events, which lasted on average 19 h, were characterized by a wide range of WSOCp and water vapor concentrations. Several hypotheses for the correlation are explored, including heterogeneous liquid phase SOA formation and the co-emission of biogenic VOCs and water vapor. The data provide supporting evidence for contributions from both and suggest the possibility of a synergistic effect between the co-emission of water vapor and VOCs from biogenic sources on SOA formation. Median WSOCp concentrations were also correlated with elemental carbon (EC), although this correlation extended over the entire summer. Despite the emission of water vapor from anthropogenic mobile sources and the WSOCp-EC correlation, mobile sources were not considered a potential cause for the WSOCp-water vapor correlations because of their low contribution to the water vapor budget. Meteorology could perhaps have influenced the WSOCp-EC correlation, but other factors are implicated as well. Overall, the results suggest that the temperature-dependent co-emission of water vapor through evapotranspiration and SOA precursor-VOCs by vegetation may be an important process contributing to SOA in some environments.

A FGGE water vapor wind data set

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, Tod R.; Hayden, Christopher M.

1985-01-01

It has been recognized for some time that water vapor structure visible in infrared imagery offers a potential for obtaining motion vectors when several images are considered in sequence (Fischer et al., 1981). A study evaluating water vapor winds obtained from the VISSR atmospheric sounder (Stewart et al., 1985) has confirmed the viability of the approach. More recently, 20 data sets have been produced from METEOSAT water vapor imagery for the FGGE period of 10-25 November 1979. Where possible, two data sets were prepared for each day at 0000 and 1200 GMT and compared with rawinsondes over Europe, Africa, and aircraft observations over the oceans. Procedures for obtaining winds were, in general, similar to the earlier study. Motions were detected both by a single pixel tracking and a cross correlation method by using three images individually separated by one hour. A height assignment was determined by matching the measured brightness temperature to the temperature structure represented by the FGGE-IIIB analyses. Results show that the METEOSAT water vapor winds provide uniform horizontal coverage of mid-level flow over the globe with good accuracy.

Uranium/water vapor reactions in gaseous atmospheres

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jackson, R.L.; Condon, J.B.; Steckel, L.M.

1977-07-01

Experiments have been performed to determine the effect of varying humidities, gaseous atmospheres, and temperatures on the uranium/water vapor reaction. A balance, which allowed continuous in-system weighings, was used to determine the rates of the uranium/water vapor reactions at water vapor pressures of 383, 1586, and 2853 Pa and at temperatures of 80, 100, and 150 0 C in atmospheres of hydrogen, argon, or argon/oxygen mixtures. Based on rate data, the reactions were characterized as hydriding or nonhydriding. Hydriding reactions were found to be preferred in moist hydrogen systems at the higher temperatures and the lower humidities. The presence of hydrogen in hydriding systems was found to initially inhibit the reaction, but causes an acceleration of the rate in the final stages. In general, reaction rates of hydriding systems approached the hydriding rates calculated and observed in dry hydrogen. Hydriding and nonhydriding reaction rates showed a positive correlation to temperature and water vapor pressure. Final reaction rates in moist argon/oxygen mixtures of 1.93, 4.57, and 9.08 mole percent oxygen were greater than the rates observed in moist hydrogen or argon. Final reaction rates were negatively correlated to the oxygen concentration

Detection of water vapor on Jupiter

Science.gov (United States)

Larson, H. P.; Fink, U.; Treffers, R.; Gautier, T. N., III

1975-01-01

High-altitude (12.4 km) spectroscopic observations of Jupiter at 5 microns from the NASA 91.5 cm airborne infrared telescope have revealed 14 absorptions assigned to the rotation-vibration spectrum of water vapor. Preliminary analysis indicates a mixing ratio about 1 millionth for the vapor phase of water. Estimates of temperature (greater than about 300 K) and pressure (less than 20 atm) suggest observation of water deep in Jupiter's hot spots responsible for its 5 micron flux. Model-atmosphere calculations based on radiative-transfer theory may change these initial estimates and provide a better physical picture of Jupiter's atmosphere below the visible cloud tops.

Monolithic microwave integrated circuit water vapor radiometer

Science.gov (United States)

Sukamto, L. M.; Cooley, T. W.; Janssen, M. A.; Parks, G. S.

1991-01-01

A proof of concept Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuit (MMIC) Water Vapor Radiometer (WVR) is under development at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). WVR's are used to remotely sense water vapor and cloud liquid water in the atmosphere and are valuable for meteorological applications as well as for determination of signal path delays due to water vapor in the atmosphere. The high cost and large size of existing WVR instruments motivate the development of miniature MMIC WVR's, which have great potential for low cost mass production. The miniaturization of WVR components allows large scale deployment of WVR's for Earth environment and meteorological applications. Small WVR's can also result in improved thermal stability, resulting in improved calibration stability. Described here is the design and fabrication of a 31.4 GHz MMIC radiometer as one channel of a thermally stable WVR as a means of assessing MMIC technology feasibility.

Water vapor and Gas Transport through Polymeric Membranes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Metz, S.J.

2003-01-01

Water vapor transport through polymeric materials plays an important role in a large number of applications such as: food packaging, breathable clothing, roofing membranes, diapers, and the removal of water vapor from gas streams (e.g. dehydration of natural gas or the drying of compressed air).

Assessment of ground-water contamination from a leaking underground storage tank at a defense supply center near Richmond, Virginia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Powell, J.D.; Wright, W.G.

1990-01-01

During 1988-89, 24 wells were installed in the vicinity of the post-exchange gasoline station on the Defense General Supply Center, near Richmond, Virginia, to collect and analyze groundwater samples for the presence of gasoline contamination from a leaking underground storage tank. Concentrations of total petroleum hydrocarbons and benzene were as high as 8.2 mg/L and 9,000 microg/L, respectively, in water from wells in the immediate vicinity of the former leaking tank, and benzene concentrations were as high as 2,300 microg/L in a well 600 ft down gradient from the gasoline station. Groundwater flow rate are estimated to be about 60 to 80 ft/yr; on the basis of these flow rates, the contaminants may have been introduced into the groundwater as long as 7-10 yrs ago. Groundwater might infiltrate a subsurface storm sewer, where the sewer is below the water table, and discharge into a nearby stream. Preliminary risk assessment for the site identified no potential human receptors to the groundwater contamination because there were no groundwater users identified in the area. Remediation might be appropriate if exposure of future potential users is concern. Alternatives discussed for remediation of groundwater contamination in the upper aquifer at the PX Service Station include no-action, soil vapor extraction, and groundwater pumping and treatment alternatives

Water-vapor pressure control in a volume

Science.gov (United States)

Scialdone, J. J.

1978-01-01

The variation with time of the partial pressure of water in a volume that has openings to the outside environment and includes vapor sources was evaluated as a function of the purging flow and its vapor content. Experimental tests to estimate the diffusion of ambient humidity through openings and to validate calculated results were included. The purging flows required to produce and maintain a certain humidity in shipping containers, storage rooms, and clean rooms can be estimated with the relationship developed here. These purging flows are necessary to prevent the contamination, degradation, and other effects of water vapor on the systems inside these volumes.

Field Demonstration of Innovative Condition Assessment Technologies for Water Mains: Leak Detection and Location

Science.gov (United States)

Three leak detection/location technologies were demonstrated on a 76-year-old, 2,057-ft-long portion of a cement-lined, 24-in. cast iron water main in Louisville, KY. This activity was part of a series of field demonstrations of innovative leak detection/location and condition a...

Water vapor permeabilities through polymers: diffusivities from experiments and simulations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seethamraju, Sindhu; Ramamurthy, Praveen Chandrashekarapura; Madras, Giridhar

2014-01-01

This study experimentally determines water vapor permeabilities, which are subsequently correlated with the diffusivities obtained from simulations. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were used for determining the diffusion of water vapor in various polymeric systems such as polyethylene, polypropylene, poly (vinyl alcohol), poly (vinyl acetate), poly (vinyl butyral), poly (vinylidene chloride), poly (vinyl chloride) and poly (methyl methacrylate). Cavity ring down spectroscopy (CRDS) based methodology has been used to determine the water vapor transmission rates. These values were then used to calculate the diffusion coefficients for water vapor through these polymers. A comparative analysis is provided for diffusivities calculated from CRDS and MD based results by correlating the free volumes. (paper)

The vertical distribution of Mars water vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Davies, D. W.

1979-01-01

Analysis of observations made from the Viking 1 Orbiter indicates that the water vapor over the Viking 1 landing site is uniformly mixed with the atmosphere and not concentrated near the surface. The analysis incorporates the effects of atmospheric scattering and explains why previous earth-based observations showed a strong diurnal variation in water content. It also explains the lack of an early morning fog and removes the necessity of daily exchange of large amounts of water between the surface and the atmosphere. A water vapor volume mixing ratio of 1.5 x 10 to the -4th is inferred for the Viking 1 site in late summer.

Assessing the accuracy of TDR-based water leak detection system

Science.gov (United States)

Fatemi Aghda, S. M.; GanjaliPour, K.; Nabiollahi, K.

2018-03-01

The use of TDR system to detect leakage locations in underground pipes has been developed in recent years. In this system, a bi-wire is installed in parallel with the underground pipes and is considered as a TDR sensor. This approach greatly covers the limitations arisen with using the traditional method of acoustic leak positioning. TDR based leak detection method is relatively accurate when the TDR sensor is in contact with water in just one point. Researchers have been working to improve the accuracy of this method in recent years. In this study, the ability of TDR method was evaluated in terms of the appearance of multi leakage points simultaneously. For this purpose, several laboratory tests were conducted. In these tests in order to simulate leakage points, the TDR sensor was put in contact with water at some points, then the number and the dimension of the simulated leakage points were gradually increased. The results showed that with the increase in the number and dimension of the leakage points, the error rate of the TDR-based water leak detection system increases. The authors tried, according to the results obtained from the laboratory tests, to develop a method to improve the accuracy of the TDR-based leak detection systems. To do that, they defined a few reference points on the TDR sensor. These points were created via increasing the distance between two conductors of TDR sensor and were easily identifiable in the TDR waveform. The tests were repeated again using the TDR sensor having reference points. In order to calculate the exact distance of the leakage point, the authors developed an equation in accordance to the reference points. A comparison between the results obtained from both tests (with and without reference points) showed that using the method and equation developed by the authors can significantly improve the accuracy of positioning the leakage points.

Assessing the accuracy of TDR-based water leak detection system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S.M. Fatemi Aghda

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The use of TDR system to detect leakage locations in underground pipes has been developed in recent years. In this system, a bi-wire is installed in parallel with the underground pipes and is considered as a TDR sensor. This approach greatly covers the limitations arisen with using the traditional method of acoustic leak positioning. TDR based leak detection method is relatively accurate when the TDR sensor is in contact with water in just one point. Researchers have been working to improve the accuracy of this method in recent years.In this study, the ability of TDR method was evaluated in terms of the appearance of multi leakage points simultaneously. For this purpose, several laboratory tests were conducted. In these tests in order to simulate leakage points, the TDR sensor was put in contact with water at some points, then the number and the dimension of the simulated leakage points were gradually increased. The results showed that with the increase in the number and dimension of the leakage points, the error rate of the TDR-based water leak detection system increases.The authors tried, according to the results obtained from the laboratory tests, to develop a method to improve the accuracy of the TDR-based leak detection systems. To do that, they defined a few reference points on the TDR sensor. These points were created via increasing the distance between two conductors of TDR sensor and were easily identifiable in the TDR waveform. The tests were repeated again using the TDR sensor having reference points. In order to calculate the exact distance of the leakage point, the authors developed an equation in accordance to the reference points. A comparison between the results obtained from both tests (with and without reference points showed that using the method and equation developed by the authors can significantly improve the accuracy of positioning the leakage points. Keywords: Multiple leakage points, TDR, Reference points

Airborne DOAS retrievals of methane, carbon dioxide, and water vapor concentrations at high spatial resolution: application to AVIRIS-NG

Science.gov (United States)

Thorpe, Andrew K.; Frankenberg, Christian; Thompson, David R.; Duren, Riley M.; Aubrey, Andrew D.; Bue, Brian D.; Green, Robert O.; Gerilowski, Konstantin; Krings, Thomas; Borchardt, Jakob; Kort, Eric A.; Sweeney, Colm; Conley, Stephen; Roberts, Dar A.; Dennison, Philip E.

2017-10-01

At local scales, emissions of methane and carbon dioxide are highly uncertain. Localized sources of both trace gases can create strong local gradients in its columnar abundance, which can be discerned using absorption spectroscopy at high spatial resolution. In a previous study, more than 250 methane plumes were observed in the San Juan Basin near Four Corners during April 2015 using the next-generation Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS-NG) and a linearized matched filter. For the first time, we apply the iterative maximum a posteriori differential optical absorption spectroscopy (IMAP-DOAS) method to AVIRIS-NG data and generate gas concentration maps for methane, carbon dioxide, and water vapor plumes. This demonstrates a comprehensive greenhouse gas monitoring capability that targets methane and carbon dioxide, the two dominant anthropogenic climate-forcing agents. Water vapor results indicate the ability of these retrievals to distinguish between methane and water vapor despite spectral interference in the shortwave infrared. We focus on selected cases from anthropogenic and natural sources, including emissions from mine ventilation shafts, a gas processing plant, tank, pipeline leak, and natural seep. In addition, carbon dioxide emissions were mapped from the flue-gas stacks of two coal-fired power plants and a water vapor plume was observed from the combined sources of cooling towers and cooling ponds. Observed plumes were consistent with known and suspected emission sources verified by the true color AVIRIS-NG scenes and higher-resolution Google Earth imagery. Real-time detection and geolocation of methane plumes by AVIRIS-NG provided unambiguous identification of individual emission source locations and communication to a ground team for rapid follow-up. This permitted verification of a number of methane emission sources using a thermal camera, including a tank and buried natural gas pipeline.

Airborne DOAS retrievals of methane, carbon dioxide, and water vapor concentrations at high spatial resolution: application to AVIRIS-NG

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. K. Thorpe

2017-10-01

Full Text Available At local scales, emissions of methane and carbon dioxide are highly uncertain. Localized sources of both trace gases can create strong local gradients in its columnar abundance, which can be discerned using absorption spectroscopy at high spatial resolution. In a previous study, more than 250 methane plumes were observed in the San Juan Basin near Four Corners during April 2015 using the next-generation Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS-NG and a linearized matched filter. For the first time, we apply the iterative maximum a posteriori differential optical absorption spectroscopy (IMAP-DOAS method to AVIRIS-NG data and generate gas concentration maps for methane, carbon dioxide, and water vapor plumes. This demonstrates a comprehensive greenhouse gas monitoring capability that targets methane and carbon dioxide, the two dominant anthropogenic climate-forcing agents. Water vapor results indicate the ability of these retrievals to distinguish between methane and water vapor despite spectral interference in the shortwave infrared. We focus on selected cases from anthropogenic and natural sources, including emissions from mine ventilation shafts, a gas processing plant, tank, pipeline leak, and natural seep. In addition, carbon dioxide emissions were mapped from the flue-gas stacks of two coal-fired power plants and a water vapor plume was observed from the combined sources of cooling towers and cooling ponds. Observed plumes were consistent with known and suspected emission sources verified by the true color AVIRIS-NG scenes and higher-resolution Google Earth imagery. Real-time detection and geolocation of methane plumes by AVIRIS-NG provided unambiguous identification of individual emission source locations and communication to a ground team for rapid follow-up. This permitted verification of a number of methane emission sources using a thermal camera, including a tank and buried natural gas pipeline.

Preliminary analysis of tank 241-C-106 dryout due to large postulated leak and vaporization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Piepho, M.G.

1995-03-01

At the Hanford site in SE Washington, there are 149 single-shell tanks containing radionuclide wastes in the form of liquids, sludges and salt cakes. One of the tanks, tank 241-C-106, is heated to the boiling point due to radionuclide decay (primarily Sr-90). Water is added to the tank, which is ventilated, in order to cool the tank. This analysis assumes that there is a hypothetical large leak at the bottom of Tank 241-C-106 which initiates the dryout of the tank. The time required for a tank to dryout after a leak is of interest for safety reasons. As a tank dries outs, its temperature is expected to greatly increase, which could affect the structural integrity of the concrete tank dome. Hence, it is of interest to know how fast the temperature in a leaky tank increases, so that mitigation procedures can be planned and implemented in a timely manner. The objective of the study was to determine how long it would take for tank 241-C-106 to reach 350 degrees Fahrenheit (about 177 degrees Centigrade) after a postulated large leak develops at the bottom center of the tank.

Precipitable water and vapor flux between Belem and Manaus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marques, J.

1977-01-01

The water vapor flux and precipitable water was computated over the natural Amazon forest in the stretch between Belem and Manaus for 1972. The atmospheric branch of hidrological cycle theory was applied and the most significant conclusions on an annual basis are: Atlantic Ocean water vapor contributes 52% to the regional precipitation and is significant the role played by local evapotranspiration in the precipitation in the area; there were signs of the phenomenon of water vapor recycling nearly throughout the year. Evapotranspiration contributes to 48% of the precipitations in the area studied. The real evapotranspiration estimated by this method was 1,000mm year - 1 [pt

Human risk assessment of benzene after a gasoline station fuel leak

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miriam dos Anjos Santos

2013-06-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To assess the health risk of exposure to benzene for a community affected by a fuel leak. METHODS: Data regarding the fuel leak accident with, which occurred in the Brasilia, Federal District, were obtained from the Fuel Distributor reports provided to the environmental authority. Information about the affected population (22 individuals was obtained from focal groups of eight individuals. Length of exposure and water benzene concentration were estimated through a groundwater flow model associated with a benzene propagation model. The risk assessment was conducted according to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry methodology. RESULTS: A high risk perception related to the health consequences of the accident was evident in the affected community (22 individuals, probably due to the lack of assistance and a poor risk communication from government authorities and the polluting agent. The community had been exposed to unsafe levels of benzene (> 5 µg/L since December 2001, five months before they reported the leak. The mean benzene level in drinking water (72.2 µg/L was higher than that obtained by the Fuel Distributer using the Risk Based Corrective Action methodology (17.2 µg/L.The estimated benzene intake from the consumption of water and food reached a maximum of 0.0091 µg/kg bw/day (5 x 10-7 cancer risk per 106 individuals. The level of benzene in water vapor while showering reached 7.5 µg/m3 for children (1 per 104 cancer risk. Total cancer risk ranged from 110 to 200 per 106 individuals. CONCLUSIONS: The population affected by the fuel leak was exposed to benzene levels that might have represented a health risk. Local government authorities need to develop better strategies to respond rapidly to these types of accidents to protect the health of the affected population and the environment.

Plan for support of large-plant (post-CRBR) needs in large-leak sodium-water reaction area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Whipple, J.C.

1980-03-01

Work in the large leak test and analysis area of steam generator development has been carried out at GE-ARSD under 189a SG037 since 1973. The currently planned master schedule for the SG037 program is shown. Principal activities are the large leak testing program being carried out at the Large Leak Test Rig and the analysis methods development. The plan for supporting the large plant (post-CRBR) needs in the large leak sodium-water reaction area is outlined. Most of the needs will be answered in the current SG037 large leak program

Effect of Corrosion Inhibitors on In Situ Leak Repair by Precipitation of Calcium Carbonate in Potable Water Pipelines.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Fei; Devine, Christina L; Edwards, Marc A

2017-08-01

Corrosion inhibitors can affect calcium carbonate precipitation and associated in situ and in-service water distribution pipeline leak repair via clogging. Clogging of 150 μm diameter leak holes represented by glass capillary tubes, in recirculating solutions that are supersaturated with calcite (Ω calcite = 13), demonstrated that Zn, orthophosphate, tripolyphosphate, and hexametaphosphate corrosion/scaling inhibitors hinder clogging but natural organic matter (NOM) has relatively little impact. Critical concentrations of phosphates that could inhibit leak repair over the short-term in one water tested were: tripolyphophate (0.05 mg/L as P) water systems.

Detecting leaks in vacuum bags

Science.gov (United States)

Carlstrom, E. E.

1980-01-01

Small leaks in vacuum bag can be readily detected by eye, using simple chemical reaction: combination of ammonia and acetic acid vapors to produce cloudy white smoke. Technique has been successfully used to test seam integrity and to identify minute pinholes in vacuum bag used in assembly of ceramic-tile heat shield for Space Shuttle Orbiter.

Importance Profiles for Water Vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Mapes, Brian; Chandra, Arunchandra S.; Kuang, Zhiming; Zuidema, Paquita

2017-11-01

Motivated by the scientific desire to align observations with quantities of physical interest, we survey how scalar importance functions depend on vertically resolved water vapor. Definitions of importance begin from familiar examples of water mass I m and TOA clear-sky outgoing longwave flux I OLR, in order to establish notation and illustrate graphically how the sensitivity profile or "kernel" depends on whether specific humidity S, relative humidity R, or ln( R) are used as measures of vapor. Then, new results on the sensitivity of convective activity I con to vapor (with implied knock-on effects such as weather prediction skill) are presented. In radiative-convective equilibrium, organized (line-like) convection is much more sensitive to moisture than scattered isotropic convection, but it exists in a drier mean state. The lesson for natural convection may be that organized convection is less susceptible to dryness and can survive and propagate into regions unfavorable for disorganized convection. This counterintuitive interpretive conclusion, with respect to the narrow numerical result behind it, highlights the importance of clarity about what is held constant at what values in sensitivity or susceptibility kernels. Finally, the sensitivities of observable radiance signals I sig for passive remote sensing are considered. While the accuracy of R in the lower free troposphere is crucial for the physical importance scalars, this layer is unfortunately the most difficult to isolate with passive remote sensing: In high emissivity channels, water vapor signals come from too high in the atmosphere (for satellites) or too low (for surface radiometers), while low emissivity channels have poor altitude discrimination and (in the case of satellites) are contaminated by surface emissions. For these reasons, active ranging (LiDAR) is the preferred observing strategy.

Atmospheric water vapor: Distribution and Empirical estimation in the atmosphere of Thailand

Science.gov (United States)

Phokate, S.

2017-09-01

Atmospheric water vapor is a crucial component of the Earth’s atmosphere, which is shown by precipitable water vapor. It is calculated from the upper air data. In Thailand, the data were collected from four measuring stations located in Chiang Mai, Ubon Ratchathani, Bangkok, and Songkhla during the years 1998-2013. The precipitable water vapor obtained from this investigation were used to define an empirical model associated with the vapor pressure, which is a surface data at the same stations. The result shows that the relationship has a relatively high level of reliability. The precipitable water vapor obtained from the upper air data is nearly equal to the value from the model. The model was used to calculate the precipitable water vapor from the surface data 85 stations across the country. The result shows that seasonal change of the precipitable water vapor was low in the dry season (November-April) and high in the rainy season (May-October). In addition, precipitable water vapor varies along the latitudes of the stations. The high value obtains for low latitudes, but it is low for high latitudes.

PFR evaporator leak

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smedley, J.A.

1975-01-01

PFR has three heat removal circuits each one having an evaporator, superheater, reheater; all separate units. The status of the system was that circuit No 3 was steaming with 10 MW thermal nuclear power; No 1 circuit was filled with sodium but with the evaporator awaiting modification to cure gas entrainment problems already reported. The leak was in No 2 circuit and was located in the evaporator unit. The evaporator is rated at 120 M thermal at full power and as such is a large unit. The circuit was filled with both sodium and water for the first time three weeks before the conference so it was recent history being reported and therefore any figures quoted should be taken as indicative only. The history of the steam generator was that it was built at works to a very high standard and underwent all the usual tests of strength, inspection of welds and helium leak testing. The steam generator is of U tube design with a tube plate to which the boiler tubes are welded, with all the welds in one of two gas spaces. The inlet and outlet sides are separated by a baffle and the salient features are illustrated in the attached figure. The unit achieved a leak tightness better than the detection limit in the helium leak test at works. This limit was assessed as being less than an equivalent leak of 10 -6 g/s water under steam generator service conditions. However even though all the steam generator units passed this test at works a further test was carried out when the circuits had been completed. The test was carried out during commissioning after sodium filling and with the units hot. The method was to introduce a mixture of helium/ argon at 500 pounds/square inch into the water side of the steam generators and measure the helium concentration in the sodium side gas spaces of the circuit. The test lasted many days and under these conditions the sensitivity is such that a leak equivalent to somewhere between 10 -7 to 10 -6 g/s equivalent water leak could be detected, i

PFR evaporator leak

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Smedley, J A

1975-07-01

PFR has three heat removal circuits each one having an evaporator, superheater, reheater; all separate units. The status of the system was that circuit No 3 was steaming with 10 MW thermal nuclear power; No 1 circuit was filled with sodium but with the evaporator awaiting modification to cure gas entrainment problems already reported. The leak was in No 2 circuit and was located in the evaporator unit. The evaporator is rated at 120 M thermal at full power and as such is a large unit. The circuit was filled with both sodium and water for the first time three weeks before the conference so it was recent history being reported and therefore any figures quoted should be taken as indicative only. The history of the steam generator was that it was built at works to a very high standard and underwent all the usual tests of strength, inspection of welds and helium leak testing. The steam generator is of U tube design with a tube plate to which the boiler tubes are welded, with all the welds in one of two gas spaces. The inlet and outlet sides are separated by a baffle and the salient features are illustrated in the attached figure. The unit achieved a leak tightness better than the detection limit in the helium leak test at works. This limit was assessed as being less than an equivalent leak of 10{sup -6} g/s water under steam generator service conditions. However even though all the steam generator units passed this test at works a further test was carried out when the circuits had been completed. The test was carried out during commissioning after sodium filling and with the units hot. The method was to introduce a mixture of helium/ argon at 500 pounds/square inch into the water side of the steam generators and measure the helium concentration in the sodium side gas spaces of the circuit. The test lasted many days and under these conditions the sensitivity is such that a leak equivalent to somewhere between 10{sup -7} to 10{sup -6} g/s equivalent water leak could be

The annual cycle of stratospheric water vapor in a general circulation model

Science.gov (United States)

Mote, Philip W.

1995-01-01

The application of general circulation models (GCM's) to stratospheric chemistry and transport both permits and requires a thorough investigation of stratospheric water vapor. The National Center for Atmospheric Research has redesigned its GCM, the Community Climate Model (CCM2), to enable studies of the chemistry and transport of tracers including water vapor; the importance of water vapor to the climate and chemistry of the stratosphere requires that it be better understood in the atmosphere and well represented in the model. In this study, methane is carried as a tracer and converted to water; this simple chemistry provides an adequate representation of the upper stratospheric water vapor source. The cold temperature bias in the winter polar stratosphere, which the CCM2 shares with other GCM's, produces excessive dehydration in the southern hemisphere, but this dry bias can be ameliorated by setting a minimum vapor pressure. The CCM2's water vapor distribution and seasonality compare favorably with observations in many respects, though seasonal variations including the upper stratospheric semiannual oscillation are generally too small. Southern polar dehydration affects midlatitude water vapor mixing ratios by a few tenths of a part per million, mostly after the demise of the vortex. The annual cycle of water vapor in the tropical and northern midlatitude lower stratosphere is dominated by drying at the tropical tropopause. Water vapor has a longer adjustment time than methane and had not reached equilibrium at the end of the 9 years simulated here.

Portable device for generation of ultra-pure water vapor feeds

Science.gov (United States)

Velin, P.; Stenman, U.; Skoglundh, M.; Carlsson, P.-A.

2017-11-01

A portable device for the generation of co-feeds of water vapor has been designed, constructed, and evaluated for flexible use as an add-on component to laboratory chemical reactors. The vapor is formed by catalytic oxidation of hydrogen, which benefits the formation of well-controlled minute concentrations of ultra-pure water. Analysis of the effluent stream by on-line mass spectrometry and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy confirms that water vapor can be, with high precision, generated both rapidly and steadily over extended periods in the range of 100 ppm to 3 vol. % (limited by safety considerations) using a total flow of 100 to 1500 ml/min at normal temperature and pressure. Further, the device has been used complementary to a commercial water evaporator and mixing system to span water concentrations up to 12 vol. %. Finally, an operando diffuse reflective infrared Fourier transform spectroscopic measurement of palladium catalysed methane oxidation in the absence and presence of up to 1.0 vol. % water has been carried out to demonstrate the applicability of the device for co-feeding well-controlled low concentrations of water vapor to a common type of spectroscopic experiment. The possibilities of creating isotopically labeled water vapor as well as using tracer gases for dynamic experiments are discussed.

An opacity-sampled treatment of water vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Alexander, David R.; Augason, Gordon C.; Johnson, Hollis R.

1989-01-01

Although the bands of H2O are strong in the spectra of cool stars and calculations have repeatedly demonstrated their significance as opacity sources, only approximate opacities are currently available, due both to the difficulty of accounting for the millions of lines involved and to the inadequacy of laboratory and theoretical data. To overcome these obstacles, a new treatment is presented, based upon a statistical representation of the water vapor spectrum derived from available laboratory data. This statistical spectrum of water vapor employs an exponential distribution of line strengths and random positions of lines whose overall properties are forced to reproduce the mean opacities observed in the laboratory. The resultant data set is then treated by the opacity-sampling method exactly as are all other lines, both molecular and atomic. Significant differences are found between the results of this improved treatment and the results obtained with previous treatments of water-vapor opacity.

Water vapor differential absorption lidar development and evaluation

Science.gov (United States)

Browell, E. V.; Wilkerson, T. D.; Mcllrath, T. J.

1979-01-01

A ground-based differential absorption lidar (DIAL) system is described which has been developed for vertical range-resolved measurements of water vapor. The laser transmitter consists of a ruby-pumped dye laser, which is operated on a water vapor absorption line at 724.372 nm. Part of the ruby laser output is transmitted simultaneously with the dye laser output to determine atmospheric scattering and attenuation characteristics. The dye and ruby laser backscattered light is collected by a 0.5-m diam telescope, optically separated in the receiver package, and independently detected using photomultiplier tubes. Measurements of vertical water vapor concentration profiles using the DIAL system at night are discussed, and comparisons are made between the water vapor DIAL measurements and data obtained from locally launched rawinsondes. Agreement between these measurements was found to be within the uncertainty of the rawinsonde data to an altitude of 3 km. Theoretical simulations of this measurement were found to give reasonably accurate predictions of the random error of the DIAL measurements. Confidence in these calculations will permit the design of aircraft and Shuttle DIAL systems and experiments using simulation results as the basis for defining lidar system performance requirements

Thermal Design of Vapor Cooling of Flight Vehicle Structures Using LH2 Boil-Off

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xiao-Yen; Zoeckler, Joseph

2015-01-01

Using hydrogen boil-off vapor to cool the structure of a flight vehicle cryogenic upper stage can reduce heat loads to the stage and increase the usable propellant in the stage or extend the life of the stage. The hydrogen vapor can be used to absorb incoming heat as it increases in temperature before being vented overboard. In theory, the amount of heat leaking into the hydrogen tank from the structure will be reduced if the structure is cooled using the propellant boil-off vapor. However, the amount of boil-off vapor available to be used for cooling and the reduction in heat leak to the propellant tank are dependent to each other. The amount of heat leak reduction to the LH2 tank also depends on the total heat load on the stage and the vapor cooling configurations.

Operation of the water-to-sodium leak detection system at the experimental breeder reactor II

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Osterhout, M.M.

1978-01-01

A water-to-sodium leak detection system was installed at the Experimental Breeder Reactor II in April 1975. The system is designed for early detection of steam generator leaks, using hydrogen meters at the sodium outlets of the evaporators and superheaters. The leak detectors operate by measuring the rate of diffusion of hydrogen from the liquid sodium through a nickel membrane into a dynamic vacuum system. The advantages of this detection system are rapid response time, high sensitivity, stability, and reliability. The system was operated on an experimental basis for the first two years. During this period, data were obtained on detector stability, reliability, maintenance needs, computer interface requirements, calibration, and background hydrogen-level fluctuations. A generic defect in the original detectors was also discovered, requiring redesign of the units. When the new units were installed and proven to be reliable, the system was made fully operational. The data from the hydrogen meters are now used as the primary basis for detection of water-to-sodium leaks

A study on the dryness judgement criterion for leak test in water-cooled generator stator windings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Hee Soo; Bae, Yong Chae; Lee, Wook Ryun; Lee, Doo Young; Cho, Sung Won

2009-01-01

The complete dryness of stator inside is a necessary and sufficient condition for leak test. Microcracks by high cycle fatigue due to operation are generated in stator windings and they are interrupted by water molecules during leak test. For this reason, during leak test, the wrong value is indicated as follows: There are no leaks in stator windings. Generator manufacturers presents unique dryness judgement criteria for leak test but actually any criteria never indicate accurate dryness point for leak test. The reason is that stator winding has a complexity of structure and absence of an effective dryness equipment in power plant. In this paper, dryness judgement criterion to judge if stator winding inside is dried completely is proposed and is testified experimentally.

Development of an Airborne Micropulse Water Vapor DIAL

Science.gov (United States)

Nehrir, A. R.; Ismail, S.

2012-12-01

Water vapor plays a key role in many atmospheric processes affecting both weather and climate. Airborne measurements of tropospheric water vapor profiles have been a longstanding observational need to not only the active remote sensing community but also to the meteorological, weather forecasting, and climate/radiation science communities. Microscale measurements of tropospheric water vapor are important for enhancing near term meteorological forecasting capabilities while mesoscale and synopticscale measurements can lead to an enhanced understanding of the complex coupled feedback mechanisms between water vapor, temperature, aerosols, and clouds. To realize tropospheric measurements of water vapor profiles over the microscale-synopticscale areas of meteorological interest, a compact and cost effective airborne micropulse differential absorption lidar (DIAL) is being investigated using newly emerging semiconductor based laser technology. Ground based micropulse DIAL (MPD) measurements of tropospheric water vapor and aerosol profiles up to 6 km and 15 km, respectively, have been previously demonstrated using an all semiconductor based laser transmitter. The DIAL transmitter utilizes a master oscillator power amplifier (MOPA) configuration where two semiconductor seed lasers are used to seed a single pass traveling wave tapered semiconductor optical amplifier (TSOA), producing up to 7μJ pulse energies over a 1 μs pulse duration at a 10 kHz pulse repetition frequency (PRF). Intercomparisons between the ground based instrument measurements and radiosonde profiles demonstrating the MPD performance under varying atmospheric conditions will be presented. Work is currently ongoing to expand upon the ground based MPD concept and to develop a compact and cost effective system capable of deployment on a mid-low altitude aircraft such as the NASA Langley B200 King Air. Initial lab experiments show that a two-three fold increase in the laser energy compared to the ground

Means for preventing radioactive fluid leaking

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akatsu, Jun-ichi.

1975-01-01

Object: To permit prevention of leakage of radioactive fluid from line and valve leak sections while also recovering the liquid by producing a vacuum state in a leak-off line by means of a water ejector. Structure: A portion of the water from a condenser is forced by a condensed water pump through a water ejector tank to a recovery tank while controlling an orifice and valve, whereby a vacuum state is produced in the leak-off line to withdraw the leakage fluid. (Kamimura, M.)

The physics of confined flow and its application to water leaks, water permeation and water nanoflows: a review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lei, Wenwen; Rigozzi, Michelle K; McKenzie, David R

2016-01-01

This review assesses the current state of understanding of the calculation of the rate of flow of gases, vapours and liquids confined in channels, in porous media and in permeable materials with an emphasis on the flow of water and its vapour. One motivation is to investigate the relation between the permeation rate of moisture and that of a noncondensable test gas such as helium, another is to assist in unifying theory and experiment across disparate fields. Available theories of single component ideal gas flows in channels of defined geometry (cylindrical, rectangular and elliptical) are described and their predictions compared with measurement over a wide range of conditions defined by the Knudsen number. Theory for two phase flows is assembled in order to understand the behaviour of four standard water leak configurations: vapour, slug, Washburn and liquid flow, distinguished by the number and location of phase boundaries (menisci). Air may or may not be present as a background gas. Slip length is an important parameter that greatly affects leak rates. Measurements of water vapour flows confirm that water vapour shows ideal gas behaviour. Results on carbon nanotubes show that smooth walls may lead to anomalously high slip lengths arising from the properties of ‘confined’ water. In porous media, behaviour can be matched to the four standard leaks. Traditional membrane permeation models consider that the permeant dissolves, diffuses and evaporates at the outlet side, ideas we align with those from channel flow. Recent results on graphite oxide membranes show examples where helium which does not permeate while at the same time moisture is almost unimpeded, again a result of confined water. We conclude that while there is no a priori relation between a noncondensable gas flow and a moisture flow, measurements using helium will give results within two orders of magnitude of the moisture flow rate, except in the case where there is anomalous slip or confined

The physics of confined flow and its application to water leaks, water permeation and water nanoflows: a review.

Science.gov (United States)

Lei, Wenwen; Rigozzi, Michelle K; McKenzie, David R

2016-02-01

This review assesses the current state of understanding of the calculation of the rate of flow of gases, vapours and liquids confined in channels, in porous media and in permeable materials with an emphasis on the flow of water and its vapour. One motivation is to investigate the relation between the permeation rate of moisture and that of a noncondensable test gas such as helium, another is to assist in unifying theory and experiment across disparate fields. Available theories of single component ideal gas flows in channels of defined geometry (cylindrical, rectangular and elliptical) are described and their predictions compared with measurement over a wide range of conditions defined by the Knudsen number. Theory for two phase flows is assembled in order to understand the behaviour of four standard water leak configurations: vapour, slug, Washburn and liquid flow, distinguished by the number and location of phase boundaries (menisci). Air may or may not be present as a background gas. Slip length is an important parameter that greatly affects leak rates. Measurements of water vapour flows confirm that water vapour shows ideal gas behaviour. Results on carbon nanotubes show that smooth walls may lead to anomalously high slip lengths arising from the properties of 'confined' water. In porous media, behaviour can be matched to the four standard leaks. Traditional membrane permeation models consider that the permeant dissolves, diffuses and evaporates at the outlet side, ideas we align with those from channel flow. Recent results on graphite oxide membranes show examples where helium which does not permeate while at the same time moisture is almost unimpeded, again a result of confined water. We conclude that while there is no a priori relation between a noncondensable gas flow and a moisture flow, measurements using helium will give results within two orders of magnitude of the moisture flow rate, except in the case where there is anomalous slip or confined water

High Temperature Corrosion of Silicon Carbide and Silicon Nitride in Water Vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Opila, E. J.; Robinson, Raymond C.; Cuy, Michael D.; Gray, Hugh R. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

Silicon carbide (SiC) and silicon nitride (Si3N4) are proposed for applications in high temperature combustion environments containing water vapor. Both SiC and Si3N4 react with water vapor to form a silica (SiO2) scale. It is therefore important to understand the durability of SiC, Si3N4 and SiO2 in water vapor. Thermogravimetric analyses, furnace exposures and burner rig results were obtained for these materials in water vapor at temperatures between 1100 and 1450 C and water vapor partial pressures ranging from 0.1 to 3.1 atm. First, the oxidation of SiC and Si3N4 in water vapor is considered. The parabolic kinetic rate law, rate dependence on water vapor partial pressure, and oxidation mechanism are discussed. Second, the volatilization of silica to form Si(OH)4(g) is examined. Mass spectrometric results, the linear kinetic rate law and a volatilization model based on diffusion through a gas boundary layer are discussed. Finally, the combined oxidation and volatilization reactions, which occur when SiC or Si3N4 are exposed in a water vapor-containing environment, are presented. Both experimental evidence and a model for the paralinear kinetic rate law are shown for these simultaneous oxidation and volatilization reactions.

The experiment and analysis on small leak phenomena

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeong, Kyung Chai; Hwang, S. T.; Kim, B. H.; Jeong, J. Y.

2000-07-01

The liquid sodium which is used as a coolant in LMFBR, may give rise to a serious trouble in the safety aspect of steam generator. The defects in a heat transfer tube, such as pin-hole or tube welding defect, will result in a leakage of high pressure steam into the sodium side and production of hydrogen gas and corrosive sodium compounds which can cause significant damage to the tube wall of steam generator by using exothermic reaction. In significant damage to the tube wall of steam generator by using exothermic reaction. In this case, initial leak size will be enlarged with time and the leak rate developed to large leak through the micro, small, intermediate leaks. Therefore, the analysis of sodium-water reaction phenomena on the micro and small water leaks in the heat transfer tube is very important in the initial leak stage in the aspects of the protection of leak progress and safety evaluation of steam generator. In this study, firstly, the micro and small leaks phenomena, such as reopen size, shape, and time of leak path, self-wastage, corrosion of tube materials, was analyzed from the literature survey and water leakage experiments using the leak specimen. In small water leak experiments, the leak path was plugged by the sodium-water reaction products at the leak path of a specimen, and re-open phenomena were not observed in initial experiments. Other leak experiments, reopen phenomena of self-plugged leak path was observed. Re-open mechanism of sealed path could be explained by the thermal transient and vibration of heat transfer tube. As a result, perfect reopen time of self plugged leak path was observed to be about 130 minutes after water leak initiation. Reopen shape of a specimen was appeared with double layer of circular type, and reopen size of this specimen surface was about 2 mm diameter on sodium side. Also, the corrosion of a specimen initiated from sodium side, the segregation phenomena of Cr in the specimen was found much more than those of

Vaporization of fault water during seismic slip

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Jianye; Niemeijer, André R.; Fokker, Peter A.

2017-06-01

Laboratory and numerical studies, as well as field observations, indicate that phase transitions of pore water might be an important process in large earthquakes. We present a model of the thermo-hydro-chemo-mechanical processes, including a two-phase mixture model to incorporate the phase transitions of pore water, occurring during fast slip (i.e., a natural earthquake) in order to investigate the effects of vaporization on the coseismic slip. Using parameters from typical natural faults, our modeling shows that vaporization can indeed occur at the shallow depths of an earthquake, irrespective of the wide variability of the parameters involved (sliding velocity, friction coefficient, gouge permeability and porosity, and shear-induced dilatancy). Due to the fast kinetics, water vaporization can cause a rapid slip weakening even when the hydrological conditions of the fault zone are not favorable for thermal pressurization, e.g., when permeability is high. At the same time, the latent heat associated with the phase transition causes the temperature rise in the slip zone to be buffered. Our parametric analyses reveal that the amount of frictional work is the principal factor controlling the onset and activity of vaporization and that it can easily be achieved in earthquakes. Our study shows that coseismic pore fluid vaporization might have played important roles at shallow depths of large earthquakes by enhancing slip weakening and buffering the temperature rise. The combined effects may provide an alternative explanation for the fact that low-temperature anomalies were measured in the slip zones at shallow depths of large earthquakes.

Visualization of Atmospheric Water Vapor Data for SAGE

Science.gov (United States)

Kung, Mou-Liang; Chu, W. P. (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

The goal of this project was to develop visualization tools to study the water vapor dynamics using the Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment 11 (SAGE 11) water vapor data. During the past years, we completed the development of a visualization tool called EZSAGE, and various Gridded Water Vapor plots, tools deployed on the web to provide users with new insight into the water vapor dynamics. Results and experiences from this project, including papers, tutorials and reviews were published on the main Web page. Additional publishing effort has been initiated to package EZSAGE software for CD production and distribution. There have been some major personnel changes since Fall, 1998. Dr. Mou-Liang Kung, a Professor of Computer Science assumed the PI position vacated by Dr. Waldo Rodriguez who was on leave. However, former PI, Dr. Rodriguez continued to serve as a research adviser to this project to assure smooth transition and project completion. Typically in each semester, five student research assistants were hired and trained. Weekly group meetings were held to discuss problems, progress, new research direction, and activity planning. Other small group meetings were also held regularly for different objectives of this project. All student research assistants were required to submit reports for conference submission.

Adsorption of radon and water vapor on commercial activated carbons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hassan, N.M.; Ghosh, T.K.; Hines, A.L.; Loyalka, S.K.

1995-01-01

Equilibrium adsorption isotherms are reported for radon and water vapor on two commercial activated carbons: coconut shell Type PCB and hardwood Type BD. The isotherms of the water vapor were measured gravimetrically at 298 K. The isotherms of radon from dry nitrogen were obtained at 293, 298, and 308 K while the data for the mixture of radon and water vapor were measured at 298 K. The concentrations of radon in the gas and solid phases were measured simultaneously, once the adsorption equilibrium and the radioactive equilibrium between the radon and its daughter products were established. The shape of the isotherms was of Type III for the radon and Type V for the water vapor, according to Brunauer's classification. The adsorption mechanism was similar for both the radon and the water vapor, being physical adsorption on the macropore surface area in the low pressure region and micropore filling near saturation pressure. The uptake capacity of radon decreased both with increasing temperature and relative humidity. The heat of adsorption data indicated that the PCB- and the BD-activated carbons provided a heterogeneous surface for radon adsorption. The equilibrium data for radon were correlated with a modified Freundlich equation

Coupled Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical-Chemical Modeling of Water Leak-Off Process during Hydraulic Fracturing in Shale Gas Reservoirs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fei Wang

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The water leak-off during hydraulic fracturing in shale gas reservoirs is a complicated transport behavior involving thermal (T, hydrodynamic (H, mechanical (M and chemical (C processes. Although many leak-off models have been published, none of the models fully coupled the transient fluid flow modeling with heat transfer, chemical-potential equilibrium and natural-fracture dilation phenomena. In this paper, a coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical-chemical (THMC model based on non-equilibrium thermodynamics, hydrodynamics, thermo-poroelastic rock mechanics, and non-isothermal chemical-potential equations is presented to simulate the water leak-off process in shale gas reservoirs. The THMC model takes into account a triple-porosity medium, which includes hydraulic fractures, natural fractures and shale matrix. The leak-off simulation with the THMC model involves all the important processes in this triple-porosity medium, including: (1 water transport driven by hydraulic, capillary, chemical and thermal osmotic convections; (2 gas transport induced by both hydraulic pressure driven convection and adsorption; (3 heat transport driven by thermal convection and conduction; and (4 natural-fracture dilation considered as a thermo-poroelastic rock deformation. The fluid and heat transport, coupled with rock deformation, are described by a set of partial differential equations resulting from the conservation of mass, momentum, and energy. The semi-implicit finite-difference algorithm is proposed to solve these equations. The evolution of pressure, temperature, saturation and salinity profiles of hydraulic fractures, natural fractures and matrix is calculated, revealing the multi-field coupled water leak-off process in shale gas reservoirs. The influences of hydraulic pressure, natural-fracture dilation, chemical osmosis and thermal osmosis on water leak-off are investigated. Results from this study are expected to provide a better understanding of the

Leak isolation self-repairing tape for a water storage vessel and piping against holes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagaya, Kosuke; Sekiguchi, Takahiro; Chen, Zhichao; Murakami, Iwanori

2007-01-01

A new type taping for a water storage vessel or piping is presented, in which water leakage is isolated automatically by its self-repairing mechanism against holes. The self-repairing unit (sealant layer) is consisting of three pieces of net with polymer particles inside lattices. Polymer particles, which expand their volume with water, is used for having self-repairing forces. In ordinary tapes, water leaks along the boundary between the tape and the vessel. In order to retain the leak isolation force, this article first discusses a method for making the sealant tape, then develops a method for fixing the sealant to the vessel. The portion of water leakage can be checked on this tape, and the method of detecting the hole or crack portion of the vessel is also presented by using the tape. (author)

Emergency membrane contactor based absorption system for ammonia leaks in water treatment plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Shao, Jiahui; Fang, Xuliang; He, Yiliang; Jin, Qiang

2008-01-01

Abstract Because of the suspected health risks of trihalomethanes (THMs), more and more water treatment plants have replaced traditional chlorine disinfection process with chloramines but often without the proper absorption system installed in the case of ammonia leaks in the storage room. A pilot plant membrane absorption system was developed and installed in a water treatment plant for this purpose. Experimentally determined contact angle, surface tension, and corrosion tests indicated that the sulfuric acid was the proper choice as the absorbent for leaking ammonia using polypropylene hollow fiber membrane contactor. Effects of several operating conditions on the mass transfer coefficient, ammonia absorption, and removal efficiency were examined, including the liquid concentration, liquid velocity, and feed gas concentration. Under the operation conditions investigated, the gas absorption efficiency over 99.9% was achieved. This indicated that the designed pilot plant membrane absorption system was effective to absorb the leaking ammonia in the model storage room. The removal rate of the ammonia in the model storage room was also experimentally and theoretically found to be primarily determined by the ammonia suction flow rate from the ammonia storage room to the membrane contactor. The ammonia removal rate of 99.9% was expected to be achieved within 1.3 h at the ammonia gas flow rate of 500 m3/h. The success of the pilot plant membrane absorption system developed in this study illustrated the potential of this technology for ammonia leaks in water treatment plant, also paved the way towards a larger scale application.

Polybenzimidazole-based mixed membranes with exceptional high water vapor permeability and selectivity

KAUST Repository

Akhtar, Faheem Hassan

2017-09-13

Polybenzimidazole (PBI), a thermal and chemically stable polymer, is commonly used to fabricate membranes for applications like hydrogen recovery at temperatures of more than 300 °C, fuel cells working in a highly acidic environment, and nanofiltration in aggressive solvents. This report shows for the first time use of PBI dense membranes for water vapor/gas separation applications. They showed an excellent selectivity and high water vapor permeability. Incorporation of inorganic hydrophilic titanium-based nano-fillers into the PBI matrix further increased the water vapor permeability and water vapor/N2 selectivity. The most selective mixed matrix membrane with 0.5 wt% loading of TiO2 nanotubes yielded a water vapor permeability of 6.8×104 Barrer and a H2O/N2 selectivity of 3.9×106. The most permeable membrane with 1 wt% loading of carboxylated TiO2 nanoparticles had a 7.1×104 Barrer water vapor permeability and a H2O/N2 selectivity of 3.1×106. The performance of these membranes in terms of water vapor transport and selectivity is among the highest reported ones. The remarkable ability of PBI to efficiently permeate water versus other gases opens the possibility to fabricate membranes for dehumidification of streams in harsh environments. This includes the removal of water from high temperature reaction mixtures to shift the equilibrium towards products.

Polybenzimidazole-based mixed membranes with exceptional high water vapor permeability and selectivity

KAUST Repository

Akhtar, Faheem Hassan; Kumar, Mahendra; Villalobos, Luis Francisco; Shevate, Rahul; Vovusha, Hakkim; Schwingenschlö gl, Udo; Peinemann, Klaus-Viktor

2017-01-01

Polybenzimidazole (PBI), a thermal and chemically stable polymer, is commonly used to fabricate membranes for applications like hydrogen recovery at temperatures of more than 300 °C, fuel cells working in a highly acidic environment, and nanofiltration in aggressive solvents. This report shows for the first time use of PBI dense membranes for water vapor/gas separation applications. They showed an excellent selectivity and high water vapor permeability. Incorporation of inorganic hydrophilic titanium-based nano-fillers into the PBI matrix further increased the water vapor permeability and water vapor/N2 selectivity. The most selective mixed matrix membrane with 0.5 wt% loading of TiO2 nanotubes yielded a water vapor permeability of 6.8×104 Barrer and a H2O/N2 selectivity of 3.9×106. The most permeable membrane with 1 wt% loading of carboxylated TiO2 nanoparticles had a 7.1×104 Barrer water vapor permeability and a H2O/N2 selectivity of 3.1×106. The performance of these membranes in terms of water vapor transport and selectivity is among the highest reported ones. The remarkable ability of PBI to efficiently permeate water versus other gases opens the possibility to fabricate membranes for dehumidification of streams in harsh environments. This includes the removal of water from high temperature reaction mixtures to shift the equilibrium towards products.

Water vapor absorption in the atmospheric window at 239 GHz

Science.gov (United States)

Bauer, A.; Godon, M.; Carlier, J.; Ma, Q.

1995-01-01

Absolute absorption rates of pure water vapor and mixtures of water vapor and nitrogen have been measured in the atmospheric window at 239 GHz. The dependence on pressure as well as temperature has been obtained. The experimental data are compared with several theoretical or empirical models, and satisfactory agreement is obtained with the models involving a continuum; in the case of pure water vapor, the continuum contribution based upon recent theoretical developments gives good results. The temperature dependence is stronger than that proposed in a commonly used atmospheric transmission model.

GOES WATER VAPOR TRANSPORT V1

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The GOES Water Vapor Transport CD contains nineteen months of geostationary satellite-derived products spanning the 1987/1988 El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO)...

SCTI chemical leak detection test plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1981-01-01

Tests will be conducted on the CRBRP prototype steam generator at SCTI to determine the effects of steam generator geometry on the response of the CRBRP chemical leak detection system to small water-to-sodium leaks in various regions of the steam generator. Specifically, small injections of hydrogen gas (simulating water leaks) will be made near the two tubesheets, and the effective transport times to the main stream exit and vent line hydrogen meters will be measured. The magnitude and time characteristics of the meters' response will also be measured. This information will be used by the Small Leak Protection Base Program (SG027) for improved predictions of meter response times and leak detection sensitivity

Innovative Acoustic Sensor Technologies for Leak Detection in Challenging Pipe Types

Science.gov (United States)

2016-12-30

the level of water leakage within the water distribution system. Table 7-3. Cost Summary for LeakFinderRT LeakFinderRT Leak Detection Cost...and to limit the drawdown of local water supplies. Implementation of improved leak detection technologies and the timely repair of water mains will...6-5. Water -filled Valve Box in Vicinity of Leak Detected by ZoneScan Alpha System

GOES WATER VAPOR TRANSPORT V1

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The GOES Water Vapor Transport CD contains nineteen months of geostationary satellite-derived products from the GOES-8 satellite spanning the 1987-1988 El Nino...

Tropical stratospheric water vapor measured by the microwave limb sounder (MLS)

Science.gov (United States)

Carr, E. S.; Harwood, R. S.; Mote, P. W.; Peckham, G. E.; Suttie, R. A.; Lahoz, W. A.; O'Neill, A.; Froidevaux, L.; Jarnot, R. F.; Read, W. G.

1995-01-01

The lower stratospheric variability of equatorial water vapor, measured by the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS), follows an annual cycle modulated by the quasi-biennial oscillation. At levels higher in the stratosphere, water vapor measurements exhibit a semi-annual oscillatory signal with the largest amplitudes at 2.2 and 1hPa. Zonal-mean cross sections of MLS water vapor are consistent with previous satellite measurements from the limb infrared monitor of the stratosphere (LIMS) and the stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment 2 (SAGE 2) instruments in that they show water vapor increasing upwards and the polewards from a well defined minimum in the tropics. The minimum values vary in height between the retrieved 46 and 22hPa pressure levels.

Vapor compression distiller and membrane technology for water revitalization

Science.gov (United States)

Ashida, A.; Mitani, K.; Ebara, K.; Kurokawa, H.; Sawada, I.; Kashiwagi, H.; Tsuji, T.; Hayashi, S.; Otsubo, K.; Nitta, K.

1987-01-01

Water revitalization for a space station can consist of membrane filtration processes and a distillation process. Water recycling equipment using membrane filtration processes was manufactured for ground testing. It was assembled using commercially available components. Two systems for the distillation are studied: one is absorption type thermopervaporation cell and the other is a vapor compression distiller. Absorption type thermopervaporation, able to easily produce condensed water under zero gravity, was investigated experimentally and through simulated calculation. The vapor compression distiller was studied experimentally and it offers significant energy savings for evaporation of water.

Water vapor-nitrogen absorption at CO2 laser frequencies

Science.gov (United States)

Peterson, J. C.; Thomas, M. E.; Nordstrom, R. J.; Damon, E. K.; Long, R. K.

1979-01-01

The paper reports the results of a series of pressure-broadened water vapor absorption measurements at 27 CO2 laser frequencies between 935 and 1082 kaysers. Both multiple traversal cell and optoacoustic (spectrophone) techniques were utilized together with an electronically stabilized CW CO2 laser. Comparison of the results obtained by these two methods shows remarkable agreement, indicating a precision which has not been previously achieved in pressure-broadened studies of water vapor. The data of 10.59 microns substantiate the existence of the large (greater than 200) self-broadening coefficients determined in an earlier study by McCoy. In this work, the case of water vapor in N2 at a total pressure of 1 atm has been treated.

Water-Vapor Raman Lidar System Reaches Higher Altitude

Science.gov (United States)

Leblanc, Thierry; McDermid, I. Stewart

2010-01-01

A Raman lidar system for measuring the vertical distribution of water vapor in the atmosphere is located at the Table Mountain Facility (TMF) in California. Raman lidar systems for obtaining vertical water-vapor profiles in the troposphere have been in use for some time. The TMF system incorporates a number of improvements over prior such systems that enable extension of the altitude range of measurements through the tropopause into the lower stratosphere. One major obstacle to extension of the altitude range is the fact that the mixing ratio of water vapor in the tropopause and the lower stratosphere is so low that Raman lidar measurements in this region are limited by noise. Therefore, the design of the TMF system incorporates several features intended to maximize the signal-to-noise ratio. These features include (1) the use of 355-nm-wavelength laser pulses having an energy (0.9 J per pulse) that is high relative to the laser-pulse energy levels of prior such systems, (2) a telescope having a large aperture (91 cm in diameter) and a narrow field of view (angular width .0.6 mrad), and (3) narrow-bandpass (wavelength bandwidth 0.6 nm) filters for the water-vapor Raman spectral channels. In addition to the large-aperture telescope, three telescopes having apertures 7.5 cm in diameter are used to collect returns from low altitudes.

Reaction rate constant for uranium in water and water vapor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

TRIMBLE, D.J.

1998-11-09

The literature on uranium oxidation in water and oxygen free water vapor was reviewed. Arrhenius rate equations were developed from the review data. These data and equations will be used as a baseline from which to compare reaction rates measured for K Basin fuel.

Vaporization Rate Analysis of Primary Cooling Water from Reactor PUSPATI TRIGA (RTP) Tank

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tonny Anak Lanyau; Mohd Fazli Zakaria; Yahya Ismail

2011-01-01

Primary cooling system consists of pumps, heat exchangers, probes, a nitrogen-16 diffuser and associated valves is connected to the reactor TRIGA PUSPATI (RTP) tank by aluminium pipes. Both the primary cooling system and the reactor tank is filled with demineralized light water (H 2 O), which serves as a coolant, moderator as well as shielding. During reactor operation, vaporization in the reactor tank will reduce the primary water and contribute to the formation of vapor in the reactor hall. The vaporization may influence the function of the water subsequently may affect the safety of the reactor operation. It is essential to know the vaporization rate of the primary water to ensure its functionality. This paper will present the vaporization rate of the primary cooling water from the reactor tank and the influence of temperature of the water in the reactor tank to the vaporization rate. (author)

The Planck-Benzinger thermal work function in the condensation of water vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Chun, Paul W.

Based on the Planck-Benzinger thermal work function using Chun's method, the innate temperature-invariant enthalpy at 0 K, ?H0(T0), for the condensation of water vapor as well as the dimer, trimer, tetramer, and pentamer form in the vapor phase, was determined to be 0.447 kcal mol-1 for vapor, 1.127 for the dimer, 0.555 for the trimer, 0.236 for the tetramer, and 0.079 kcal mol-1 for the pentamer using ?G(T) data reported by Kell et al. in 1968 and Kell and McLaurin in 1969. These results suggest that the predominant dimeric form is the most stable of these n-mers. Using Nemethy and Scheraga's 1962 data for the Helmholtz free energy of liquid water, the value of ?H0(T0) was determined to be 1.21 kcal mol-1. This is very close to the value for the energy of the hydrogen bond EH of 1.32 kcal mol-1 reported by Nemethy and Scheraga, using statistical thermodynamics. It seems clear that very little energy is required for interconversion between the hypothetical supercooled water vapor and glassy water at 0 K. A hypothetical supercooled water vapor at 0 K is apparently almost as highly associated as glassy water at that temperature, suggesting a dynamic equilibrium between vapor and liquid. This water vapor condensation is highly similar in its thermodynamic behavior to that of sequence-specific pairwise (dipeptide) hydrophobic interaction, except that the negative Gibbs free energy change minimum at ?Ts?, the thermal setpoint for vapor condensation, where T?S = 0, occurs at a considerably lower temperature, 270 K (below 0°C) compared with ?350 K. The temperature of condensation ?Tcond? at which ?G(T) = 0, where water vapor begins to condense, was found to be 383 K. In the case of a sequence-specific pairwise hydrophobic interaction, the melting temperature, ?Tm?, where ?G(Tm) = 0 was found to be 460 K. Only between two temperature limits, ?Th? = 99 K and ?Tcond? = 383 K, where ?G(Tcond) = 0, is the net chemical driving force favorable for polymorphism of glassy water

A differential absorption technique to estimate atmospheric total water vapor amounts

Science.gov (United States)

Frouin, Robert; Middleton, Elizabeth

1990-01-01

Vertically integrated water-vapor amounts can be remotely determined by measuring the solar radiance reflected by the earth's surface with satellites or aircraft-based instruments. The technique is based on the method by Fowle (1912, 1913) and utilizes the 0.940-micron water-vapor band to retrieve total-water-vapor data that is independent of surface reflectance properties and other atmospheric constituents. A channel combination is proposed to provide more accurate results, the SE-590 spectrometer is used to verify the data, and the effects of atmospheric photon backscattering is examined. The spectrometer and radiosonde data confirm the accuracy of using a narrow and a wide channel centered on the same wavelength to determine water vapor amounts. The technique is suitable for cloudless conditions and can contribute to atmospheric corrections of land-surface parameters.

Durable Suit Bladder with Improved Water Permeability for Pressure and Environment Suits

Science.gov (United States)

Bue, Grant C.; Kuznetz, Larry; Orndoff, Evelyne; Tang, Henry; Aitchison, Lindsay; Ross, Amy

2009-01-01

Water vapor permeability is shown to be useful in rejecting heat and managing moisture accumulation in launch-and-entry pressure suits. Currently this is accomplished through a porous Gortex layer in the Advanced Crew and Escape Suit (ACES) and in the baseline design of the Constellation Suit System Element (CSSE) Suit 1. Non-porous dense monolithic membranes (DMM) that are available offer potential improvements for water vapor permeability with reduced gas leak. Accordingly, three different pressure bladder materials were investigated for water vapor permeability and oxygen leak: ElasthaneTM 80A (thermoplastic polyether urethane) provided from stock polymer material and two custom thermoplastic polyether urethanes. Water vapor, carbon dioxide and oxygen permeability of the DMM's was measured in a 0.13 mm thick stand-alone layer, a 0.08 mm and 0.05 mm thick layer each bonded to two different nylon and polyester woven reinforcing materials. Additional water vapor permeability and mechanical compression measurements were made with the reinforced 0.05 mm thick layers, further bonded with a polyester wicking and overlaid with moistened polyester fleece thermal underwear .This simulated the pressure from a supine crew person. The 0.05 mm thick nylon reinforced sample with polyester wicking layer was further mechanically tested for wear and abrasion. Concepts for incorporating these materials in launch/entry and Extravehicular Activity pressure suits are presented.

Upper limits for absorption by water vapor in the near-UV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilson, Eoin M.; Wenger, John C.; Venables, Dean S.

2016-01-01

There are few experimental measurements of absorption by water vapor in the near-UV. Here we report the results of spectral measurements of water vapor absorption at ambient temperature and pressure from 325 nm to 420 nm, covering most tropospherically relevant short wavelengths. Spectra were recorded using a broadband optical cavity in the chemically controlled environment of an atmospheric simulation chamber. No absorption attributable to the water monomer (or the dimer) was observed at the 0.5 nm resolution of our system. Our results are consistent with calculated spectra and recent DOAS field observations, but contradict a report of significant water absorption in the near-UV. Based on the detection limit of our instrument, we report upper limits for the water absorption cross section of less than 5×10 −26 cm 2 molecule −1 at our instrument resolution. For a typical, indicative slant column density of 4×10 23 cm 2 , we calculate a maximum optical depth of 0.02 arising from absorption of water vapor in the atmosphere at wavelengths between 340 nm and 420 nm, with slightly higher maximum optical depths below 340 nm. The results of this work, together with recent atmospheric observations and computational results, suggest that water vapor absorption across most of the near-UV is small compared to visible and infrared wavelengths. - Highlights: • The absorption cross section of water vapor was studied from 325 to 420 nm. • The upper limit was 5×10 −26 cm 2 molecule −1 above 340 nm at 0.5 nm resolution. • Our result contradicts a recent report of appreciable absorption by water vapor.

Feasibility of tropospheric water vapor profiling using infrared heterodyne differential absorption lidar

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grund, C.J.; Hardesty, R.M. [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Environmental Technology Laboratoy, Boulder, CO (United States); Rye, B.J. [Univ. of Colorado, Boulder, CO (United States)

1996-04-01

The development and verification of realistic climate model parameterizations for clouds and net radiation balance and the correction of other site sensor observations for interferences due to the presence of water vapor are critically dependent on water vapor profile measurements. In this study, we develop system performance models and examine the potential of infrared differential absoroption lidar (DIAL) to determine the concentration of water vapor.

Investigating the effects of water vaporization on the production of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The simulations show that water vaporization increases productivity of well by increasing gas saturation and relative permeability near the well walls and improving the mobility of gas; and this effect is stronger in rich gas condensate reservoir than the lean ones. Keywords: Well, Gas, Pressure Drop, Vapor pressure of water ...

Optimal sensor placement for leak location in water distribution networks using genetic algorithms.

Science.gov (United States)

Casillas, Myrna V; Puig, Vicenç; Garza-Castañón, Luis E; Rosich, Albert

2013-11-04

This paper proposes a new sensor placement approach for leak location in water distribution networks (WDNs). The sensor placement problem is formulated as an integer optimization problem. The optimization criterion consists in minimizing the number of non-isolable leaks according to the isolability criteria introduced. Because of the large size and non-linear integer nature of the resulting optimization problem, genetic algorithms (GAs) are used as the solution approach. The obtained results are compared with a semi-exhaustive search method with higher computational effort, proving that GA allows one to find near-optimal solutions with less computational load. Moreover, three ways of increasing the robustness of the GA-based sensor placement method have been proposed using a time horizon analysis, a distance-based scoring and considering different leaks sizes. A great advantage of the proposed methodology is that it does not depend on the isolation method chosen by the user, as long as it is based on leak sensitivity analysis. Experiments in two networks allow us to evaluate the performance of the proposed approach.

Optimal Sensor Placement for Leak Location in Water Distribution Networks Using Genetic Algorithms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luis E. Garza-Castañón

2013-11-01

Full Text Available This paper proposes a new sensor placement approach for leak location in water distribution networks (WDNs. The sensor placement problem is formulated as an integer optimization problem. The optimization criterion consists in minimizing the number of non-isolable leaks according to the isolability criteria introduced. Because of the large size and non-linear integer nature of the resulting optimization problem, genetic algorithms (GAs are used as the solution approach. The obtained results are compared with a semi-exhaustive search method with higher computational effort, proving that GA allows one to find near-optimal solutions with less computational load. Moreover, three ways of increasing the robustness of the GA-based sensor placement method have been proposed using a time horizon analysis, a distance-based scoring and considering different leaks sizes. A great advantage of the proposed methodology is that it does not depend on the isolation method chosen by the user, as long as it is based on leak sensitivity analysis. Experiments in two networks allow us to evaluate the performance of the proposed approach.

Optimal Sensor Placement for Leak Location in Water Distribution Networks Using Genetic Algorithms

Science.gov (United States)

Casillas, Myrna V.; Puig, Vicenç; Garza-Castañón, Luis E.; Rosich, Albert

2013-01-01

This paper proposes a new sensor placement approach for leak location in water distribution networks (WDNs). The sensor placement problem is formulated as an integer optimization problem. The optimization criterion consists in minimizing the number of non-isolable leaks according to the isolability criteria introduced. Because of the large size and non-linear integer nature of the resulting optimization problem, genetic algorithms (GAs) are used as the solution approach. The obtained results are compared with a semi-exhaustive search method with higher computational effort, proving that GA allows one to find near-optimal solutions with less computational load. Moreover, three ways of increasing the robustness of the GA-based sensor placement method have been proposed using a time horizon analysis, a distance-based scoring and considering different leaks sizes. A great advantage of the proposed methodology is that it does not depend on the isolation method chosen by the user, as long as it is based on leak sensitivity analysis. Experiments in two networks allow us to evaluate the performance of the proposed approach. PMID:24193099

Water vapor absorption of carbon dioxide laser radiation

Science.gov (United States)

Shumate, M. S.; Menzies, R. T.; Margolis, J. S.; Rosengren, L.-G.

1976-01-01

An optoacoustic detector or spectrophone has been used to perform detailed measurements of the absorptivity of mixtures of water vapor in air. A (C-12) (O-16)2 laser was used as the source, and measurements were made at forty-nine different wavelengths from 9.2 to 10.7 microns. The details of the optoacoustic detector and its calibration are presented, along with a discussion of its performance characteristics. The results of the measurements of water vapor absorption show that the continuum absorption in the wavelength range covered is 5-10% lower than previous measurements.

Device for detecting the water leak within a feedwater nozzle in water cooled reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hattori, Tsunekazu.

1984-01-01

Purpose: To enable exact recognition and detection for the state of water leak. Constitution: The detection device comprises a thermocouple disposed to the outer surface of a feedwater nozzle, a distortion meter for detecting the change in the outer diameter of a nozzle and an acoustic emission generator disposed to the inside of the nozzle for generating a signal upon temperature change. These sensors previously monitor the states during normal operation, and thus detect the change in each of the states upon occurrence of water leakage to issue an alarm. (Kamimura, M.)

Investigation of tungsten mass transfer in rarefied air oxygen and water vapors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Evsikov, A.S.; Makeev, A.A.; Lyubimova, L.L.; Sinyavskij, V.V.

1989-01-01

The results of experimental investigations of oxygen and water vapor effect on the rate of tungsten evaporation are presented. Methods for carrying out an experiment are presented. The experiments are carried out at the 2600 degC tungsten wire temperature and the pressure of oxygen and water vapors (2x10 -3 -5) Pa. Registration of final products of mass transfer is carried out by the DRON-2.0 diffractometer using a detachable substrate. Empirical dependence taking into account oxygen and water vapor effect on the rate of tungsten evaporation is suggested. It is marked that air oxygen and water vapor increase evaporation rate uniformly the difference is observed only in final products of interaction

Follow-up barium study after a negative water-soluble contrast examination for suspected esophageal leak: is it necessary?

Science.gov (United States)

Sanchez, Thomas R; Holz, Grant S; Corwin, Michael T; Wood, Robert J; Wootton-Gorges, Sandra L

2015-10-01

The purpose of this study was to determine the value of follow-up barium esophogram in diagnosing esophageal injury or leak if the initial water-soluble contrast examination of the esophagus is normal. An institutional review board (IRB)-approved retrospective review of all pediatric patients less than 18 years old referred to the radiology department for evaluation of esophageal injury or leak was performed for a 9-year period from 2005 to 2014. The majority of patients had unexplained pneumomediastinum, chest trauma (gunshot or puncture wound), or foreign body ingestion as the reason for the referral. Forty-nine patients (age range 10 days to 17 years) underwent an initial water-soluble esophogram immediately followed by a barium esophogram. Forty-six studies were negative on both water-soluble contrast and barium studies. Two studies were both positive on the initial water-soluble contrast and subsequent barium studies. A single study showed the esophageal leak only in the water-soluble study, with the follow-up barium exam being normal. The result of this study indicates that a single-contrast water-soluble esophogram alone is sensitive in the diagnosis of esophageal injury or leak. It has a 100 % sensitivity and negative predictive value. A follow-up barium esophogram only increases the study time and radiation dose to the patient.

Determination of water vapor and aerosol densities in the tropospheric atmosphere from nitrogen and water vapor raman signals

CERN Document Server

Kim, D H; Lee, J M; Yeon, K H; Choi, S C

1998-01-01

A Raman lidar system has been developed for the measurement of the water-vapor mixing ratio and the aerosol backscatter and extinction coefficients. To suppress the elastic scattering from the XeCl excimer laser, an acetone edge filter and narrow-band interference filters are used. By using independently calculated backscatter and extinction coefficients, we calculate the lidar ratios (extinction coefficient divided by the backscatter coefficient). The obtained ratios between 30 and 50 sr explain the special characteristics of the aerosol existing in the atmosphere. These ratios are also used as important parameters in the lidar inversion program. We have also obtained the water-vapor mixing ratio and find that big differences exist between the ratios inside the boundary layer and those of other regions.

A Plant-Based Proxy for the Oxygen Isotope Ratio of Atmospheric Water Vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Helliker, B.

2007-12-01

Atmospheric water vapor is a major component of the global hydrological cycle, but the isotopic balance of vapor is largely unknown. It is shown here that the oxygen isotope ratio of leaf water in the epiphytic Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) plant Tillandsia usneoides (Spanish Moss) is controlled by the oxygen isotope ratio of atmospheric water vapor in both field and lab studies. Assuming that the leaf-water isotopic signature (and hence the atmospheric water vapor signature) is recorded in plant organic material, the atmospheric water vapor oxygen isotope ratios for Miami, Florida (USA) were reconstructed for several years from 1878 to 2005 using contemporary and herbarium specimens. T. usneoides ranges from Virginia, USA southwards through the tropics to Argentina, and the CAM epiphytic lifeform is widespread in other species. Therefore, epiphytes may be used to reconstruct the isotope ratio of atmospheric water for spatial scales that span over 60° of latitude and temporal scales that cover the last century of global temperature increase.

Hyperspectral detection of a subsurface CO2 leak in the presence of water stressed vegetation.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabriel J Bellante

Full Text Available Remote sensing of vegetation stress has been posed as a possible large area monitoring tool for surface CO2 leakage from geologic carbon sequestration (GCS sites since vegetation is adversely affected by elevated CO2 levels in soil. However, the extent to which remote sensing could be used for CO2 leak detection depends on the spectral separability of the plant stress signal caused by various factors, including elevated soil CO2 and water stress. This distinction is crucial to determining the seasonality and appropriateness of remote GCS site monitoring. A greenhouse experiment tested the degree to which plants stressed by elevated soil CO2 could be distinguished from plants that were water stressed. A randomized block design assigned Alfalfa plants (Medicago sativa to one of four possible treatment groups: 1 a CO2 injection group; 2 a water stress group; 3 an interaction group that was subjected to both water stress and CO2 injection; or 4 a group that received adequate water and no CO2 injection. Single date classification trees were developed to identify individual spectral bands that were significant in distinguishing between CO2 and water stress agents, in addition to a random forest classifier that was used to further understand and validate predictive accuracies. Overall peak classification accuracy was 90% (Kappa of 0.87 for the classification tree analysis and 83% (Kappa of 0.77 for the random forest classifier, demonstrating that vegetation stressed from an underground CO2 leak could be accurately discerned from healthy vegetation and areas of co-occurring water stressed vegetation at certain times. Plants appear to hit a stress threshold, however, that would render detection of a CO2 leak unlikely during severe drought conditions. Our findings suggest that early detection of a CO2 leak with an aerial or ground-based hyperspectral imaging system is possible and could be an important GCS monitoring tool.

Hyperspectral detection of a subsurface CO2 leak in the presence of water stressed vegetation.

Science.gov (United States)

Bellante, Gabriel J; Powell, Scott L; Lawrence, Rick L; Repasky, Kevin S; Dougher, Tracy

2014-01-01

Remote sensing of vegetation stress has been posed as a possible large area monitoring tool for surface CO2 leakage from geologic carbon sequestration (GCS) sites since vegetation is adversely affected by elevated CO2 levels in soil. However, the extent to which remote sensing could be used for CO2 leak detection depends on the spectral separability of the plant stress signal caused by various factors, including elevated soil CO2 and water stress. This distinction is crucial to determining the seasonality and appropriateness of remote GCS site monitoring. A greenhouse experiment tested the degree to which plants stressed by elevated soil CO2 could be distinguished from plants that were water stressed. A randomized block design assigned Alfalfa plants (Medicago sativa) to one of four possible treatment groups: 1) a CO2 injection group; 2) a water stress group; 3) an interaction group that was subjected to both water stress and CO2 injection; or 4) a group that received adequate water and no CO2 injection. Single date classification trees were developed to identify individual spectral bands that were significant in distinguishing between CO2 and water stress agents, in addition to a random forest classifier that was used to further understand and validate predictive accuracies. Overall peak classification accuracy was 90% (Kappa of 0.87) for the classification tree analysis and 83% (Kappa of 0.77) for the random forest classifier, demonstrating that vegetation stressed from an underground CO2 leak could be accurately discerned from healthy vegetation and areas of co-occurring water stressed vegetation at certain times. Plants appear to hit a stress threshold, however, that would render detection of a CO2 leak unlikely during severe drought conditions. Our findings suggest that early detection of a CO2 leak with an aerial or ground-based hyperspectral imaging system is possible and could be an important GCS monitoring tool.

Simulation of stratospheric water vapor trends: impact on stratospheric ozone chemistry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Stenke

2005-01-01

Full Text Available A transient model simulation of the 40-year time period 1960 to 1999 with the coupled climate-chemistry model (CCM ECHAM4.L39(DLR/CHEM shows a stratospheric water vapor increase over the last two decades of 0.7 ppmv and, additionally, a short-term increase after major volcanic eruptions. Furthermore, a long-term decrease in global total ozone as well as a short-term ozone decline in the tropics after volcanic eruptions are modeled. In order to understand the resulting effects of the water vapor changes on lower stratospheric ozone chemistry, different perturbation simulations were performed with the CCM ECHAM4.L39(DLR/CHEM feeding the water vapor perturbations only to the chemistry part. Two different long-term perturbations of lower stratospheric water vapor, +1 ppmv and +5 ppmv, and a short-term perturbation of +2 ppmv with an e-folding time of two months were applied. An additional stratospheric water vapor amount of 1 ppmv results in a 5–10% OH increase in the tropical lower stratosphere between 100 and 30 hPa. As a direct consequence of the OH increase the ozone destruction by the HOx cycle becomes 6.4% more effective. Coupling processes between the HOx-family and the NOx/ClOx-family also affect the ozone destruction by other catalytic reaction cycles. The NOx cycle becomes 1.6% less effective, whereas the effectiveness of the ClOx cycle is again slightly enhanced. A long-term water vapor increase does not only affect gas-phase chemistry, but also heterogeneous ozone chemistry in polar regions. The model results indicate an enhanced heterogeneous ozone depletion during antarctic spring due to a longer PSC existence period. In contrast, PSC formation in the northern hemisphere polar vortex and therefore heterogeneous ozone depletion during arctic spring are not affected by the water vapor increase, because of the less PSC activity. Finally, this study shows that 10% of the global total ozone decline in the transient model run

Trends of total water vapor column above the Arctic from satellites observations

Science.gov (United States)

Alraddawi, Dunya; Sarkissian, Alain; Keckhut, Philippe; Bock, Olivier; Claud, Chantal; Irbah, Abdenour

2016-04-01

Atmospheric water vapor (H2O) is the most important natural (as opposed to man-made) greenhouse gas, accounting for about two-thirds of the natural greenhouse effect. Despite this importance, its role in climate and its reaction to climate change are still difficult to assess. Many details of the hydrological cycle are poorly understood, such as the process of cloud formation and the transport and release of latent heat contained in the water vapor. In contrast to other important greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane, water vapor has a much higher temporal and spatial variability. Total precipitable water (TPW) or the total column of water vapor (TCWV) is the amount of liquid water that would result if all the water vapor in the atmospheric column of unit area were condensed. TCWV distribution contains valuable information on the vigor of the hydrological processes and moisture transport in the atmosphere. Measurement of TPW can be obtained based on atmospheric water vapor absorption or emission of radiation in the spectral range from UV to MW. TRENDS were found over the terrestrial Arctic by means of TCWV retrievals (using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectro-radiometer (MODIS) near-infrared (2001-2015) records). More detailed approach was made for comparisons with ground based instruments over Sodankyla - Finland (TCWV from: SCIAMACHY 2003-2011, GOME-2A 2007-2011, SAOZ 2003-2011, GPS 2003-2011, MODIS 2003-2011)

Water vapor measurements in the 0.94 micron absorption band - Calibration, measurements and data applications

Science.gov (United States)

Reagan, J. A.; Thome, K.; Herman, B.; Gall, R.

1987-01-01

This paper describes methods and presents results for sensing the columnar content of atmospheric water vapor via differential solar transmission measurements in and adjacent to the 0.94-micron water-vapor absorption band. Calibration and measurement techniques are presented for obtaining the water vapor transmission from the radiometer measurements. Models are also presented for retrieving the columnar water vapor amount from the estimated transmission. Example retrievals are presented for radiometer measurements made during the 1986 Arizona Monsoon Season to track temporal variations in columnar water vapor amount.

Material gap membrane distillation: A new design for water vapor flux enhancement

KAUST Repository

Francis, Lijo

2013-08-19

A new module design for membrane distillation, namely material gap membrane distillation (MGMD), for seawater desalination has been proposed and successfully tested. It has been observed that employing appropriate materials between the membrane and the condensation plate in an air gap membrane distillation (AGMD) module enhanced the water vapor flux significantly. An increase in the water vapor flux of about 200-800% was observed by filling the gap with sand and DI water at various feed water temperatures. However, insulating materials such as polypropylene and polyurethane have no effect on the water vapor flux. The influence of material thickness and characteristics has also been investigated in this study. An increase in the water gap width from 9. mm to 13. mm increases the water vapor flux. An investigation on an AGMD and MGMD performance comparison, carried out using two different commercial membranes provided by different manufacturers, is also reported in this paper. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.

Millimeter-wave Radiometer for High Sensitivity Water Vapor Profiling in Arid Regions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pazmany, Andrew

2006-11-09

Abstract - ProSensing Inc. has developed a G-band (183 GHz) water Vapor Radiometer (GVR) for long-term, unattended measurements of low concentrations of atmospheric water vapor and liquid water. Precipitable water vapor and liquid water path are estimated from zenith brightness temperatures measured from four double-sideband receiver channels, centered at 183.31 1, 3 and 7, and 14 GHz. A prototype ground-based version of the instrument was deployed at the DOE ARM program?s North Slope of Alaska site near Barrow AK in April 2005, where it collected data continuously for one year. A compact, airborne version of this instrument, packaged to operate from a standard 2-D PMS probe canister, has been tested on the ground and is scheduled for test flights in the summer of 2006. This paper presents design details, laboratory test results and examples of retrieved precipitable water vapor and liquid water path from measured brightness temperature data.

Remote leak localization approach for fusion machines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Durocher, Au.; Bruno, V.; Chantant, M.; Gargiulo, L.; Gherman, T.; Hatchressian, J.-C.; Houry, M.; Le, R.; Mouyon, D.

2013-01-01

Highlights: ► Description of leaks issue. ► Selection of leak localization concepts. ► Qualification of leak localization concepts. -- Abstract: Fusion machine operation requires high-vacuum conditions and does not tolerate water or gas leak in the vacuum vessels, even if they are micrometric. Tore Supra, as a fully actively cooled tokamak, has got a large leak management experience; 34 water leaks occurred since the beginning of its operation in 1988. To handle this issue, after preliminary machine protection phases, the current process for leak localization is based on water or helium pressurization network by network. It generally allows the identification of a set of components where the leakage element is located. However, the unique background of CEA-IRFM laboratory points needs of accuracy and promptness out in the leak localization process. Moreover, in-vessel interventions have to be performed trying to minimize time and risks for the persons. They are linked to access conditions, radioactivity, tracer gas high pressure and vessel conditioning. Remote operation will be one of the ways to improve these points on future fusion machines. In this case, leak sensors would have to be light weight devices in order to be integrated on a carrier or to be located outside with a sniffing process set up. A leak localization program is on-going at CEA-IRFM Laboratory with the first goal of identifying and characterizing relevant concepts to localize helium or water leaks on ITER. In the same time, CEA has developed robotic carrier for effective in-vessel intervention in a hostile environment. Three major tests campaigns with the goal to identify leak sensors have been achieved on several CEA test-beds since 2010. Very promising results have been obtained: relevant scenario of leak localization performed, concepts tested in a high volume test-bed called TITAN, and, in several conditions of pressure and temperature (ultrahigh vacuum to atmospheric pressure and 20�

Remote leak localization approach for fusion machines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Durocher, Au., E-mail: aurelien.durocher@cea.fr [CEA-IRFM, F-13108 Saint Paul-Lez-Durance (France); Bruno, V.; Chantant, M.; Gargiulo, L. [CEA-IRFM, F-13108 Saint Paul-Lez-Durance (France); Gherman, T. [Floralis UJF Filiale, F-38610 Gières (France); Hatchressian, J.-C.; Houry, M.; Le, R.; Mouyon, D. [CEA-IRFM, F-13108 Saint Paul-Lez-Durance (France)

2013-10-15

Highlights: ► Description of leaks issue. ► Selection of leak localization concepts. ► Qualification of leak localization concepts. -- Abstract: Fusion machine operation requires high-vacuum conditions and does not tolerate water or gas leak in the vacuum vessels, even if they are micrometric. Tore Supra, as a fully actively cooled tokamak, has got a large leak management experience; 34 water leaks occurred since the beginning of its operation in 1988. To handle this issue, after preliminary machine protection phases, the current process for leak localization is based on water or helium pressurization network by network. It generally allows the identification of a set of components where the leakage element is located. However, the unique background of CEA-IRFM laboratory points needs of accuracy and promptness out in the leak localization process. Moreover, in-vessel interventions have to be performed trying to minimize time and risks for the persons. They are linked to access conditions, radioactivity, tracer gas high pressure and vessel conditioning. Remote operation will be one of the ways to improve these points on future fusion machines. In this case, leak sensors would have to be light weight devices in order to be integrated on a carrier or to be located outside with a sniffing process set up. A leak localization program is on-going at CEA-IRFM Laboratory with the first goal of identifying and characterizing relevant concepts to localize helium or water leaks on ITER. In the same time, CEA has developed robotic carrier for effective in-vessel intervention in a hostile environment. Three major tests campaigns with the goal to identify leak sensors have been achieved on several CEA test-beds since 2010. Very promising results have been obtained: relevant scenario of leak localization performed, concepts tested in a high volume test-bed called TITAN, and, in several conditions of pressure and temperature (ultrahigh vacuum to atmospheric pressure and 20�

Development of active acoustic method for water leak detection of LMFBR steam generators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumagai, Hiromichi; Yoshida, Kazuo; Kinoshita, Izumi

2001-01-01

In order to prevent the expansion of tube damage and to maintain structural integrity in the steam generators (SGs) of fast breeder reactors (FBRs), it is necessary to detect precisely and immediately the leakage of water from heat transfer tubes. Therefore, an active acoustic method, which detects the sound attenuation due to bubbles generated in the sodium-water reactions, is being developed. In this study, in order to evaluate the detection sensitivity of the active method, the signal processing methods for emitter and receiver and the detection method for leakage are investigated experimentally. In-water experiments performed by using an SG full-sector model that simulates the actual SGs. As an experimental result, the received sound attenuation for 10s was more than 10dB from air bubble injection when injected bubble of 10 l/s (equivalence water leak rate about 10 g/s.) The attenuation of sound are least affected by bubble injection position of heat transfer tubes bunch department. It is clarified that the background noise hardly influenced water leak detection performance as a result of having examined influence of background noise. (author)

Ground-Based Global Positioning System (GPS) Meteorology Integrated Precipitable Water Vapor (IPW)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Ground-Based Global Positioning System (GPS) Meteorology Integrated Precipitable Water Vapor (IPW) data set measures atmospheric water vapor using ground-based...

Method of judging leak sources in a reactor container

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maeda, Katsuji.

1984-01-01

Purpose: To enable exact judgement for leak sources upon leak accident in a reactor container of BWR type power plants as to whether the sources are present in the steam system or coolant system. Method: If leak is resulted from the main steam system, the hydrogen density in the reactor container is about 170 times as high as the same amount of leak from the reactor water. Accordingly, it can be judged whether the leak source is present in the steam system or reactor water system based on the change in the indication of hydrogen densitometer within the reactor container, and the indication from the drain amount from the sump in the container or the indication of a drain flow meter in the container dehumidifier. Further, I-131, Na-24 and the like as the radioactive nucleides in sump water of the container are measured to determine the density ratio R = (I-131)/(Na-24), and it is judged that the leak is resulted in nuclear water if the density ratio R is equal to that of reactor water and that the leak is resulted from the main steam or like other steam system if the density ratio R is higher than by about 100 times than that of reactor water. (Horiuchi, T.)

Acoustic leak detection of LMFBR steam generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumagai, Hiromichi; Yoshida, Kazuo

1993-01-01

The development of a water leak detector with short response time for LMFBR steam generators is required to prevent the failure propagation caused by the sodium-water reaction and to maintain structural safety in steam generators. The development of an acoustic leak detector assuring short response time has attracted. The purpose of this paper is to confirm the basic detection feasibility of the active acoustic leak detector, and to investigate the leak detection method by erasing the background noise by spectrum analysis of the passive acoustic leak detector. From a comparison of the leak detection sensitivity of the active and the passive method, the active method is not influenced remarkably by the background noise, and it has possibility to detect microleakage with short response time. We anticipate a practical application of the active method in the future. (author)

Modeling and measurement of boiling point elevation during water vaporization from aqueous urea for SCR applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dan, Ho Jin; Lee, Joon Sik

2016-01-01

Understanding of water vaporization is the first step to anticipate the conversion process of urea into ammonia in the exhaust stream. As aqueous urea is a mixture and the urea in the mixture acts as a non-volatile solute, its colligative properties should be considered during water vaporization. The elevation of boiling point for urea water solution is measured with respect to urea mole fraction. With the boiling-point elevation relation, a model for water vaporization is proposed underlining the correction of the heat of vaporization of water in the urea water mixture due to the enthalpy of urea dissolution in water. The model is verified by the experiments of water vaporization as well. Finally, the water vaporization model is applied to the water vaporization of aqueous urea droplets. It is shown that urea decomposition can begin before water evaporation finishes due to the boiling-point elevation

Modeling and measurement of boiling point elevation during water vaporization from aqueous urea for SCR applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dan, Ho Jin; Lee, Joon Sik [Seoul National University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2016-03-15

Understanding of water vaporization is the first step to anticipate the conversion process of urea into ammonia in the exhaust stream. As aqueous urea is a mixture and the urea in the mixture acts as a non-volatile solute, its colligative properties should be considered during water vaporization. The elevation of boiling point for urea water solution is measured with respect to urea mole fraction. With the boiling-point elevation relation, a model for water vaporization is proposed underlining the correction of the heat of vaporization of water in the urea water mixture due to the enthalpy of urea dissolution in water. The model is verified by the experiments of water vaporization as well. Finally, the water vaporization model is applied to the water vaporization of aqueous urea droplets. It is shown that urea decomposition can begin before water evaporation finishes due to the boiling-point elevation.

Acoustic detection for small-leak sodium-water reaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nei, Hiromichi; Ohshima, Iwao; Ujihara, Kozaburo; Hori, Masao

1977-01-01

Characteristics of acoustic signal produced by sodium-water reaction due to steam injection and by Ar gas injection into sodium were experimentally investigated. Acoustic signal was measured by using Kistler 808A and 815A5 accelerometers. Root mean square (RMS) measurements and frequency analysis of the signal were conducted. The RMS measurements could detect a small water leakage into sodium, as small as 0.07g/sec, in the present loop. The peaks in a frequency spectrum were caused by the natural vibration of a rod on which the acoustic transducer was mounted. The RMS was approximately proportional to the one-third power of the steam leak rate and increased to some extent with the ambient sodium temperature. RMS values, both for sodium-water reaction and Ar gas injection, were about the same order of magnitude, when the data were plotted against the volumetric flow rates of steam and Argas. (auth.)

The Intrinsic Variability in the Water Vapor Saturation Ratio due to Turbulence

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, J. C.; Cantrell, W. H.; Chandrakar, K. K.; Kostinski, A. B.; Niedermeier, D.; Shaw, R. A.

2017-12-01

In the atmosphere, the concentration of water vapor plays an important role in Earth's weather and climate. The mean concentration of water vapor is key to its efficiency as a greenhouse gas; the fluctuations about the mean are important for heat fluxes near the surface of earth. In boundary layer clouds, fluctuations in the water vapor concentration are linked to turbulence. Conditions representative of boundary layer clouds are simulated in Michigan Tech's multiphase, turbulent reaction chamber, the ∏ chamber, where the boundary conditions are controlled and repeatable. Measurements for temperature and water vapor concentration were recorded under forced Rayleigh-Bénard convection. As expected, the distributions for temperature and water vapor concentration broaden as the turbulence becomes more vigorous. From these two measurements the saturation ratio can be calculated. The fluctuations in the water vapor concentration are more important to the variability in the saturation ratio than fluctuations in temperature. In a cloud, these fluctuations in the saturation ratio can result in some cloud droplets experiencing much higher supersaturations. Those "lucky" droplets grow by condensation at a faster rate than other cloud droplets. The difference in the droplet growth rate could contribute to a broadened droplet distribution, which leads to the onset of collision-coalescence. With more intense turbulence these effect will become more pronounced as the fluctuations about the mean saturation ratio become more pronounced.

An algorithm for leak point detection of underground pipelines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Young Sup; Yoon, Dong Jin

2004-01-01

Leak noise is a good source to identify the exact location of a leak point of underground water pipelines. Water leak generates broadband noise from a leak location and can be propagated to both directions of water pipes. However, the necessity of long-range detection of this leak location makes to identify low-frequency acoustic waves rather than high frequency ones. Acoustic wave propagation coupled with surrounding boundaries including cast iron pipes is theoretically analyzed and the wave velocity was confirmed with experiment. The leak locations were identified both by the acoustic emission (AE) method and the cross-correlation method. In a short-range distance, both the AE method and cross-correlation method are effective to detect leak position. However, the detection for a long-range distance required a lower frequency range accelerometers only because higher frequency waves were attenuated very quickly with the increase of propagation paths. Two algorithms for the cross-correlation function were suggested, and a long-range detection has been achieved at real underground water pipelines longer than 300 m.

Linkages Among Water Vapor Flows, Food Production, and Terrestrial Ecosystem Services

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Johan Rockström

1999-12-01

Full Text Available Global freshwater assessments have not addressed the linkages among water vapor flows, agricultural food production, and terrestrial ecosystem services. We perform the first bottom-up estimate of continental water vapor flows, subdivided into the major terrestrial biomes, and arrive at a total continental water vapor flow of 70,000 km3/yr (ranging from 56,000 to 84,000 km3/yr. Of this flow, 90% is attributed to forests, including woodlands (40,000 km3/yr, wetlands (1400 km3/yr, grasslands (15,100 km3/yr, and croplands (6800 km3/yr. These terrestrial biomes sustain society with essential welfare-supporting ecosystem services, including food production. By analyzing the freshwater requirements of an increasing demand for food in the year 2025, we discover a critical trade-off between flows of water vapor for food production and for other welfare-supporting ecosystem services. To reduce the risk of unintentional welfare losses, this trade-off must become embedded in intentional ecohydrological landscape management.

Optimization of GPS water vapor tomography technique with radiosonde and COSMIC historical data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Ye

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The near-real-time high spatial resolution of atmospheric water vapor distribution is vital in numerical weather prediction. GPS tomography technique has been proved effectively for three-dimensional water vapor reconstruction. In this study, the tomography processing is optimized in a few aspects by the aid of radiosonde and COSMIC historical data. Firstly, regional tropospheric zenith hydrostatic delay (ZHD models are improved and thus the zenith wet delay (ZWD can be obtained at a higher accuracy. Secondly, the regional conversion factor of converting the ZWD to the precipitable water vapor (PWV is refined. Next, we develop a new method for dividing the tomography grid with an uneven voxel height and a varied water vapor layer top. Finally, we propose a Gaussian exponential vertical interpolation method which can better reflect the vertical variation characteristic of water vapor. GPS datasets collected in Hong Kong in February 2014 are employed to evaluate the optimized tomographic method by contrast with the conventional method. The radiosonde-derived and COSMIC-derived water vapor densities are utilized as references to evaluate the tomographic results. Using radiosonde products as references, the test results obtained from our optimized method indicate that the water vapor density accuracy is improved by 15 and 12 % compared to those derived from the conventional method below the height of 3.75 km and above the height of 3.75 km, respectively. Using the COSMIC products as references, the results indicate that the water vapor density accuracy is improved by 15 and 19 % below 3.75 km and above 3.75 km, respectively.

An analysis of main processes at small water-into-sodium leaks in the BN-350 and BN-600 NPP steam generators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Poplavsky, V.M.

1990-01-01

The paper presents the main characteristics of emergency processes at small water-into-sodium leaks that took place during the BN-350 and BN-600 NPP steam generators operation. Leak characteristics are presented, the relationship between such parameters as leak rate and duration, its location in a tube bundle, mass of water ingress into sodium, and the character and size of a failure in the interaction zone is analyzed. (author). 5 refs, 3 figs, 2 tabs

FUZZY INFERENCE BASED LEAK ESTIMATION IN WATER PIPELINES SYSTEM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. Lavanya

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Pipeline networks are the most widely used mode for transporting fluids and gases around the world. Leakage in this pipeline causes harmful effects when the flowing fluid/gas is hazardous. Hence the detection of leak becomes essential to avoid/minimize such undesirable effects. This paper presents the leak detection by spectral analysis methods in a laboratory pipeline system. Transient in the pressure signal in the pipeline is created by opening and closing the exit valve. These pressure variations are captured and power spectrum is obtained by using Fast Fourier Transform (FFT method and Filter Diagonalization Method (FDM. The leaks at various positions are simulated and located using these methods and the results are compared. In order to determine the quantity of leak a 2 × 1 fuzzy inference system is created using the upstream and downstream pressure as input and the leak size as the output. Thus a complete leak detection, localization and quantification are done by using only the pressure variations in the pipeline.

Modeling of Hydrodynamic Processes at a Large Leak of Water into Sodium in the Fast Reactor Coolant Circuit

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sergey Perevoznikov

2016-10-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we describe a physicomathematical model of the processes that occur in a sodium circuit with a variable flow cross-section in the case of a water leak into sodium. The application area for this technique includes the possibility of analyzing consequences of this leak as applied to sodium–water steam generators in fast neutron reactors. Hydrodynamic processes that occur in sodium circuits in the event of a water leak are described within the framework of a one-dimensional thermally nonequilibrium three-component gas–liquid flow model (sodium–hydrogen–sodium hydroxide. Consideration is given to the results of a mathematical modeling of experiments involving steam injection into the sodium loop of a circulation test facility. That was done by means of the computer code in which the proposed model had been implemented.

Water Vapor Permeation of Metal Oxide/Polymer Coated Plastic Films

Science.gov (United States)

Numata, Yukihiro; Oya, Toshiyuki; Kuwahara, Mitsuru; Ito, Katsuya

Barrier performance to water vapor permeation of ceramic coated layers deposited on flexible polymer films is of great interest to food packaging, medical device packaging and flat panel display industries. In this study, a new type film in which a ceramic layer is deposited on a polymer coated film was proposed for lower water vapor permeation. It is important how to control interfacial properties between each layer and film for good barrier performance. Several kinds of polymer coated materials were prepared for changing surface free energy of the films before and after depositing the ceramic layer. The ceramic layer, which is composed of mixed material of SiO2 and Al2O3, was adopted under the same conditions. The following results were obtained; 1) Water vapor permeation is not related to the surface energy of polymer coated films, 2) After depositing the ceramic layer, however, a strong correlation is observed between the water vapor permeation and surface free energy. 3) The phenomenon is considered that the polarity of the polymer layers plays a key role in changing the structure of ceramic coated layers.

The Oxidation Rate of SiC in High Pressure Water Vapor Environments

Science.gov (United States)

Opila, Elizabeth J.; Robinson, R. Craig

1999-01-01

CVD SiC and sintered alpha-SiC samples were exposed at 1316 C in a high pressure burner rig at total pressures of 5.7, 15, and 25 atm for times up to 100h. Variations in sample emittance for the first nine hours of exposure were used to determine the thickness of the silica scale as a function of time. After accounting for volatility of silica in water vapor, the parabolic rate constants for Sic in water vapor pressures of 0.7, 1.8 and 3.1 atm were determined. The dependence of the parabolic rate constant on the water vapor pressure yielded a power law exponent of one. Silica growth on Sic is therefore limited by transport of molecular water vapor through the silica scale.

Airborne differential absorption lidar system for water vapor investigations

Science.gov (United States)

Browell, E. V.; Carter, A. F.; Wilkerson, T. D.

1981-01-01

Range-resolved water vapor measurements using the differential-absorption lidar (DIAL) technique is described in detail. The system uses two independently tunable optically pumped lasers operating in the near infrared with laser pulses of less than 100 microseconds separation, to minimize concentration errors caused by atmospheric scattering. Water vapor concentration profiles are calculated for each measurement by a minicomputer, in real time. The work is needed in the study of atmospheric motion and thermodynamics as well as in forestry and agriculture problems.

Application of an automatic cloud tracking technique to Meteosat water vapor and infrared observations

Science.gov (United States)

Endlich, R. M.; Wolf, D. E.

1980-01-01

The automatic cloud tracking system was applied to METEOSAT 6.7 micrometers water vapor measurements to learn whether the system can track the motions of water vapor patterns. Data for the midlatitudes, subtropics, and tropics were selected from a sequence of METEOSAT pictures for 25 April 1978. Trackable features in the water vapor patterns were identified using a clustering technique and the features were tracked by two different methods. In flat (low contrast) water vapor fields, the automatic motion computations were not reliable, but in areas where the water vapor fields contained small scale structure (such as in the vicinity of active weather phenomena) the computations were successful. Cloud motions were computed using METEOSAT infrared observations (including tropical convective systems and midlatitude jet stream cirrus).

Temperature distribution in the reactive jet of water vapor and liquid sodium - contribution to wastage modelling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roger, F.; Park, K.Y.; Carreau, J.L.; Gbahoue, L.; Hobbes, P.

1984-08-01

The possibility of water vapor leaks across the wall of one or more of the heat exchanger tubes in the steam generator constitutes one of the important problems of safety of the Fast Breeder Reactors cooled by sodium. The jet thus formed can, in fact, destroy the neighbouring tubes. The hydrodynamic, chemical and thermal factors play an important role in this phenomenon and only the last-mentionned will be studied here. The use of the integral method of analysis, complemented by an experimental study, shows that the temperature profiles are Gaussian; if the maximum temperature is less than that of the boiling point of sodium, i.e. 1155 K, and for steam flow rates less than 0,5g/s, the temperature profiles can be represented by the error function, and an approximate equation gives the difference in temperature between the jet axis and the radical far-field

Tritiated water vapor in the surface air at Tokyo

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Inoue, Hisayuki; Katsuragi, Yukio; Shigehara, Koji

1984-01-01

Tritium concentration in water vapor in the air near the surface and in the precipitation at Tokyo was measured during the period from 9 August to 20 November in 1974. From August to the middle of October, tritium mixing ratios in the surface air had relatively higher values except those in air masses which were associated with a typhoon. The mixing ratios of tritium in the air decreased abruptly at the middle of October, which indicates the decrease of tritium influx from aloft. These data exhibit the salient feature that variations in tritium concentration in TR are linear to the reciprocal of the content of water vapor during each period. Tritium concentrations in vapor and rain water collected simultaneously show nearly equal values. One of the reasons for the good correlation of tritium concentration between falling drops and ambient air is considered to be the result of the rapid isotopic exchange. (author)

Enhancement of efficacy of process water monitors in detecting heavy water leak in steam generator blow down lines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mitra, S.R.; Kohale, S.D.; Parida, B.K.; Gathe, G.D.; Pati, C.K.; Mudgal, B.K.; Niraj; Pawar, S.K.

2006-01-01

The Steam Generator (SG) serves as an interface between primary and secondary cycle in Pressurized Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR). Failure of steam generator tubes result in leaking of active heavy water in the secondary closed loop. In Tarapur Atomic Power Station-3 and 4 (TAPS- 3 and 4), Scintillator detectors are provided to detect on line heavy water leakages in SG and moderator heat exchangers by monitoring Nitrogen-16 ( 16 N) and Oxygen-19 ( 19 O) activities. Efficacy of detection of these activities at designed detector position on SG blow down line in presence of background radiation field is analysed theoretically. The count rate of 19 O and 16 N estimated at the detector position inside Reactor Building (RB) shows that detectors only respond to very high leak rates due to presence of high ambient radiation level even though sensitivity is appreciably good. For detector position in RB in the accessible areas and out side the RE containment, the travel time for the blow down feed water becomes moderately and very long respectively resulting in poor sensitivity. However the results show that wherever background levels is low, the efficacy of leak detection becomes considerably better than the results obtained when detector is placed inside RB. The study was validated during the reactor operation by recording the detector count rates due to prevalent ambient radiation level near to the detectors. Subsequently the detectors were relocated in an area inside RB where relocation was feasible, travel time of the blow down feed water was moderate and the area had an relatively low ambient radiation level. This paper discusses the methodology adopted during the study and results obtained during theoretical estimation and practical validation. (author)

A conceptual methodology to design a decision support system to leak detection programs in water networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Di Federico, V.; Bottarelli, M.; Di Federico, I.

2005-01-01

The paper outlines a conceptual methodology to develop a decision support system to assist technicians managing water networks in selecting the appropriate leak detection method(s). First, the necessary knowledge about the network is recapitulated: location and characteristics of its physical components, but also water demand, breaks in pipes, and water quality data. Second, the water balance in a typical Italian Agency is discussed, suggesting method and procedures to evacuate and/or estimate each term in the mass balance equation. Then the available methods for leak detection are described in detail, from those useful in the pre-localization phase to those commonly adopted to pinpoint pipe failures and allow a rapid repair. Criteria to estimate costs associated with each of these methods are provided. Finally, the proposed structure of the DSS is described [it

Mars atmospheric water vapor abundance: 1996-1997

Science.gov (United States)

Sprague, A. L.; Hunten, D. M.; Doose, L. R.; Hill, R. E.

2003-05-01

Measurements of martian atmospheric water vapor made throughout Ls = 18.0°-146.4° (October 3, 1996-July 12, 1997) show changes in Mars humidity on hourly, daily, and seasonal time scales. Because our observing program during the 1996-1997 Mars apparition did not include concomitant measurement of nearby CO 2 bands, high northern latitude data were corrected for dust and aerosol extinction assuming an optical depth of 0.8, consistent with ground-based and HST imaging of northern dust storms. All other measurements with airmass greater than 3.5 were corrected using a total optical depth of 0.5. Three dominant results from this data set are as follows: (1) pre- and post-opposition measurements made with the slit crossing many hours of local time on Mars' Earth-facing disk show a distinct diurnal pattern with highest abundances around and slightly after noon with low abundances in the late afternoon, (2) measurements of water vapor over the Mars Pathfinder landing site (Carl Sagan Memorial Station) on July 12, 1997, found 21 ppt μm in the spatial sector centered near 19° latitude, 36° longitude while abundances around the site varied from as low as 6 to as high as 28 ppt μm, and (3) water vapor abundance is patchy on hourly and daily time scales but follows the usual seasonal trends.

Space-Time Variations in Water Vapor as Observed by the UARS Microwave Limb Sounder

Science.gov (United States)

Elson, Lee S.; Read, William G.; Waters, Joe W.; Mote, Philip W.; Kinnersley, Jonathan S.; Harwood, Robert S.

1996-01-01

Water vapor in the upper troposphere has a significant impact on the climate system. Difficulties in making accurate global measurements have led to uncertainty in understanding water vapor's coupling to the hydrologic cycle in the lower troposphere and its role in radiative energy balance. The Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) on the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite is able to retrieve water vapor concentration in the upper troposphere with good sensitivity and nearly global coverage. An analysis of these preliminary retrievals based on 3 years of observations shows the water vapor distribution to be similar to that measured by other techniques and to model results. The primary MLS water vapor measurements were made in the stratosphere, where this species acts as a conserved tracer under certain conditions. As is the case for the upper troposphere, most of the stratospheric discussion focuses on the time evolution of the zonal mean and zonally varying water vapor. Stratospheric results span a 19-month period and tropospheric results a 36-month period, both beginning in October of 1991. Comparisons with stratospheric model calculations show general agreement, with some differences in the amplitude and phase of long-term variations. At certain times and places, the evolution of water vapor distributions in the lower stratosphere suggests the presence of meridional transport.

The measurement of water vapor permeability of glove materials using dilute tritiated water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doughty, D.H.

1982-01-01

As fusion technology progresses, there will be an increasing need to handle tritium and tritiated compounds. Protective clothing, especially drybox gloves, must be an effective barrier to minimize worker exposure. The water vapor permeability of glove materials and finished glove constructions is a crucial property of drybox gloves and is not sufficiently well characterized. We have built an apparatus that measures water vapor permeability of elastomers using dilute tritiated water. The technique is more sensitive than other methods currently available and allows us to make measurements on materials and under conditions previously inaccessible. In particular, we present results on laminated drybox gloves for which data is not currently available. (orig.)

Quality and Control of Water Vapor Winds

Science.gov (United States)

Jedlovec, Gary J.; Atkinson, Robert J.

1996-01-01

Water vapor imagery from the geostationary satellites such as GOES, Meteosat, and GMS provides synoptic views of dynamical events on a continual basis. Because the imagery represents a non-linear combination of mid- and upper-tropospheric thermodynamic parameters (three-dimensional variations in temperature and humidity), video loops of these image products provide enlightening views of regional flow fields, the movement of tropical and extratropical storm systems, the transfer of moisture between hemispheres and from the tropics to the mid- latitudes, and the dominance of high pressure systems over particular regions of the Earth. Despite the obvious larger scale features, the water vapor imagery contains significant image variability down to the single 8 km GOES pixel. These features can be quantitatively identified and tracked from one time to the next using various image processing techniques. Merrill et al. (1991), Hayden and Schmidt (1992), and Laurent (1993) have documented the operational procedures and capabilities of NOAA and ESOC to produce cloud and water vapor winds. These techniques employ standard correlation and template matching approaches to wind tracking and use qualitative and quantitative procedures to eliminate bad wind vectors from the wind data set. Techniques have also been developed to improve the quality of the operational winds though robust editing procedures (Hayden and Veldon 1991). These quality and control approaches have limitations, are often subjective, and constrain wind variability to be consistent with model derived wind fields. This paper describes research focused on the refinement of objective quality and control parameters for water vapor wind vector data sets. New quality and control measures are developed and employed to provide a more robust wind data set for climate analysis, data assimilation studies, as well as operational weather forecasting. The parameters are applicable to cloud-tracked winds as well with minor

40 CFR 63.11089 - What requirements must I meet for equipment leak inspections if my facility is a bulk gasoline...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... equipment leak inspections if my facility is a bulk gasoline terminal, bulk plant, pipeline breakout station... gasoline service at the facility. (c) Each detection of a liquid or vapor leak shall be recorded in the log... shall be completed within 15 calendar days after detection of each leak, except as provided in paragraph...

Probabilistic pipe fracture evaluations for leak-rate-detection applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rahman, S.; Ghadiali, N.; Paul, D.; Wilkowski, G.

1995-04-01

Regulatory Guide 1.45, open-quotes Reactor Coolant Pressure Boundary Leakage Detection Systems,close quotes was published by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in May 1973, and provides guidance on leak detection methods and system requirements for Light Water Reactors. Additionally, leak detection limits are specified in plant Technical Specifications and are different for Boiling Water Reactors (BWRs) and Pressurized Water Reactors (PWRs). These leak detection limits are also used in leak-before-break evaluations performed in accordance with Draft Standard Review Plan, Section 3.6.3, open-quotes Leak Before Break Evaluation Proceduresclose quotes where a margin of 10 on the leak detection limit is used in determining the crack size considered in subsequent fracture analyses. This study was requested by the NRC to: (1) evaluate the conditional failure probability for BWR and PWR piping for pipes that were leaking at the allowable leak detection limit, and (2) evaluate the margin of 10 to determine if it was unnecessarily large. A probabilistic approach was undertaken to conduct fracture evaluations of circumferentially cracked pipes for leak-rate-detection applications. Sixteen nuclear piping systems in BWR and PWR plants were analyzed to evaluate conditional failure probability and effects of crack-morphology variability on the current margins used in leak rate detection for leak-before-break

Rust Contamination from Water Leaks in the Cosmic Dust Lab and Lunar and Meteorite Thin Sections Labs at Johnson Space Center

Science.gov (United States)

Kent, J. J.; Berger, E. L.; Fries, M. D.; Bastien, R.; McCubbin, F. M.; Pace, L.; Righter, K.; Sutter, B.; Zeigler, R. A.; Zolensky, M.

2017-01-01

On the early morning of September 15th, 2016, on the first floor of Building 31 at NASA-Johnson Space Center, the hose from a water chiller ruptured and began spraying water onto the floor. The water had been circulating though old metal pipes, and the leaked water contained rust-colored particulates. The water flooded much of the western wing of the building's ground floor before the leak was stopped, and it left behind a residue of rust across the floor, most notably in the Apollo and Meteorite Thin Section Labs and Sample Preparation Lab. No samples were damaged in the event, and the affected facilities are in the process of remediation. At the beginning of 2016, a separate leak occurred in the Cosmic Dust Lab, located in the same building. In that lab, a water leak occurred at the bottom of the sink used to clean the lab's tools and containers with ultra-pure water. Over years of use, the ultra-pure water eroded the metal sink piping and leaked water onto the inside of the lab's flow bench. This water also left behind a film of rusty material. The material was cleaned up and the metal piping was replaced with PVC pipe and sealed with Teflon plumber's tape. Samples of the rust detritus were collected from both incidents. These samples were imaged and analyzed to determine their chemical and mineralogical compositions. The purpose of these analyses is to document the nature of the detritus for future reference in the unlikely event that these materials occur as contaminants in the Cosmic Dust samples or Apollo or Meteorite thin sections.

Water vapor retrieval from near-IR measurements of polarized scanning atmospheric corrector

Science.gov (United States)

Qie, Lili; Ning, Yuanming; Zhang, Yang; Chen, Xingfeng; Ma, Yan; Li, Zhengqiang; Cui, Wenyu

2018-02-01

Water vapor and aerosol are two key atmospheric factors effecting the remote sensing image quality. As water vapor is responsible for most of the solar radiation absorption occurring in the cloudless atmosphere, accurate measurement of water content is important to not only atmospheric correction of remote sensing images, but also many other applications such as the study of energy balance and global climate change, land surface temperature retrieval in thermal remote sensing. A multi-spectral, single-angular, polarized radiometer called Polarized Scanning Atmospheric Corrector (PSAC) were developed in China, which are designed to mount on the same satellite platform with the principle payload and provide essential parameters for principle payload image atmospheric correction. PSAC detect water vapor content via measuring atmosphere reflectance at water vapor absorbing channels (i.e. 0.91 μm) and nearby atmospheric window channel (i.e. 0.865μm). A near-IR channel ratio method was implemented to retrieve column water vapor (CWV) amount from PSAC measurements. Field experiments were performed at Yantai, in Shandong province of China, PSAC aircraft observations were acquired. The comparison between PSAC retrievals and ground-based Sun-sky radiometer measurements of CWV during the experimental flights illustrates that this method retrieves CWV with relative deviations ranging from 4% 13%. This method retrieve CWV more accurate over land than over ocean, as the water reflectance is low.

Concentration device for leak liquids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matsumoto, Kaname; Matsuda, Ken; Takabori, Ken-ichi.

1987-01-01

Purpose: To improve radioactivity recovery and volume-reducing rates, as well as enable safety and easy handling for leak liquids resulted from reptures in coolant circuits. Constitution: The device of the invention comprises an evaporation vessel filled with leak fluids to a predetermined level, an airtight vessel disposed in the evaporation vessel containing hydrophilic porous material partially immersed in the leak fluids and means for heating the hydrophilic material. In this device, leak liquids are absorbed in the hydrophilic porous material, a great amount of water is evaporated from the outer surface of the hydrophilic porous material exposed above the liquid surface, and salts and radioactive material are remained on the inside and the outer surface of the porous material. The evaporated water content is condensated and recovered in a cooler and the remaining salts, etc. are discarded together with the porous material. The volume-reducing property can be improved by constituting the porous material with burnable material. (Takahashi, M.)

Reliability of leak detection systems in light water reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kupperman, D.S.

1987-01-01

US Nuclear Regulatory Commission Guide 1.45 recommends the use of at least three different detection methods in reactors to detect leakage. Monitoring of both sump-flow and airborne particulate radioactivity is recommended. A third method can involve either monitoring of condensate flow rate from air coolers or monitoring of airborne gaseous radioactivity. Although the methods currently used for leak detection reflect the state of the art, other techniques may be developed and used. Since the recommendations of Regulatory Guide 1.45 are not mandatory, the technical specifications for 74 operating plants have been reviewed to determine the types of leak detection methods employed. In addition, Licensee Event Report (LER) Compilations from June 1985 to June 1986 have been reviewed to help establish actual capabilities for detecting leaks and determining their source. Work at Argonne National Laboratory has demonstrated that improvements in leak detection, location, and sizing are possible with advanced acoustic leak detection technology

The Annual Cycle of Water Vapor on Mars as Observed by the Thermal Emission Spectrometer

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Michael D.; Vondrak, Richard R. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Spectra taken by the Mars Global Surveyor Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) have been used to monitor the latitude, longitude, and seasonal dependence of water vapor for over one full Martian year (March 1999-March 2001). A maximum in water vapor abundance is observed at high latitudes during mid-summer in both hemispheres, reaching a maximum value of approximately 100 pr-micrometer in the north and approximately 50 pr-micrometer in the south. Low water vapor abundance (water vapor. The latitudinal and seasonal dependence of the decay of the northern summer water vapor maximum implies cross-equatorial transport of water to the southern hemisphere, while there is little or no corresponding transport during the decay of the southern hemisphere summer maximum. The latitude-longitude dependence of annually-averaged water vapor (corrected for topography) has a significant positive correlation with albedo and significant negative correlations with thermal inertia and surface pressure. Comparison of TES results with those retrieved from the Viking Orbiter Mars Atmospheric Water Detectors (MAWD) experiments shows some similar features, but also many significant differences. The southern hemisphere maximum observed by TES was not observed by MAWD and the large latitudinal gradient in annually-averaged water vapor observed by MAWD does not appear in the TES results.

The self-similar turbulent flow of low-pressure water vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Konyukhov, V. K.; Stepanov, E. V.; Borisov, S. K.

2018-05-01

We studied turbulent flows of water vapor in a pipe connecting two closed vessels of equal volume. The vessel that served as a source of water vapor was filled with adsorbent in the form of corundum ceramic balls. These ceramic balls were used to obtain specific conditions to lower the vapor pressure in the source vessel that had been observed earlier. A second vessel, which served as a receiver, was empty of either air or vapor before each vapor sampling. The rate of the pressure increase in the receiver vessel was measured in a series of six samplings performed with high precision. The pressure reduction rate in the source vessel was found to be three times lower than the pressure growth rate in the receiver vessel. We found that the pressure growth rates in all of the adjacent pairs of samples could be arranged in a combination that appeared to be identical for all pairs, and this revealed the existence of a rather interesting and peculiar self-similarity law for the sampling processes under consideration.

Advancements in oxygen generation and humidity control by water vapor electrolysis

Science.gov (United States)

Heppner, D. B.; Sudar, M.; Lee, M. C.

1988-01-01

Regenerative processes for the revitalization of manned spacecraft atmospheres or other manned habitats are essential for realization of long-term space missions. These processes include oxygen generation through water electrolysis. One promising technique of water electrolysis is the direct conversion of the water vapor contained in the cabin air to oxygen. This technique is the subject of the present program on water vapor electrolysis development. The objectives were to incorporate technology improvements developed under other similar electrochemical programs and add new ones; design and fabricate a mutli-cell electrochemical module and a testing facility; and demonstrate through testing the improvements. Each aspect of the water vapor electrolysis cell was reviewed. The materials of construction and sizing of each element were investigated analytically and sometime experimentally. In addition, operational considerations such as temperature control in response to inlet conditions were investigated. Three specific quantitative goals were established.

DMSP SSMT/2 - Atmospheric Water Vapor Profiler

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The SSM/T-2 sensor is a five channel, total power microwave radiometer with three channels situated symmetrically about the 183.31 GHz water vapor resonance line and...

Delineation and hydrologic effects of a gasoline leak at Stovepipe Wells Hotel, Death Valley National Monument, California

Science.gov (United States)

Buono, A.; Packard, Elaine M.

1982-01-01

Ground water is the only local source of water available to the Stovepipe Wells Hotel facilities of the Death Valley National Monument, California. A leak in a service station storage tank caused the formation of a gasoline layer overlying the water table, creating the potential for contamination of the water supply. The maximum horizontal extent of the gasoline layer was mathematically estimated to be 1,300 feet downgradient from the leaky gasoline tank. Exploratory drilling detected the gasoline layer between 900 and 1,400 feet downgradient and between 50 and 150 feet upgradient from the source. Traces of the soluble components of gasoline were also found in the aquifer 150 feet upgradient, and 250 feet distant from the source perpendicular to the direction of ground-water movement. The gasoline spill is not likely to have an effect on the supply wells located 0.4 mile south of the leak source, which is nearly perpendicular to the direction of ground-water movement and the primary direction of gasoline movement in the area. No effect on phreatophytes 2 miles downgradient from the layer is likely, but the potential effects of gasoline vapors within the unsaturated zone on local xerophytes are not known. (USGS)

Analysis of a water-coolant leak into a very high-temperature vitrification chamber

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Felicione, F. S.

1998-01-01

A coolant-leakage incident occurred during non-radioactive operation of the Plasma Hearth Process waste-vitrification development system at Argonne National Laboratory when a stray electric arc ruptured az water-cooling jacket. Rapid evaporation of the coolant that entered the very high-temperature chamber pressurized the normally sub-atmospheric system above ambient pressure for over 13 minutes. Any positive pressurization, and particularly a lengthy one, is a safety concern since this can cause leakage of contaminants from the system. A model of the thermal phenomena that describe coolant/hot-material interactions was developed to better understand the characteristics of this type of incident. The model is described and results for a variety of hypothetical coolant-leak incidents are presented. It is shown that coolant leak rates above a certain threshold will cause coolant to accumulate in the chamber, and evaporation from this pool can maintain positive pressure in the system long after the leak has been stopped. Application of the model resulted in reasonably good agreement with the duration of the pressure measured during the incident. A closed-form analytic solution is shown to be applicable to the initial leak period in which the peak pressures are generated, and is presented and discussed

Characterization of a Compact Water Vapor Radiometer

Science.gov (United States)

Gill, Ajay; Selina, Rob

2018-01-01

We report on laboratory test results of the Compact Water Vapor Radiometer (CWVR) prototype for the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA), a five-channel design centered around the 22 GHz water vapor line. Fluctuations in perceptible water vapor cause fluctuations in atmospheric brightness emission, which are assumed to be proportional to phase fluctuations of the astronomical signal seen by an antenna. The design is intended to support empirical radiometric phase corrections for each baseline in the array.The dynamic range, channel isolation, and gain stability of the device were characterized. The device has a useful dynamic range of order 18 dB after calibration, and the CWVR channel isolation requirement of test, the diode detectors were operated in the square-law region, and a K-band noise diode was used as the broadband input power source to the CWVR over a period of 64 hours. Results indicate that the fluctuations in output counts are negatively correlated to the CWVR enclosure ambient temperature, with a change of ~ 405 counts per 1° C change in temperature.A correction for the CWVR ambient temperature makes a considerable improvement in stability for τ > 102.6 sec. With temperature corrections, the single channel and channel difference gain stability per channel is test results indicate that the CWVR meets required specifications for dynamic range, channel isolation, and gain stability in order to proceed with testing on a pair of VLA antennas.

Leak detection device for control rod drive and detection method therefor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Imasaki, Yoshio.

1997-01-01

The present invention provides a detection device for leak of cooling water from a sealed axial portion of control rod drives (CRD) disposed in a BWR type reactor and a monitoring method therefor. Namely, the CRD transfers rotation at the sealed axial portion and elevates/lowers a piston to insert/withdraw control rod into/from the reactor core. High pressure water is injected upon occurrence of scram to urge the piston upwardly thereby rapidly inserting the control rods. Leak detection pipelines are laid from the sealed axial portion. A flow glass is connected to the leak detection pipelines. Then, cooling water leaked from the sealed axial portion flows in the leak detection pipelines and flows into the flow glass. The flow rate of cooling water leaked from the sealed axial portion of the CRD can thus be detected by monitoring the flow glass. In addition, a flowmeter is connected to the leak detection pipelines, or the flowmeter and the flow glass are connected, and a flowmeter is connected downstream. Then, the flow rate of the leaked cooling water can be detected automatically. (I.S.)

Field campaign LINEX 96/1 - possibilities of water vapor observation in the free atmosphere

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Steinhagen, H.; Dier, H.; Engelbart, D.; Goersdorf, U.; Lehmann, V.; Leiterer, U.; Neisser, J. [Deutscher Wetterdienst, Lindenberg (Germany). Meteorologisches Observatorium; Bakan, S. [Hamburg Univ. (Germany). Meteorologisches Inst.; Boesenberg, J.; Jansen, F.; Wulfmeyer, V. [Max-Planck-Institut fuer Meteorologie, Hamburg (Germany); Fischer, J. [Freie Univ. Berlin (Germany). Inst. fuer Weltraumwissenschaften; Gendt, G. [GeoForschungsZentrum Potsdam (Germany); Gueldner, J. [Deutscher Wetterdienst, Potsdam (Germany). Meteorologisches Observatorium

1998-12-01

LINEX 96/1 was a field experiment to assess information content, accuracy, and availability for different remote sensing techniques measuring water vapor. An important goal of LINEX 96/1 was the test of a new differential absorption lidar (DIAL) developed by the MPI fuer meteorologie Hamburg. Comparisons of DIAL with rawinsonde and tethersonde measurements showed an excellent accuracy of the DIAL method in the determination of water vapor with high vertical and temporal resolution. The operation of the microwave radiometer WVR-1100 showed a high availability of water vapor and liquid water column content measurements except during rain. Microwave radiometers are reliable systems to measure the precipitable water vapor and liquid water content under unattended operational conditions with high accuracy and temporal resolution. Measurements of the water vapor column content by ground-based GPS receivers proved highly reliable. Comparisons with corresponding values of the microwave radiometer showed a bias less than 0.6 mm and a standard deviation less than 0.9 mm. The main problem of an operational use of this new information is that the evaluated data are not available in real-time because, at present, the data have to be postprocessed in a ground control center. During LINEX 96/1, possibilities for estimation of water vapor column content from sun and star photometer measurements were also demonstrated. The comparison of the precipitable water vapor content measurements of sun and star photometers, microwave radiometer, and rawinsondes RS 80 showed a good agreement. Unfortunately, the use of optical methods like sun and star photometers is restricted by cloudy conditions. 28 refs.

Optimization of band-pass filtering parameters of a Raman lidar detecting atmospheric water vapor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cao, Kai-Fa; Hu, Shun-Xing; Wang, Ying-jian

2012-01-01

It is very important for daytime Raman lidar measurement of water vapor to determine the parameters of a band-pass filter, which are pertinent to the lidar signal to noise ratio (SNR). The simulated annealing (SA) algorithm method has an advantage in finding the extremum of a certain cost function. In this paper, the Raman spectrum of water vapor is simulated and then a first realization of a simulated annealing algorithm in the optimization of a band-pass filter of a Raman lidar system designed to detect daytime water vapor is presented. The simulated results indicate that the narrow band-pass filter has higher SNR than the wide filter does but there would be an increase in the temperature sensitivity of a narrowband Raman water vapor lidar in the upper troposphere. The numerical simulation indicates that the magnitude of the temperature dependent effect can reach 3.5% or more for narrow band-pass Raman water vapor measurements so it is necessary to consider a new water vapor Raman lidar equation that permits the temperature sensitivity of these equations to be confined to a single term. (paper)

Improved waste water vapor compression distillation technology. [for Spacelab

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, K. L.; Nuccio, P. P.; Reveley, W. F.

1977-01-01

The vapor compression distillation process is a method of recovering potable water from crewman urine in a manned spacecraft or space station. A description is presented of the research and development approach to the solution of the various problems encountered with previous vapor compression distillation units. The design solutions considered are incorporated in the preliminary design of a vapor compression distillation subsystem. The new design concepts are available for integration in the next generation of support systems and, particularly, the regenerative life support evaluation intended for project Spacelab.

Development and Validation of Water Vapor Tracers as Diagnostics for the Atmospheric Hydrologic Cycle

Science.gov (United States)

Bosilovich, Michael G.; Schubert, Siegfried D.; Einaudi, Franco (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

Understanding of the local and remote sources of water vapor can be a valuable diagnostic in understanding the regional atmospheric hydrologic cycle. In the present study, we have implemented passive tracers as prognostic variables to follow water vapor evaporated in predetermined regions until the water tracer precipitates. The formulation of the sources and sinks of tracer water is generally proportional to the prognostic water vapor variable. Because all water has been accounted for in tracers, the water vapor variable provides the validation of the tracer water and the formulation of the sources and sinks. The tracers have been implemented in a GEOS General Circulation Model (GCM) simulation consisting of several summer periods to determine the source regions of precipitation for the United States and India. The recycling of water and interannual variability of the sources of water will be examined. Potential uses in GCM sensitivity studies, predictability studies and data assimilation will be discussed.

Water Vapor Tacers as Diagnostics of the Regional Atmospheric Hydrologic Cycle

Science.gov (United States)

Bosilovich, Michael G.; Schubert, Siegfried D.; Einaudi, Franco (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

Understanding of the local and remote sources of water vapor can be a valuable diagnostic in understanding the regional atmospheric hydrologic cycle, especially in North America where moisture transport and local evaporation are important sources of water for precipitation. In the present study, we have implemented passive tracers as prognostic variables to follow water vapor evaporated in predetermined regions until the water tracer precipitates. All evaporative sources of water are accounted for by tracers, and the water vapor variable provides the validation of the tracer water and the formulation of the sources and sinks. The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites General Circulation Model (GEOS GCM) is used to simulate several summer periods to determine the source regions of precipitation for the United States and India. Using this methodology, a detailed analysis of the recycling of water, interannual variability of the sources of water and links to the Great Plains low-level jet and North American monsoon will be presented. Potential uses in GCM sensitivity studies, predictability studies and data assimilation especially regarding the North American monsoon and GEWEX America Prediction Project (GAPP) will be discussed.

Site of water vapor absorption in the desert cockroach, Arenivaga investigata.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Donnell, M J

1977-01-01

The desert cockroach, Arenivaga investigata, can gain weight by absorption of water-vapor from unsaturated atmospheres above 82.5% relative humidity. Blocking the anus or the dorsal surface with wax does not prevent water vapor uptake, but interference with movements of the mouthparts or blocking the mouth with wax-prevents such uptake. Weight gains are associated with the protrusion from the mouth of two bladder-like extensions of the hypopharynx. During absorption these structures are warmer than the surrounding mouthparts, their surface temperature increasing with relative humidity. This suggests that the surfaces of the bladder-like structures function at least as sites for condensation of water vapor, but the precise location of its transfer into the hemolymph has not yet been identified. Images PMID:266217

Processes Controlling Water Vapor in the Winter Arctic Tropopause Region

Science.gov (United States)

Pfister, Leonhard; Selkirk, Henry B.; Jensen, Eric J.; Padolske, James; Sachse, Glen; Avery, Melody; Schoeberl, Mark R.; Mahoney, Michael J.; Richard, Erik

2002-01-01

This work describes transport and thermodynamic processes that control water vapor near the tropopause during the SAGE III-Ozone Loss and Validation Experiment (SOLVE), held during the Arctic 1999/2000 winter season. Aircraft-based water vapor, carbon monoxide, and ozone measurements were analyzed so as to establish how deeply tropospheric air mixes into the Arctic lowermost stratosphere and what the implications are for cloud formation and water vapor removal in this region of the atmosphere. There are three major findings. First, troposphere-to-stratosphere exchange extends into the Arctic stratosphere to about 13 km. Penetration is to similar levels throughout the winter, however, because ozone increases with altitude most rapidly in the early spring, tropospheric air mixes with the highest values of ozone in that season. The effect of this upward mixing is to elevate water vapor mixing ratios significantly above their prevailing stratospheric values of above 5ppmv. Second, the potential for cloud formation in the stratosphere is highest during early spring, with about 20% of the parcels which have ozone values of 300-350 ppbv experiencing ice saturation in a given 10 day period. Third, during early spring, temperatures at the troposphere are cold enough so that 5-10% of parcels experience relative humidities above 100%, even if the water content is as low as 5 ppmv. The implication is that during this period, dynamical processes near the Arctic tropopause can dehydrate air and keep the Arctic tropopause region very dry during early spring.

Microwave measurements of water vapor partial pressure at high temperatures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Latorre, V.R.

1991-01-01

One of the desired parameters in the Yucca Mountain Project is the capillary pressure of the rock comprising the repository. This parameter is related to the partial pressure of water vapor in the air when in equilibrium with the rock mass. Although there are a number of devices that will measure the relative humidity (directly related to the water vapor partial pressure), they generally will fail at temperatures on the order of 150C. Since thee author has observed borehole temperatures considerably in excess of this value in G-Tunnel at the Nevada Test Site (NTS), a different scheme is required to obtain the desired partial pressure data at higher temperatures. This chapter presents a microwave technique that has been developed to measure water vapor partial pressure in boreholes at temperatures up to 250C. The heart of the system is a microwave coaxial resonator whose resonant frequency is inversely proportional to the square root of the real part of the complex dielectric constant of the medium (air) filling the resonator. The real part of the dielectric constant of air is approximately equal to the square of the refractive index which, in turn, is proportional to the partial pressure of the water vapor in the air. Thus, a microwave resonant cavity can be used to measure changes in the relative humidity or partial pressure of water vapor in the air. Since this type of device is constructed of metal, it is able to withstand very high temperatures. The actual limitation is the temperature limit of the dielectric material in the cable connecting the resonator to its driving and monitoring equipment-an automatic network analyzer in our case. In the following sections, the theory of operation, design, construction, calibration and installation of the microwave diagnostics system is presented. The results and conclusions are also presented, along with suggestions for future work

A Microdrop Generator for the Calibration of a Water Vapor Isotope Ratio Spectrometer

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Iannone, Rosario Q.; Romanini, Daniele; Kassi, Samir; Meijer, Harro A. J.; Kerstel, Erik R. Th.

A microdrop generator is described that produces water vapor with a known isotopic composition and volume mixing ratio for the calibration of a near-infrared diode laser water isotope ratio spectrometer. The spectrometer is designed to measure in situ the water vapor deuterium and oxygen ((17)O and

Analysis of SX farm leak histories - Historical leak model (HLM)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fredenburg, E.A.

1998-01-01

This report uses readily available historical information to better define the volume, chemical composition, and Cs-137/Sr-90 amounts for leaks that have occurred in the past for tanks SX-108, SX-109, SX-111, and SX-112. In particular a Historical Leak Model (HLM) is developed that is a month by month reconciliation of tank levels, fill records, and calculated boil-off rates for these tanks. The HLM analysis is an independent leak estimate that reconstructs the tank thermal histories thereby deriving each tank's evaporative volume loss and by difference, its unaccounted losses as well. The HLM analysis was meant to demonstrate the viability of its approach, not necessarily to establish the HLM leak estimates as being definitive. Past leak estimates for these tanks have invariably resorted to soil wetting arguments but the extent of soil contaminated by each leak has always been highly uncertain. There is also a great deal of uncertainty with the HLM that was not quantified in this report, but will be addressed later. These four tanks (among others) were used from 1956 to 1975 for storage of high-level waste from the Redox process at Hanford. During their operation, tank waste temperatures were often as high as 150 C (300 F), but were more typically around 130 C. The primary tank cooling was by evaporation of tank waste and therefore periodic replacement of lost volume with water was necessary to maintain each tank's inventory. This active reflux of waste resulted in very substantial turnovers in tank inventory as well as significant structural degradation of these tanks. As a result of the loss of structural integrity, each of these tanks leaked during their active periods of operation. Unfortunately, the large turnover in tank volume associated with their reflux cooling has made a determination of leak volumes very difficult. During much of these tanks operational histories, inventory losses because of evaporative cooling could have effectively masked any volume

GROUND WATER SAMPLING OF VOCS IN THE WATER/CAPILLARY FRINGE AREA FOR VAPOR INTRUSION ASSESSMENT

Science.gov (United States)

Vapor intrusion has recently been considered a major pathway for increased indoor air contamination from certain volatile organic contaminants (VOCs). The recent Draft EPA Subsurface Vapor Intrusion Guidance Document states that ground water samples should be obtained from the u...

GPR image analysis to locate water leaks from buried pipes by applying variance filters

Science.gov (United States)

Ocaña-Levario, Silvia J.; Carreño-Alvarado, Elizabeth P.; Ayala-Cabrera, David; Izquierdo, Joaquín

2018-05-01

Nowadays, there is growing interest in controlling and reducing the amount of water lost through leakage in water supply systems (WSSs). Leakage is, in fact, one of the biggest problems faced by the managers of these utilities. This work addresses the problem of leakage in WSSs by using GPR (Ground Penetrating Radar) as a non-destructive method. The main objective is to identify and extract features from GPR images such as leaks and components in a controlled laboratory condition by a methodology based on second order statistical parameters and, using the obtained features, to create 3D models that allows quick visualization of components and leaks in WSSs from GPR image analysis and subsequent interpretation. This methodology has been used before in other fields and provided promising results. The results obtained with the proposed methodology are presented, analyzed, interpreted and compared with the results obtained by using a well-established multi-agent based methodology. These results show that the variance filter is capable of highlighting the characteristics of components and anomalies, in an intuitive manner, which can be identified by non-highly qualified personnel, using the 3D models we develop. This research intends to pave the way towards future intelligent detection systems that enable the automatic detection of leaks in WSSs.

Beeswax–chitosan emulsion coated paper with enhanced water vapor barrier efficiency

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Weiwei; Xiao, Huining; Qian, Liying

2014-01-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • The water vapor barrier efficiency of paper was enhanced via green-based emulsion coating. • Extremely high lipid content in the emulsion coating layer was firstly utilized to reduce WVTR in emulsion-based film. • A controlled WVTR of beeswax–chitosan emulsion coating could be obtained by dying at specific temperature. - Abstract: For lipid–hydrocolloid emulsion based film, the increase of lipid amount would improve its water vapor barrier property, but also reduce the mechanical strength of the film in the meantime thus leading to a compromised lipid content in the film. However, when the emulsion is coated on paper surface, more lipid could be used for emulsion preparation to enhance the moisture resistance without considering the weakened strength of the film induced by lipid, because the mechanical properties of emulsion coated paper is mainly governed by the strength of base paper instead of the coating layer. In this study, beeswax–chitosan emulsion was first prepared and then coated on paper surface to improve paper's water vapor barrier and water resistance properties. The range and variance analysis of orthogonal test design showed that the order of priorities of the factors accordingly was beeswax solid content, drying temperature and chitosan concentration. The effect of drying temperature on water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) and water contact angle of coated paper was further investigated using 1.2 wt% chitosan and 96% beeswax solid content in the coating layer. The results indicated that water vapor barrier property was in accordance with the density of the coating layer. Atomic force microscope (AFM) was also used to characterize the surface morphology and explain the hydrophobicity of beeswax–chitosan coated paper. It was found that surface beeswax particles melted to wrinkle at high drying temperatures, while roughness values maintained at micro-scale over the temperature range investigated

Exchange reaction between tritiated hydrogen and water vapor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamada, Koichi; Takano, Kenichi; Watanabe, Tamaki.

1979-01-01

Exchange reaction of tritiated hydrogen to water vapor under the condition of tritium gas concentration between 1 μCi/l and 1 mCi/l was studied. Tritium gas with hydrogen gas of 5 Torr and water of 20 mg were enclosed in a Pyrex glass ampule with volume of about 100 ml. The mixed gas with water vapor was heated with electric furnace. The heating time was between 2 and 100 hr, and the temperature was 776, 725, 675, 621, and 570.5 0 K. After heating, tritiated water was trapped with liquid nitrogen, and counted with a liquid scintillation counter. The radioactive concentration of initial tritiated hydrogen was measured with a calibrated ionization chamber. The main results obtained are as follows; 1) the concentration of produced tritiated water is well proportioned to that of initial tritiated hydrogen, 2) the activation energy of exchange reaction from tritiated hydrogen to tritiated water is 26.2 kcal/mol and that of inverse reaction is 27.4 kcal/mol, 3) the reaction rate at room temperature which calculated with activation energy is 1.04 x 10 -13 day -1 , and then exchange reaction at room temperature is negligible. (author)

Nonlinear response of tropical lower-stratospheric temperature and water vapor to ENSO

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. I. Garfinkel

2018-04-01

Full Text Available A series of simulations using the NASA Goddard Earth Observing System Chemistry–Climate Model are analyzed in order to aid in the interpretation of observed interannual and sub-decadal variability in the tropical lower stratosphere over the past 35 years. The impact of El Niño–Southern Oscillation on temperature and water vapor in this region is nonlinear in boreal spring. While moderate El Niño events lead to cooling in this region, strong El Niño events lead to warming, even as the response of the large-scale Brewer–Dobson circulation appears to scale nearly linearly with El Niño. This nonlinearity is shown to arise from the response in the Indo-West Pacific to El Niño: strong El Niño events lead to tropospheric warming extending into the tropical tropopause layer and up to the cold point in this region, where it allows for more water vapor to enter the stratosphere. The net effect is that both strong La Niña and strong El Niño events lead to enhanced entry water vapor and stratospheric moistening in boreal spring and early summer. These results lead to the following interpretation of the contribution of sea surface temperatures to the decline in water vapor in the early 2000s: the very strong El Niño event in 1997/1998, followed by more than 2 consecutive years of La Niña, led to enhanced lower-stratospheric water vapor. As this period ended in early 2001, entry water vapor concentrations declined. This effect accounts for approximately one-quarter of the observed drop.

Nonlinear response of tropical lower-stratospheric temperature and water vapor to ENSO

Science.gov (United States)

Garfinkel, Chaim I.; Gordon, Amit; Oman, Luke D.; Li, Feng; Davis, Sean; Pawson, Steven

2018-04-01

A series of simulations using the NASA Goddard Earth Observing System Chemistry-Climate Model are analyzed in order to aid in the interpretation of observed interannual and sub-decadal variability in the tropical lower stratosphere over the past 35 years. The impact of El Niño-Southern Oscillation on temperature and water vapor in this region is nonlinear in boreal spring. While moderate El Niño events lead to cooling in this region, strong El Niño events lead to warming, even as the response of the large-scale Brewer-Dobson circulation appears to scale nearly linearly with El Niño. This nonlinearity is shown to arise from the response in the Indo-West Pacific to El Niño: strong El Niño events lead to tropospheric warming extending into the tropical tropopause layer and up to the cold point in this region, where it allows for more water vapor to enter the stratosphere. The net effect is that both strong La Niña and strong El Niño events lead to enhanced entry water vapor and stratospheric moistening in boreal spring and early summer. These results lead to the following interpretation of the contribution of sea surface temperatures to the decline in water vapor in the early 2000s: the very strong El Niño event in 1997/1998, followed by more than 2 consecutive years of La Niña, led to enhanced lower-stratospheric water vapor. As this period ended in early 2001, entry water vapor concentrations declined. This effect accounts for approximately one-quarter of the observed drop.

An interim reference model for the variability of the middle atmosphere water vapor distribution

Science.gov (United States)

Remsberg, E. E.; Russell, J. M., III; Wu, C.-Y.

1990-01-01

A reference model for the middle atmosphere water vapor distribution for some latitudes and seasons was developed using two data sets. One is the seven months of Nimbus LIMS data obtained during November 1978 to May 1979 over the range 64 deg S - 84 deg N latitude and from about 100-mb to 1-mb altitude, and the other is represented by water vapor profiles from 0.2 mb to 0.01 mb in the mid-mesosphere, measured on ground at several fixed mid-latitude sites in the Northern Hemisphere, using microwave-emission techniques. This model provides an interim water vapor profile for the entire vertical range of the middle atmosphere, with accuracies of better than 25 percent. The daily variability of stratospheric water vapor profiles about the monthly mean is demonstrated, and information is provided on the longitudinal variability of LIMS water vapor profiles about the daily, weekly, and monthly zonal means.

CFD modeling of condensation process of water vapor in supersonic flows

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yang, Yan; Walther, Jens Honore; Yan, Yuying

2017-01-01

The condensation phenomenon of vapor plays an important role in various industries, such as the steam flow in turbines and refrigeration system. A mathematical model is developed to predict the spontaneous condensing phenomenon in the supersonic flows using the nucleation and droplet growth...... theories. The numerical approach is validated with the experimental data, which shows a good agreement between them. The condensation characteristics of water vapor in the Laval nozzle are described in detail. The results show that the condensation process is a rapid variation of the vapor-liquid phase...... change both in the space and in time. The spontaneous condensation of water vapor will not appear immediately when the steam reaches the saturation state. Instead, it occurs further downstream the nozzle throat, where the steam is in the state of supersaturation....

Relative spectral absorption of solar radiation by water vapor and cloud droplets

Science.gov (United States)

Davies, R.; Ridgway, W. L.

1983-01-01

A moderate (20/cm) spectral resolution model which accounts for both the highly variable spectral transmission of solar radiation through water vapor within and above cloud, as well as the more slowly varying features of absorption and anisotropic multiple scattering by the cloud droplets, is presented. Results from this model as applied to the case of a typical 1 km thick stratus cloud in a standard atmosphere, with cloud top altitude of 2 km and overhead sun, are discussed, showing the relative importance of water vapor above the cloud, water vapor within the cloud, and cloud droplets on the spectral absorption of solar radiation.

Leak test method for radioactive material packagings without pressure valve connections

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johnson, S.F.; Stenbaeck, A.

1976-01-01

A leak test method has been developed at Studsvik which provides the possibility of testing Type B packagings unequipped with valves for evacuation or pressurizing. Even large packagings with pressure valve connections can be leak tested by this method. The method is a pressure test method. The test gas comprises a mixture of helium and nitrogen or helium and air. Excess pressure in a valveless packaging is achieved by vaporization of liquid nitrogen. All parts of the packaging or package where leaks might be expected are covered by plastic sheet. Samples of the gas accumulated under the plastic sheets are taken using evacuated glass ampoules which are initially sealed off to a breakable point. The gas samples are measured with a He-mass spectrometer. The sensitivity of this method of leak testing is, in practice, of the order of 10 -7 atmcm 3 s -1 . (author)

Water Vapor Tracers as Diagnostics of the Regional Hydrologic Cycle

Science.gov (United States)

Bosilovich, Michael G.; Schubert, Siegfried D.; Einaudi, Franco (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Numerous studies suggest that local feedback of surface evaporation on precipitation, or recycling, is a significant source of water for precipitation. Quantitative results on the exact amount of recycling have been difficult to obtain in view of the inherent limitations of diagnostic recycling calculations. The current study describes a calculation of the amount of local and remote geographic sources of surface evaporation for precipitation, based on the implementation of three-dimensional constituent tracers of regional water vapor sources (termed water vapor tracers, WVT) in a general circulation model. The major limitation on the accuracy of the recycling estimates is the veracity of the numerically simulated hydrological cycle, though we note that this approach can also be implemented within the context of a data assimilation system. In the WVT approach, each tracer is associated with an evaporative source region for a prognostic three-dimensional variable that represents a partial amount of the total atmospheric water vapor. The physical processes that act on a WVT are determined in proportion to those that act on the model's prognostic water vapor. In this way, the local and remote sources of water for precipitation can be predicted within the model simulation, and can be validated against the model's prognostic water vapor. As a demonstration of the method, the regional hydrologic cycles for North America and India are evaluated for six summers (June, July and August) of model simulation. More than 50% of the precipitation in the Midwestern United States came from continental regional sources, and the local source was the largest of the regional tracers (14%). The Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic regions contributed 18% of the water for Midwestern precipitation, but further analysis suggests that the greater region of the Tropical Atlantic Ocean may also contribute significantly. In most North American continental regions, the local source of precipitation is

System for leaks inspection in a nuclear plant by means of a mobile robot

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ramirez S, R.; Segovia de los Rios, J.A.

2004-01-01

In this work a supervision system that could allow to carry out the detection of leaks of vapor in pipe lines, using a mobile robot Pioneer 2 -D Xe, which is controlled by means of an external micro controller 68HC912B32 programmed in Forth and using diffuse control to travel a road by means of the one to follow one lines painted in the floor is described. The robot takes in his superior part, a thermographic camera that allows to determine if leaks of vapor exist in pipes and a dosemeter to measure the present radiation levels in the place, besides a video camera. This way, the personnel, can make sure of having a propitious situation to make the maintenance of the facilities. (Author)

Outcomes of asymptomatic anastomotic leaks found on routine postoperative water-soluble enema following anterior resection for cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Killeen, S; Souroullas, P; Ho Tin, H; Hunter, I A; O'Grady, H; Gunn, J; Hartley, J E

2013-11-01

The incidence and consequence of an anastomotic leak associated with low anterior resection for cancer mandates covering stoma in most cases. A water-soluble enema is often performed to assess anastomotic integrity prior to stoma reversal. The functional outcome following reversal in patients with occult radiologically detected leaks is poorly defined. The goal of the present study was to determine the functional outcome in patients with a radiologically detected anastomotic leak who subsequently underwent stoma reversal. This case control study used patients with and without radiologically detected occult anastomotic leak having undergone reversal of covering stomata. The study group was matched with controls for age, gender, procedure, tumor stage, and adjuvant/neoadjuvant therapy. Validated fecal incontinence quality of life (FIQL), Cleveland Clinic Fecal Incontinence Score (CCFIS), and the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) Bowel Function Index (BFI) were used. Patient satisfaction, medication use, and ancillary procedures prior to closure were also recorded. Thirteen patients with radiologically detected occult anastomotic leaks and 13 matched controls were identified from a prospectively maintained database. The FIQL, CCFIS, and MSKCC BFI scores were significantly reduced in those with occult leaks. The mean number of radiological and surgical interventions was significantly greater in the patients with occult leaks. Antidiarrheal and bulking agent use, as well as patient satisfaction, were the same for both groups. Only one patient in the occult leak group would not undergo stoma reversal again. Reversal of a defunctioning ileostomy in the presence of an occult radiological leak can be associated with poorer functional outcomes, but patient satisfaction is undiminished.

The Effect of Cirrus Clouds on Water Vapor Transport in the Upper Troposphere and Lower Stratosphere

Science.gov (United States)

Lei, L.; McCormick, M. P.; Anderson, J.

2017-12-01

Water vapor plays an important role in the Earth's radiation budget and stratospheric chemistry. It is widely accepted that a large percentage of water vapor entering the stratosphere travels through the tropical tropopause and is dehydrated by the cold tropopause temperature. The vertical transport of water vapor is also affected by the radiative effects of cirrus clouds in the tropical tropopause layer. This latter effect of cirrus clouds was investigated in this research. The work focuses on the tropical and mid-latitude region (50N-50S). Water vapor data from the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) and cirrus cloud data from the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO) instruments were used to investigate the relationship between the water vapor and the occurrence of cirrus cloud. A 10-degree in longitude by 10-degree in latitude resolution was chosen to bin the MLS and CALIPSO data. The result shows that the maximum water vapor in the upper troposphere (below 146 hPa) is matched very well with the highest frequency of cirrus cloud occurrences. Maximum water vapor in the lower stratosphere (100 hPa) is partly matched with the maximum cirrus cloud occurrence in the summer time. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Interpolated Outgoing Longwave Radiation data and NCEP-DOE Reanalysis 2 wind data were used also to investigate the relationship between the water vapor entering the stratosphere, deep convection, and wind. Results show that maximum water vapor at 100 hPa coincides with the northern hemisphere summer-time anticyclone. The effects from both single-layer cirrus clouds and cirrus clouds above the anvil top on the water vapor entering the stratosphere were also studied and will be presented.

Leak testing and repair of fusion devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kozman, T.A.

1983-01-01

The leak testing, reporting and vacuum leak repair techniques of the MFTF yin-yang number one magnet system, the world's largest superconducting magnet system, are discussed. Based on this experience, techniques will be developed for testing and repairing leaks on the 42 MFTF-B magnets. The leak-hunting techniques for the yin-yang magnet systems were applied to two helium circuits (the coil bundle and guard vacuum; both require helium flow for magnet cooldown), their associated piping, liquid nitrogen radiation shields, and piping. Additionally, during MFTF-B operation there will be warm water plasma shields and piping that require leak checking

Monitoring middle-atmospheric water vapor over Seoul by using a 22 GHz ground-based radiometer SWARA

Science.gov (United States)

Ka, Soohyun; de Wachter, Evelyn; Kaempfer, Niklaus; Oh, Jung Jin

2010-10-01

Water vapor is the strongest natural greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. It is most abundant in the troposphere at low altitudes, due to evaporation at the ocean surface, with maximum values of around 6 g/kg. The amount of water vapor reaches a minimum at tropopause level and increases again in the middle atmosphere through oxidation of methane and vertical transport. Water vapor has both positive and negative effects on global warming, and we need to study how it works on climate change by monitoring water vapor concentration in the middle atmosphere. In this paper, we focus on the 22 GHz ground-based radiometer called SWARA (Seoul Water vapor Radiometer) which has been operated at Sookmyung women's university in Seoul, Korea since Oct. 2006. It is a joint project of the University of Bern, Switzerland, and the Sookmyung Women's University of Seoul, South Korea. The SWARA receives 22.235 GHz emitted from water vapor spontaneously and converts down to 1.5 GHz with +/- 0.5 GHz band width in 61 kHz resolution. To represent 22.235 GHz water vapor spectrum precisely, we need some calibration methods because the signal shows very weak intensity in ~0.1 K on the ground. For SWARA, we have used the balancing and the tipping curve methods for a calibration. To retrieve the water vapor profile, we have applied ARTS and Qpack software. In this paper, we will present the calibration methods and water vapor variation over Seoul for the last 4 years.

Gelation of Oil upon Contact with Water: A Bioinspired Scheme for the Self-Repair of Oil Leaks from Underwater Tubes.

Science.gov (United States)

Oh, Hyuntaek; Yaraghi, Nicholas; Raghavan, Srinivasa R

2015-05-19

Molecular organogelators convert oils into gels by forming self-assembled fibrous networks. Here, we demonstrate that such gelation can be activated by contacting the oil with an immiscible solvent (water). Our gelator is dibenzylidene sorbitol (DBS), which forms a low-viscosity sol when added to toluene containing a small amount of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). Upon contact with water, DMSO partitions into the water, activating gelation of DBS in the toluene. The gel grows from the oil/water interface and slowly envelops the oil phase. We have exploited this effect for the self-repair of oil leaks from underwater tubes. When a DBS/toluene/DMSO solution flows through the tube, it forms a gel selectively at the leak point, thereby plugging the leak and restoring flow. Our approach is reminiscent of wound-sealing via blood-clotting: there also, inactive gelators in blood are activated at the wound site into a fibrous network, thereby plugging the wound and restoring blood flow.

Water vapor stable isotope observations from tropical Australia

KAUST Repository

Parkes, Stephen

2015-04-01

The response of the tropical hydrological cycle to anthropogenically induced changes in radiative forcing is one of the largest discrepancies between climate models. Paleoclimate archives of the stable isotopic composition of precipitation in the tropics indicate a relationship with precipitation amount that could be exploited to study past hydroclimate and improve our knowledge of how this region responds to changes in climate forcing. Recently modelling studies of convective parameterizations fitted with water isotopes and remote sensing of water vapor isotopes in the tropics have illustrated uncertainty in the assumed relationship with rainfall amount. Therefore there is a need to collect water isotope data in the tropics that can be used to evaluate these models and help identify the relationships between the isotopic composition of meteoric waters and rainfall intensity. However, data in this region is almost non-existent. Here we present in-situ water vapor isotopic measurements and the HDO retrievals from the co-located Total Column Carbon Observing Network (TCCON) site at Darwin in Tropical Australia. The Darwin site is interestingly placed within the tropical western pacific region and is impacted upon by a clear monsoonal climate, and key climate cycles including ENSO and Madden Julian Oscillations. The analysis of the data illustrated relationships between water vapor isotopes and humidity which demonstrated the role of precipitation processes in the wet season and air mass mixing during the dry season. Further the wet season observations show complex relationships between humidity and isotopes. A simple Rayleigh distillation model was not obeyed, instead the importance of rainfall re-evaporation in generating the highly depleted signatures was demonstrated. These data potentially provide a useful tool for evaluating model parameterizations in monsoonal regions as they demonstrate relationships with precipitation processes that cannot be observed with

Propelling a water drop with the vapor-mediated Marangoni effect

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Seungho; Kim, Ho-Young

2013-11-01

We show that a water drop on solid surfaces can be propelled just by placing a volatile alcohol drop nearby. It is found to be because the water-air interface near the alcohol drop mixes with alcohol vapor, thereby locally lowering the surface tension. The surface-tension-gradient induces the motion of the water drop, enabling the trajectory control of water drops through the motion of remote alcohol drops. This vapor-mediated Marangoni effect also gives rise to other interesting interfacial flow phenomena, such as nucleation of holes on a water film and ballooning of a water drop hanging from a syringe needle with the approach of an alcohol drop. We visualize such interfacial dynamics with a high-speed camera and rationalize their salient features by scaling analysis. This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (grant no. 2012-008023).

Leak Detection and Location of Water Pipes Using Vibration Sensors and Modified ML Prefilter.

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Jihoon; Shin, Joonho; Song, Choonggeun; Han, Suyong; Park, Doo Il

2017-09-13

This paper proposes a new leak detection and location method based on vibration sensors and generalised cross-correlation techniques. Considering the estimation errors of the power spectral densities (PSDs) and the cross-spectral density (CSD), the proposed method employs a modified maximum-likelihood (ML) prefilter with a regularisation factor. We derive a theoretical variance of the time difference estimation error through summation in the discrete-frequency domain, and find the optimal regularisation factor that minimises the theoretical variance in practical water pipe channels. The proposed method is compared with conventional correlation-based techniques via numerical simulations using a water pipe channel model, and it is shown through field measurement that the proposed modified ML prefilter outperforms conventional prefilters for the generalised cross-correlation. In addition, we provide a formula to calculate the leak location using the time difference estimate when different types of pipes are connected.

Leak Detection and Location of Water Pipes Using Vibration Sensors and Modified ML Prefilter

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jihoon Choi

2017-09-01

Full Text Available This paper proposes a new leak detection and location method based on vibration sensors and generalised cross-correlation techniques. Considering the estimation errors of the power spectral densities (PSDs and the cross-spectral density (CSD, the proposed method employs a modified maximum-likelihood (ML prefilter with a regularisation factor. We derive a theoretical variance of the time difference estimation error through summation in the discrete-frequency domain, and find the optimal regularisation factor that minimises the theoretical variance in practical water pipe channels. The proposed method is compared with conventional correlation-based techniques via numerical simulations using a water pipe channel model, and it is shown through field measurement that the proposed modified ML prefilter outperforms conventional prefilters for the generalised cross-correlation. In addition, we provide a formula to calculate the leak location using the time difference estimate when different types of pipes are connected.

Steam and sodium leak simulation in a fluidized-bed steam generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vaux, W.G.; Keeton, A.R.; Keairns, D.L.

1977-01-01

A fluidized-bed steam generator for the liquid metal fast breeder reactor enhances plant availability and minimizes the probability of a water/sodium reaction. An experimental test program was conceived to assess design criteria and fluidized-bed operation under conditions of water, steam, and sodium leaks. Sodium, steam, and water were leaked into helium-fluidized beds of metal and ceramic particles at 900 F. Test results show the effects of leaks on the heat transfer coefficient, quality of fluidization, leak detection, and cleanup procedures

CONDENSATION OF WATER VAPOR IN A VERTICAL TUBE CONDENSER

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jan Havlík

2015-10-01

Full Text Available This paper presents an analysis of heat transfer in the process of condensation of water vapor in a vertical shell-and-tube condenser. We analyze the use of the Nusselt model for calculating the condensation heat transfer coefficient (HTC inside a vertical tube and the Kern, Bell-Delaware and Stream-flow analysis methods for calculating the shell-side HTC from tubes to cooling water. These methods are experimentally verified for a specific condenser of waste process vapor containing air. The operating conditions of the condenser may be different from the assumptions adopted in the basic Nusselt theory. Modifications to the Nusselt condensation model are theoretically analyzed.

Effects of water vapor on flue gas conditioning in the electric fields with corona discharge

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liqiang, QI, E-mail: qi_liqiang@163.com; Yajuan, Zhang

2013-07-15

Highlights: • The influence mechanism of water vapor humidification on SO{sub 2} oxidation was analyzed. •The effects of water vapor on the specific resistance in fly ash in ESPs were reported. • The effects of water vapor on the size distribution and specific surface area of fly ash were discussed. • The adhesive characteristic of fly ash in different water vapor was experimented. -- Abstract: Sulfur dioxide (SO{sub 2}) removal via pulsed discharge nonthermal plasma in the absence of ammonia was investigated to determine how electrostatic precipitators (ESPs) can effectively collect particulate matter less than 2.5 μm in diameter from flue gas. SO{sub 2} removal increased as water vapor concentration increased. In a wet-type plasma reactor, directing a gas-phase discharge plasma toward the water film surface significantly enhanced the liquid-phase oxidation of HSO{sub 3}{sup −} to SO{sub 4}{sup 2−}. Comparisons of various absorbents revealed that the hydroxyl radical is a key factor in plasma-induced liquid-phase reactions. The resistivity, size distribution, and cohesive force of fly ash at different water vapor contents were measured using a Bahco centrifuge, which is a dust electrical resistivity test instrument, as well as a cohesive force test apparatus developed by the researchers. When water vapor content increased by 5%, fly ash resistivity in flue gas decreased by approximately two orders of magnitude, adhesive force and size increased, and specific surface area decreased. Therefore, ESP efficiency increased.

An algorithm for the determination of emergency process parameters at water-into-sodium leaks in the BN-800 NPP steam generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Poplavsky, V.M.; Baklushin, R.P.

1990-01-01

The paper presents calculation relationships for the determination of parameters characterizing a sodium circuit state under water-into-sodium leak emergency conditions (mass of water penetrating into sodium, the leak size, amount of impurities in coolant, the size of expected heat-exchange surface damage). An approximation of some parameters as applied to the BN-800 NPP steam generator is presented. (author). 1 ref., 2 figs

Partitioning Water Vapor and Carbon Dioxide Fluxes using Correlation Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Scanlon, T. M.

2008-12-01

A variety of methods are currently available to partition water vapor fluxes (into components of transpiration and direct evaporation) and carbon dioxide fluxes (into components of photosynthesis and respiration), using chambers, isotopes, and regression modeling approaches. Here, a methodology is presented that accounts for correlations between high-frequency measurements of water vapor (q) and carbon dioxide (c) concentrations being influenced by their non-identical source-sink distributions and the relative magnitude of their constituent fluxes. Flux-variance similarity assumptions are applied separately to the stomatal and the non-stomatal exchange, and the flux components are identified by considering the q-c correlation. Water use efficiency for the vegetation, and how it varies with respect to vapor pressure deficit, is the only input needed for this approach that uses standard eddy covariance measurements. The method is demonstrated using data collected over a corn field throughout a growing season. In particular, the research focuses on the partitioning of the water flux with the aim of improving how direct evaporation is handled in soil-vegetation- atmosphere transfer models over the course of wetting and dry-down cycles.

Waste storage in the vadose zone affected by water vapor condensation and leaching

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cary, J.W.; Gee, G.W.; Whyatt, G.A.

1990-08-01

One of the major concerns associated with waste storage in the vadose zone is that toxic materials may somehow be leached and transported by advecting water down to the water table and reach the accessible environment through either a well or discharge to a river. Consequently, care is taken to provide barriers over and around the storage sites to reduce contact between infiltrating water and the buried waste form. In some cases, it is important to consider the intrusion of water vapor as well as water in the liquid phase. Water vapor diffuses through porous material along vapor pressure gradients. A slightly low temperature, or the presence of water-soluble components in the waste, favors water condensation resulting in leaching of the waste form and advection of water-soluble components to the water table. A simple analysis is presented that allows one to estimate the rate of vapor condensation as a function of waste composition and backfill materials. An example using a waste form surrounded by concrete and gravel layers is presented. The use of thermal gradients to offset condensation effects of water-soluble components in the waste form is discussed. Thermal gradients may be controlled by design factors that alter the atmospheric energy exchange across the soil surface or that interrupt the geothermal heat field. 7 refs., 2 figs., 1 tab

NASA Experiment on Tropospheric-Stratospheric Water Vapor Transport in the Intertropical Convergence Zone

Science.gov (United States)

Page, William A.

1982-01-01

The following six papers report preliminary results obtained from a field experiment designed to study the role of tropical cumulo-nimbus clouds in the transfer of water vapor from the troposphere to the stratosphere over the region of Panama. The measurements were made utilizing special NOAA enhanced IR satellite images, radiosonde-ozonesondes and a NASA U-2 aircraft carrying. nine experiments. The experiments were provided by a group of NASA, NOAA, industry, and university scientists. Measurements included atmospheric humidity, air and cloud top temperatures, atmospheric tracer constituents, cloud particle characteristics and cloud morphology. The aircraft made a total of eleven flights from August 30 through September 18, 1980, from Howard Air Force Base, Panama; the pilots obtained horizontal and vertical profiles in and near convectively active regions and flew around and over cumulo-nimbus towers and through the extended anvils in the stratosphere. Cumulo-nimbus clouds in the tropics appear to play an important role in upward water vapor transport and may represent the principal source influencing the stratospheric water vapor budget. The clouds provide strong vertical circulation in the troposphere, mixing surface air and its trace materials (water vapor, CFM's sulfur compounds, etc.) quickly up to the tropopause. It is usually assumed that large scale mean motions or eddy scale motions transport the trace materials through the tropopause and into the stratosphere where they are further dispersed and react with other stratospheric constituents. The important step between the troposphere and stratosphere for water vapor appears to depend upon the processes occurring at or near the tropopause at the tops of the cumulo-nimbus towers. Several processes have been sugested: (1) The highest towers penetrate the tropopause and carry water in the form of small ice particles directly into the stratosphere. (2) Water vapor from the tops of the cumulonimbus clouds is

Rectification of leak from upper aluminium thermal shield cooling water inlet line of Cirus reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhatnagar, Anil; Joshi, N.S.; Kharpate, A.V.; Marik, S.K.

2006-01-01

During 1994, a small water leak was observed from the upper aluminium thermal shield of Cirus reactor. Detailed investigations revealed that the leakage was from the weld joint of one of the 1 1/4 inch NB Sch. 80 coolant inlet pipes connected to the upper aluminium thermal shield. The location of the leak was identified by monitoring the stabilised water level in the vertical inlet pipe under stagnant condition. The exact location was identified by installing an inflatable seal arrangement inside the leaky pipe and inflating the seal at different elevations to isolate the leaky location and ensuring that the leak was completely stopped. This location was about 15 feet below the operating floor of the reactor. The pipe was visually inspected with the help of a fibre-scope to assess the condition of the inner surface. Eddy current testing was also carried out for volumetric examination. This revealed one more localised flaw on the outer surface little above the leaky joint. A hollow plug, with expandable rings, having C-shaped cross section at both the ends and a straight portion in the middle to cover the defective region, was developed and qualified in a mock-up station after extensive trials. In view of the site constraints, a flexible hollow link assembly was engineered, for installing the plug remotely. The inner surface of the pipe was cleaned using an emery brush and a deburring tool. The plug was then installed covering the leak area and the rings were expanded by remote tightening. The shield was hydro-tested satisfactorily. (author)

Differential Absorption Radar: An Emerging Technology for Remote Sounding of Water Vapor Within Clouds

Science.gov (United States)

Lebsock, M. D.; Millan Valle, L. F.; Cooper, K. B.; Siles, J.; Monje, R.

2017-12-01

We present the results of our efforts to build and demonstrate the first Differential Absorption Radar (DAR), which will provide unique capabilities to remotely sound for water vapor within cloudy and precipitating atmospheres. The approach leverages multiple radar channels located near the 183 GHz water vapor absorption feature to simultaneously derive microphysical and water vapor profiles. The DAR technique has the potential to neatly complement existing water vapor sounding techniques such as infrared and microwave sounding and GPS radio occultation. These precisions rival those of existing water vapor remote sensing instruments. The approach works best from above clouds because the water vapor burden and line width increases towards the Earth surface allowing increased sampling from the top-down compared with bottom-up. From an airborne or satellite platform channels can be selected that target either upper-tropospheric or lower-tropospheric clouds. Our theoretical studies suggest that the water vapor concentration can be retrieved to within 1-3 gm-3 and the column integrated water vapor can be retrieved to within 1 kgm-2. The high-frequency radar is only recently enabled by technological advances that have allowed us to demonstrate 0.5 W of continuous power near 183 GHz. We are currently developing an airborne DAR using a Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) architecture with a quasi-optical duplexer providing 80 dB of transmit/receive isolation. A prototype of this instrument recently made the first ever range resolved DAR measurements of humidity out to several hundred meters during a light rain event at JPL. The spectral dependence of the attenuation was in excellent agreement with the predicted attenuation based on nearby weather stations, proving for the first time the feasibility of the concept. A major impediment to implementing DAR is the international regulation of radio-frequency transmissions below 300 GHz. The major roadblocks and potential

Development and deployment of miniature MI type sodium leak detector for FBTR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Babu, B.; Sylvia, J.I.; Sureshkumar, K.V.; Rajan, K.K.

2013-01-01

Highlights: ► Development and commissioning of SG leak detection system for FBTR. ► Performance satisfactory except for a sodium leak due to failure of nicked diffuser. ► Available sodium leak detection systems explored. ► Mutual inductance leak detector designed and developed for sodium leak detection. ► System was tested and deployed in FBTR with satisfactory performance. -- Abstract: The energy produced in Fast Breeder Test Reactor (FBTR) is transferred to feed water for generating superheated steam in once-through shell and tube type counter current steam generator (SG). Sodium and water/steam flow in shell and tube side respectively are separated by thin-walls of ferritic steel tubes. Material defects in these tubes can lead to leakage of water/steam into sodium, resulting in sodium water reactions leading to undesirable consequences. Detection of a leak at its inception, therefore, is important for the safe and reliable operation of the reactor. Monitoring hydrogen in sodium, produced during reaction of sodium with the leaked water or steam is a convenient way to accomplish this. Nickel diffuser based instrumentation has been developed for real time detection of steam generator leak of FBTR at Kalpakkam. Though the performance of the system has been satisfactory, the failure of Nickel diffuser cannot be ruled out. This paper deals with the development and deployment of a miniature Mutual Inductance (MI) type leak detector for detection of sodium leak resulting from failure/rupture of the Nickel diffuser tubes in the SG leak detection system in FBTR

The effects of resonances on time delay estimation for water leak detection in plastic pipes

Science.gov (United States)

Almeida, Fabrício C. L.; Brennan, Michael J.; Joseph, Phillip F.; Gao, Yan; Paschoalini, Amarildo T.

2018-04-01

In the use of acoustic correlation methods for water leak detection, sensors are placed at pipe access points either side of a suspected leak, and the peak in the cross-correlation function of the measured signals gives the time difference (delay) between the arrival times of the leak noise at the sensors. Combining this information with the speed at which the leak noise propagates along the pipe, gives an estimate for the location of the leak with respect to one of the measurement positions. It is possible for the structural dynamics of the pipe system to corrupt the time delay estimate, which results in the leak being incorrectly located. In this paper, data from test-rigs in the United Kingdom and Canada are used to demonstrate this phenomenon, and analytical models of resonators are coupled with a pipe model to replicate the experimental results. The model is then used to investigate which of the two commonly used correlation algorithms, the Basic Cross-Correlation (BCC) function or the Phase Transform (PHAT), is more robust to the undesirable structural dynamics of the pipe system. It is found that time delay estimation is highly sensitive to the frequency bandwidth over which the analysis is conducted. Moreover, it is found that the PHAT is particularly sensitive to the presence of resonances and can give an incorrect time delay estimate, whereas the BCC function is found to be much more robust, giving a consistently accurate time delay estimate for a range of dynamic conditions.

Sensitive coating for water vapors detection based on thermally sputtered calcein thin films.

Science.gov (United States)

Kruglenko, I; Shirshov, Yu; Burlachenko, J; Savchenko, A; Kravchenko, S; Manera, M G; Rella, R

2010-09-15

In this paper the adsorption properties of thermally sputtered calcein thin films towards water and other polar molecules vapors are studied by different characterization techniques: quartz crystal microbalance, surface plasmon resonance and visible spectroscopy. Sensitivity of calcein thin films to water vapors resulted much higher as compared with those of a number of dyes whose structure was close to that of calcein. All types of sensors with calcein coatings have demonstrated linear concentration dependences in the wide range of water vapor pressure from low concentrations up to 27,000 ppm (close to saturation). At higher concentrations of water vapor all sensors demonstrate the abrupt increase of the response (up to two orders). A theoretical model is advanced explaining the adsorption properties of calcein thin films taking into account their chemical structure and peculiarities of molecular packing. The possibility of application of thermally sputtered calcein films in sensing technique is discussed. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Dual effects of water vapor on ceria-supported gold clusters.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Zhimin; Li, Weili; Abroshan, Hadi; Ge, Qingjie; Li, Gao; Jin, Rongchao

2018-04-05

Atomically precise nanocatalysts are currently being intensely pursued in catalysis research. Such nanocatalysts can serve as model catalysts for gaining fundamental insights into catalytic processes. In this work we report a discovery that water vapor provokes the mild removal of surface long-chain ligands on 25-atom Au25(SC12H25)18 nanoclusters in a controlled manner. Using the resultant Au25(SC12H25)18-x/CeO2 catalyst and CO oxidation as a probe reaction, we found that the catalytic activity of cluster/CeO2 is enhanced from nearly zero conversion of CO (in the absence of water) to 96.2% (in the presence of 2.3 vol% H2O) at the same temperature (100 °C). The cluster catalysts exhibit high stability during the CO oxidation process under moisture conditions (up to 20 vol% water vapor). Water vapor plays a dual role in gold cluster-catalyzed CO oxidation. FT-IR and XPS analyses in combination with density functional theory (DFT) simulations suggest that the "-SC12H25" ligands are easier to be removed under a water vapor atmosphere, thus generating highly active sites. Moreover, the O22- peroxide species constitutes the active oxygen species in CO oxidation, evidenced by Raman spectroscopy analysis and isotope experiments on the CeO2 and cluster/CeO2. The results also indicate the perimeter sites of the interface of Au25(SC12H25)18-x/CeO2 to be active sites for catalytic CO oxidation. The controlled exposure of active sites under mild conditions is of critical importance for the utilization of clusters in catalysis.

Relationship between changes in the upper and lower tropospheric water vapor: A revisit

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, M.; Sun, D. Z.; Zhang, G. J.

2017-12-01

Upper tropospheric water vapor response to enhanced greenhouse gas forcing is as important as the lower tropospheric water vapor response in determining climate sensitivity. Early studies using older versions of climate models have suggested that the upper- and lower-troposphere water vapor changes are more strongly coupled in the climate models than in the observations. Here we reexamine this issue using a state-of-the-art climate model—the NCAR community model CAM5. Specifically, we have calculated the correlations between interannual variations of specific humidity in all levels of the troposphere with that at the surface in CAM5 and in the observations (as represented by the updated ERA-Interim and NCEP reanalysis). It is found that the previously noted biases in how strongly upper tropospheric water vapor and lower troposphere water vapor are linked still exist in CAM5—the change in the tropical averaged upper tropospheric water vapor is more strongly correlated with the change in the surface. However, this bias disappears in the averaged correlation obtained by averaging the point-by-point correlations over the tropics. The spatial pattern of the point-by-point correlations reveals that the better agreement between the model and the observations is related to the opposite model biases in different regions: the correlation is weaker in the model in the western Pacific, but stronger in the central and eastern Pacific. Further analysis of precipitation fields suggests that the weaker (stronger) coupling between tropospheric water vapor and surface moisture over western (central-eastern) Pacific in model is related to weaker (stronger) simulated convective activities in these regions. More specifically, during El Nino, the model has excessive deep convection in the central Pacific, but too littler deep convection in western Pacific. Implications of the results are discussed in the context of climate change as well as in the context of how to improve the model

Acoustic surveillance techniques for SGU leak monitoring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McKnight, J.A.; Rowley, R.; Beesley, M.J.

1990-01-01

The paper presents a brief review of the acoustic techniques applicable to the detection of steam generator unit leaks that have been studied in the UK. Before discussion of the acoustic detection methods a reference representation of the required performance as developed in the UK is given. The conclusion is made that preliminary specification for the acoustic leak detection of sodium/water leaks in steam generating units suggests that it will be necessary to detect better than a leak rate of 3 g/s within a few seconds. 10 refs, 12 figs

Combined ground- and satellite-based profiling of temperature and water vapor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stankov, B.B.; Westwater, E.R.; Snider, J.B.; Churnside, J.H.

1994-01-01

The fusion or integration of meteorological and radiative data from a range of instrumentation into a representative picture of temperature, water vapor, and clouds over a CART domain will be a challenging task for four-dimensional data assimilation models. In the work reported here, we have summarized work supported by DOE's algorithm development program including combined RASS and TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) temperature sensing, water vapor profiles from dual-channel radiometers, and neural network radiometric temperature retrievals

Temperature/pressure and water vapor sounding with microwave spectroscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Muhleman, D. O.; Janssen, M. A.; Clancy, R. T.; Gulkis, S.; Mccleese, D. J.; Zurek, R.; Haberle, R. M.; Frerking, M.

1992-01-01

Two intense microwave spectra lines exist in the martian atmosphere that allow unique sounding capabilities: water vapor at 183 GHz and the (2-1) rotational line of CO at 230 GHz. Microwave spectra line sounding is a well-developed technique for the Earth's atmosphere for sounding from above from spacecraft and airplanes, and from below from fixed surface sites. Two simple instruments for temperature sounding on Mars (the CO line) and water vapor measurements are described. The surface sounder proposed for the MESUR sites is designed to study the boundary layer water vapor distribution and the temperature/pressure profiles with vertical resolution of 0.25 km up to 1 km with reduced resolution above approaching a scale height. The water channel will be sensitive to a few tenths of a micrometer of water and the temperature profile will be retrieved to an accuracy between 1 and 2 K. The latter is routinely done on the Earth using oxygen lines near 60 GHz. The measurements are done with a single-channel heterodyne receiver looking into a 10-cm mirror that is canned through a range of elevation angles plus a target load. The frequency of the receiver is sweep across the water and CO lines generating the two spectra at about 1-hr intervals throughout the mission. The mass and power for the proposed instrument are 2 kg and 5-8 W continuously. The measurements are completely immune to the atmospheric dust and ice particle loads. It was felt that these measurements are the ultimate ones to properly study the martian boundary layer from the surface to a few kilometers. Sounding from above requires an orbiting spacecraft with multichannel microwave spectrometers such as the instrument proposed for MO by a subset of the authors, a putative MESUR orbiter, and a proposed Discovery mission called MOES. Such an instrument can be built with less than 10 kg and use less than 15 W. The obvious advantage of this approach is that the entire atmosphere can be sounded for temperature and

Leveraging Social Norms to Improve Leak Resolution Outcomes Across Meter Classes:

Science.gov (United States)

Holleran, W.

2016-12-01

Over the past decade, utilities, governments, businesses, and nonprofits have come to realize that more than just financial considerations and information drive behavior. Social and psychological factors also play a significant role in shaping consumers' decisions and behaviors around resource use. Stakeholders have consequently turned their interest to behavioral science, a multidisciplinary field that draws from psychology, sociology, public health, and behavioral economics to explain the complex mechanisms that shape human behavior. When used strategically, behavioral science holds the potential to drive down resource use, drive up profits, and generate measurable gains in conservation and efficiency. WaterSmart will present on how the water sector can employ behavioral science to nudge residential rate-payers to use water more efficiently and help them save money. Utilities can use behavioral science to influence people's reaction to leaks. 5% of Single Family Residential (SFR) metered water use can be attributed to leaks. This value potentially skews even higher for MultiFamily (MF) and Commercial accounts given that it can get lost in the noise of daily consumption. Existing leak detection algorithms in the market are not sophisticated enough to detect leaks for a MF or Commercial property. Leveraging data from utilities on known leak events at MF and Commercial buildings allowed WaterSmart to train a machine learning model to identify key features in the load shape and accurately detect these types of water use events. The outcome of the model is a leak amount and confidence level for each irregular usage event. The model also incorporates record feedback from users on the type of leak event, and the accuracy of the alert. When WaterSmart leverages this data model with social norms messaging, we've been able to improve water demand management for MF and Commercial properties. Experiences from leak detection and resolution in the SFR space will also be

Calibration of Raman lidar water vapor profiles by means of AERONET photometer observations and GDAS meteorological data

Science.gov (United States)

Dai, Guangyao; Althausen, Dietrich; Hofer, Julian; Engelmann, Ronny; Seifert, Patric; Bühl, Johannes; Mamouri, Rodanthi-Elisavet; Wu, Songhua; Ansmann, Albert

2018-05-01

We present a practical method to continuously calibrate Raman lidar observations of water vapor mixing ratio profiles. The water vapor profile measured with the multiwavelength polarization Raman lidar class="text">PollyXT is calibrated by means of co-located AErosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET) sun photometer observations and Global Data Assimilation System (GDAS) temperature and pressure profiles. This method is applied to lidar observations conducted during the Cyprus Cloud Aerosol and Rain Experiment (CyCARE) in Limassol, Cyprus. We use the GDAS temperature and pressure profiles to retrieve the water vapor density. In the next step, the precipitable water vapor from the lidar observations is used for the calibration of the lidar measurements with the sun photometer measurements. The retrieved calibrated water vapor mixing ratio from the lidar measurements has a relative uncertainty of 11 % in which the error is mainly caused by the error of the sun photometer measurements. During CyCARE, nine measurement cases with cloud-free and stable meteorological conditions are selected to calculate the precipitable water vapor from the lidar and the sun photometer observations. The ratio of these two precipitable water vapor values yields the water vapor calibration constant. The calibration constant for the class="text">PollyXT Raman lidar is 6.56 g kg-1 ± 0.72 g kg-1 (with a statistical uncertainty of 0.08 g kg-1 and an instrumental uncertainty of 0.72 g kg-1). To check the quality of the water vapor calibration, the water vapor mixing ratio profiles from the simultaneous nighttime observations with Raman lidar and Vaisala radiosonde sounding are compared. The correlation of the water vapor mixing ratios from these two instruments is determined by using all of the 19 simultaneous nighttime measurements during CyCARE. Excellent agreement with the slope of 1.01 and the R2 of 0.99 is found. One example is presented to demonstrate the full potential of a well-calibrated Raman

Summary of PWR leak detection studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, J.H.; Elia, F.A. Jr.

1986-01-01

Thermal-hydraulic analysis can be used to determine the location and magnitude of leaks inside and location of leaks outside a pressurized water reactor (PWR) containment as required by plant technical specifications. The major advantage of this detection method is that it minimizes radiation exposure of maintenance personnel because most of the leak detection process is performed from the control room outside containment. Plant-specific analyses are utilized to predict change in parameters such as local dew point temperature, relative humidity, dry bulb temperature, and flow rate to sump for various leak rates and enthalpies. These parameter responses are then programmed into the plant computer and instrumentation is provided for area monitoring. The actual inputs are continuously monitored and compared to the predicted plant responses to identify the leak location and quantify the leak. This study concludes that a system that monitors dew point (or relative humidity) and dry bulb temperature changes together with the flow rate to the sump will provide the capability to both locate and quantify a leak inside a containment, while a system that monitors dew point temperature (or relative humidity) changes will provide the capability to locate a leak outside a containment

Relating tropical ocean clouds to moist processes using water vapor isotope measurements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Lee

2011-01-01

Full Text Available We examine the co-variations of tropospheric water vapor, its isotopic composition and cloud types and relate these distributions to tropospheric mixing and distillation models using satellite observations from the Aura Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES over the summertime tropical ocean. Interpretation of these process distributions must take into account the sensitivity of the TES isotope and water vapor measurements to variations in cloud, water, and temperature amount. Consequently, comparisons are made between cloud-types based on the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISSCP classification; these are clear sky, non-precipitating (e.g., cumulus, boundary layer (e.g., stratocumulus, and precipitating clouds (e.g. regions of deep convection. In general, we find that the free tropospheric vapor over tropical oceans does not strictly follow a Rayleigh model in which air parcels become dry and isotopically depleted through condensation. Instead, mixing processes related to convection as well as subsidence, and re-evaporation of rainfall associated with organized deep convection all play significant roles in controlling the water vapor distribution. The relative role of these moisture processes are examined for different tropical oceanic regions.

Evaluating Global Aerosol Models and Aerosol and Water Vapor Properties Near Clouds

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Turner, David, D.; Ferrare, Richard, A.

2011-07-06

The 'Evaluating Global Aerosol Models and Aerosol and Water Vapor Properties Near Clouds' project focused extensively on the analysis and utilization of water vapor and aerosol profiles derived from the ARM Raman lidar at the Southern Great Plains ARM site. A wide range of different tasks were performed during this project, all of which improved quality of the data products derived from the lidar or advanced the understanding of atmospheric processes over the site. These activities included: upgrading the Raman lidar to improve its sensitivity; participating in field experiments to validate the lidar aerosol and water vapor retrievals; using the lidar aerosol profiles to evaluate the accuracy of the vertical distribution of aerosols in global aerosol model simulations; examining the correlation between relative humidity and aerosol extinction, and how these change, due to horizontal distance away from cumulus clouds; inferring boundary layer turbulence structure in convective boundary layers from the high-time-resolution lidar water vapor measurements; retrieving cumulus entrainment rates in boundary layer cumulus clouds; and participating in a field experiment that provided data to help validate both the entrainment rate retrievals and the turbulent profiles derived from lidar observations.

SPADE H2O measurements and the seasonal cycle of statospheric water vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Hintsa, Eric J.; Weinstock, Elliot M.; Dessler, Andrew E.; Anderson, James G.; Loewenstein, Max; Podolske, James R.

1994-01-01

We present measurements of lower statospheric water vapor obtained during the Stratospheric Phototchemistry, Aerosols and Dynamics Expedition (SPADE) mission with a new high precision, fast response, Lyman-alpha hygrometer. The H2O data show a distinct seasonal cycle. For air that recently entered the statosphere, data collected during the fall show much more water vapor than data from the spring. Fast quasi-horizontal mixing causes compact relationships between water and N2O to be established on relatively short time scales. The measurements are consistent with horizontal mixing times of a few months or less. Vertical mixing appears to cause the seasonal variations in water vapor to propagate up to levels corresponding to air that has been in the stratosphere approximately one year.

Water vapor spectroscopy in the 815-nm wavelength region for Differential Absorption Lidar measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Ponsardin, Patrick; Browell, Edward V.

1995-01-01

The differential absorption lidar (DIAL) technique was first applied to the remote measurement of atmospheric water vapor profiles from airborne platforms in 1981. The successful interpretation of the lidar profiles relies strongly on an accurate knowledge of specific water vapor absorption line parameters: line strength, pressure broadening coefficient, pressure-induced shift coefficient and the respective temperature-dependence factors. NASA Langley Research Center has developed and is currently testing an autonomous airborne water vapor lidar system: LASE (Lidar Atmospheric Sensing Experiment). This DIAL system uses a Nd:YAG-pumped Ti:Sapphire laser seeded by a diode laser as a lidar transmitter. The tunable diode has been selected to operate in the 813-818 nm wavelength region. This 5-nm spectral interval offers a large distribution of strengths for temperature-insensitive water vapor absorption lines. In support of the LASE project, a series of spectroscopic measurements were conducted for the 16 absorption lines that have been identified for use in the LASE measurements. Prior to this work, the experimental data for this water vapor absorption band were limited - to our knowledge - to the line strengths and to the line positions.

Rapid Migration of Radionuclides Leaked from High-Level Water Tanks: A Study of Salinity Gradients, Wetted Path Geometry and Water Vapor Transport

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Anderson L. Ward; Glendon W. Gee; John S. Selker; Caly Cooper

2002-04-24

The basis of this study was the hypothesis that the physical and chemical properties of hypersaline tank waste could lead to wetting from instability and fingered flow following a tank leak. Thus, the goal of this project was to develop an understanding of the impacts of the properties of hypersaline fluids on transport through the unsaturated zone beneath Hanford's Tank Farms. There were three specific objectives (i) to develop an improved conceptualization of hypersaline fluid transport in laboratory (ii) to identify the degree to which field conditions mimic the flow processes observed in the laboratory and (iii) to provide a validation data set to establish the degree to which the conceptual models, embodied in a numerical simulator, could explain the observed field behavior. As hypothesized, high ionic strength solutions entering homogeneous pre-wetted porous media formed unstable wetting fronts a typical of low ionic strength infiltration. In the field, this mechanism could force flow in vertical flow paths, 5-15 cm in width, bypassing much of the media and leading to waste penetration to greater depths than would be predicted by current conceptual models. Preferential flow may lead to highly accelerated transport through large homogeneous units, and must be included in any conservative analysis of tank waste losses through coarse-textured units. However, numerical description of fingered flow using current techniques has been unreliable, thereby precluding tank-scale 3-D simulation of these processes. A new approach based on nonzero, hysteretic contact angles and fluid-dependent liquid entry has been developed for the continuum scale modeling of fingered flow. This approach has been coupled with and adaptive-grid finite-difference solver to permit the prediction of finger formation and persistence form sub centimeter scales to the filed scale using both scalar and vector processors. Although laboratory experiments demonstrated that elevated surface

Rapid Migration of Radionuclides Leaked from High-Level Water Tanks; A Study of Salinity Gradients, Wetted Path Geometry and Water Vapor Transport

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Anderson l. Ward; Glendon W. Gee; John S. Selker; Clay Cooper

2002-04-24

The basis of this study was the hypothesis that the physical and chemical properties of hypersaline tank waste could lead to wetting from instability and fingered flow following a tank leak. Thus, the goal of this project was to develop an understanding of the impacts of the properties of hypersaline fluids on transport through the unsaturated zone beneath Hanford's Tank Farms. There were three specific objectives (i) to develop an improved conceptualization of hypersaline fluid transport in laboratory (ii) to identify the degree to which field conditions mimic the flow processes observed in the laboratory and (iii) to provide a validation data set to establish the degree to which the conceptual models, embodied in a numerical simulator, could explain the observed field behavior. As hypothesized, high ionic strength solutions entering homogeneous pre-wetted porous media formed unstable wetting fronts atypical of low ionic strength infiltration. In the field, this mechanism could for ce flow in vertical flow paths, 5-15 cm in width, bypassing much of the media and leading to waste penetration to greater depths than would be predicted by current conceptual models. Preferential flow may lead to highly accelerated transport through large homogeneous units, and must be included in any conservative analysis of tank waste losses through coarse-textured units. However, numerical description of fingered flow using current techniques has been unreliable, thereby precluding tank-scale 3-D simulation of these processes. A new approach based on nonzero, hysteretic contract angles and fluid-dependent liquid entry has been developed for the continuum scale modeling of fingered flow. This approach has been coupled with and adaptive-grid finite-difference solver to permit the prediction of finger formation and persistence form sub centimeter scales to the filed scale using both scalar and vector processors. Although laboratory experiments demonstrated that elevated surface

Rapid Migration of Radionuclides Leaked from High-Level Water Tanks: A Study of Salinity Gradients, Wetted Path Geometry and Water Vapor Transport

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ward, Anderson L.; Gee, Glendon W.; Selker, John S.; Cooper, Caly

2002-01-01

The basis of this study was the hypothesis that the physical and chemical properties of hypersaline tank waste could lead to wetting from instability and fingered flow following a tank leak. Thus, the goal of this project was to develop an understanding of the impacts of the properties of hypersaline fluids on transport through the unsaturated zone beneath Hanford's Tank Farms. There were three specific objectives (i) to develop an improved conceptualization of hypersaline fluid transport in laboratory (ii) to identify the degree to which field conditions mimic the flow processes observed in the laboratory and (iii) to provide a validation data set to establish the degree to which the conceptual models, embodied in a numerical simulator, could explain the observed field behavior. As hypothesized, high ionic strength solutions entering homogeneous pre-wetted porous media formed unstable wetting fronts a typical of low ionic strength infiltration. In the field, this mechanism could force flow in vertical flow paths, 5-15 cm in width, bypassing much of the media and leading to waste penetration to greater depths than would be predicted by current conceptual models. Preferential flow may lead to highly accelerated transport through large homogeneous units, and must be included in any conservative analysis of tank waste losses through coarse-textured units. However, numerical description of fingered flow using current techniques has been unreliable, thereby precluding tank-scale 3-D simulation of these processes. A new approach based on nonzero, hysteretic contact angles and fluid-dependent liquid entry has been developed for the continuum scale modeling of fingered flow. This approach has been coupled with and adaptive-grid finite-difference solver to permit the prediction of finger formation and persistence form sub centimeter scales to the filed scale using both scalar and vector processors. Although laboratory experiments demonstrated that elevated surface tension

Rapid Migration of Radionuclides Leaked from High-Level Water Tanks: A Study of Salinity Gradients, Wetted Path Geometry and Water Vapor Transport

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ward, Anderson L.; Gee, Glendon W.; Selker, John S.; Cooper, Clay

2002-01-01

The basis of this study was the hypothesis that the physical and chemical properties of hypersaline tank waste could lead to wetting from instability and fingered flow following a tank leak. Thus, the goal of this project was to develop an understanding of the impacts of the properties of hypersaline fluids on transport through the unsaturated zone beneath Hanford's Tank Farms. There were three specific objectives (i) to develop an improved conceptualization of hypersaline fluid transport in laboratory (ii) to identify the degree to which field conditions mimic the flow processes observed in the laboratory and (iii) to provide a validation data set to establish the degree to which the conceptual models, embodied in a numerical simulator, could explain the observed field behavior. As hypothesized, high ionic strength solutions entering homogeneous pre-wetted porous media formed unstable wetting fronts atypical of low ionic strength infiltration. In the field, this mechanism could for ce flow in vertical flow paths, 5-15 cm in width, bypassing much of the media and leading to waste penetration to greater depths than would be predicted by current conceptual models. Preferential flow may lead to highly accelerated transport through large homogeneous units, and must be included in any conservative analysis of tank waste losses through coarse-textured units. However, numerical description of fingered flow using current techniques has been unreliable, thereby precluding tank-scale 3-D simulation of these processes. A new approach based on nonzero, hysteretic contract angles and fluid-dependent liquid entry has been developed for the continuum scale modeling of fingered flow. This approach has been coupled with and adaptive-grid finite-difference solver to permit the prediction of finger formation and persistence form sub centimeter scales to the filed scale using both scalar and vector processors. Although laboratory experiments demonstrated that elevated surface tens ion

Assessment of water vapor content from MIVIS TIR data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. Tramutoli

2006-06-01

Full Text Available The main objective of land remotely sensed images is to derive biological, chemical and physical parameters by inverting sample sets of spectral data. For the above aim hyperspectral scanners on airborne platform are a powerful remote sensing instrument for both research and environmental applications because of their spectral resolution and the high operability of the platform. Fine spectral information by MIVIS (airborne hyperspectral scanner operating in 102 channels ranging from VIS to TIR allows researchers to characterize atmospheric parameters and their effects on measured data which produce undesirable features on surface spectral signatures. These effects can be estimated (and remotely sensed radiances corrected if atmospheric spectral transmittance is known at each image pixel. Usually ground-based punctual observations (atmospheric sounding balloons, sun photometers, etc. are used to estimate the main physical parameters (like water vapor and temperature profiles which permit us to estimate atmospheric spectral transmittance by using suitable radiative transfer model and a specific (often too strong assumption which enable atmospheric properties measured only in very few points to be extended to the whole image. Several atmospheric gases produce observable absorption features, but only water vapor strongly varies in time and space. In this work the authors customize a self-sufficient «split-window technique» to derive (at each image pixel atmospheric total columnar water vapor content (TWVC using only MIVIS data collected by the fourth MIVIS spectrometer (Thermal Infrared band. MIVIS radiances have been simulated by means of MODTRAN4 radiative transfer code and the coefficients of linear regression to estimate TWVC from «split-windows» MIVIS radiances, based on 450 atmospheric water vapor profiles obtained by radiosonde data provided by NOAANESDIS. The method has been applied to produce maps describing the spatial variability of

Photocured epoxy/graphene nanocomposites with enhanced water vapor barrier properties

Science.gov (United States)

Periolatto, M.; Sangermano, M.; Spena, P. Russo

2016-05-01

A transparent, water vapor barrier film made of an epoxy resin and graphene oxide (GO) was synthesized by photopolymerization process. The epoxy/GO film with just 0.05 wt% GO gives a 93% WVTR reduction with respect to the pristine polymer, reaching barrier properties better than other polymer composites containing higher amounts of graphene. The excellent water vapor barrier is attributed to the good dispersion of GO in the polymer matrix. Moreover, GO significantly enhances the toughness and the damping capacity of the epoxy resins. The hybrid film can have potential applications in anticorrosive coatings, electronic devices, pharmaceuticals and food packaging.

Photocured epoxy/graphene nanocomposites with enhanced water vapor barrier properties

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Periolatto, M.; Spena, P. Russo [Faculty of Science and Technology, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Piazza Università 5, Bolzano (Italy); Sangermano, M. [Dipartimento di Scienza Applicata e Tecnologia, Politecnico di Torino, C.so Duca degli Abruzzi 24, Torino (Italy)

2016-05-18

A transparent, water vapor barrier film made of an epoxy resin and graphene oxide (GO) was synthesized by photopolymerization process. The epoxy/GO film with just 0.05 wt% GO gives a 93% WVTR reduction with respect to the pristine polymer, reaching barrier properties better than other polymer composites containing higher amounts of graphene. The excellent water vapor barrier is attributed to the good dispersion of GO in the polymer matrix. Moreover, GO significantly enhances the toughness and the damping capacity of the epoxy resins. The hybrid film can have potential applications in anticorrosive coatings, electronic devices, pharmaceuticals and food packaging.

Photocured epoxy/graphene nanocomposites with enhanced water vapor barrier properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Periolatto, M.; Spena, P. Russo; Sangermano, M.

2016-01-01

A transparent, water vapor barrier film made of an epoxy resin and graphene oxide (GO) was synthesized by photopolymerization process. The epoxy/GO film with just 0.05 wt% GO gives a 93% WVTR reduction with respect to the pristine polymer, reaching barrier properties better than other polymer composites containing higher amounts of graphene. The excellent water vapor barrier is attributed to the good dispersion of GO in the polymer matrix. Moreover, GO significantly enhances the toughness and the damping capacity of the epoxy resins. The hybrid film can have potential applications in anticorrosive coatings, electronic devices, pharmaceuticals and food packaging.

The detection of leaks on sodium pipes in a 'leak before break' approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Antonakas, D.

1989-01-01

The operation of circuits containing liquid sodium requires, given the chemical affinity of this fluid for air and water, a reliable detection of possible leaks. This system of detection should alert the operators to the occurrence of a leak in sufficient time to limit the potential consequences of a discharge of sodium in the building, leading to a severe sodium fire or at least to an extended corrosion of the pipe system. From a design point of view, the most likely event leading to this situation can be the consequence. of an initial undetected defect which develops under the effect of thermo-mechanical loadings, produces a sodium. leak below the dejection threshold remains undetectable white progressing and finally leads to a guillotine-type rupture when an incidental loading is superimposed to the normal one. The 'leak before break' approach which is now currently introduced in design considerations consists of insuring the detection of incipient leaks corresponding to through-the-wall cracks well below instability of the pipe. Under this short statement, lies a considerable and still necessary effort of research broadly presented in the present paper

Volatilized tritiated water vapor in the vicinity of exposed tritium contaminated groundwater

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dunn, D.L.; Carlton, B.; Hunter, C.; McAdams, T.

1994-01-01

Water vapor tritium concentrations in air above a known source of tritiated water can be estimated. Estimates should account for the mechanisms of evaporation and condensation at the water surface and water species exchange, and are typically applicable under a broad range of wind, temperature and humidity conditions. An estimate of volatilized tritium water vapor was made for a known outcropping of tritium contaminated groundwater at the Savannah River Site (SRS) old F-Area effluent stream. In order to validate this estimate and the associated dose calculation, sampling equipment was fabricated, tested, and installed at the effluent stream. The estimate and the dose calculation were confirmed using data from samples collected

Oil/gas collector/separator for underwater oil leaks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Henning, C.D.

1992-12-31

This invention is comprised of an oil/gas collector/separator for recovery of oil leaking, for example, from an offshore or underwater oil well. The separator is floated over the point of the leak and tethered in place so as to receive oil/gas floating, or forced under pressure, toward the water surface from either a broken or leaking oil well casing, line, or sunken ship. The separator is provided with a downwardly extending skirt to contain the oil/gas which floats or is forced upward into a dome wherein the gas is separated from the oil/water, with the gas being flared (burned) at the top of the dome, and the oil is separated from water and pumped to a point of use. Since the density of oil is less than that of water it can be easily separated from any water entering the dome.

SEPARATION OF WATER VAPORS FROM AIR BY SORPTION ON SOME COMPOSITE MATERIALS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

OANA HAUTĂ

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This work presents an experimental investigation of the kinetics of water vapor sorption on two composites synthesized by impregnating activated carbon and activated alumina respectively with lithium bromide (named as MCA2 and MCC2 respectively. The obtained results showed an increase in water amount adsorbed on both composite materials. Due to different chemical natures of the host matrices, the water sorption kinetics on MCC2 is faster compared to that of MCA2. The presence of calcium chloride instead of lithium bromide in alumina pores will determine a shorter breakthrough time and a higher adsorption rate of water vapors.

A Water Vapor Differential Absorption LIDAR Design for Unpiloted Aerial Vehicles

Science.gov (United States)

DeYoung, Russell J.; Mead, Patricia F.

2004-01-01

This system study proposes the deployment of a water vapor Differential Absorption LIDAR (DIAL) system on an Altair unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platform. The Altair offers improved payload weight and volume performance, and longer total flight time as compared to other commercial UAV's. This study has generated a preliminary design for an Altair based water vapor DIAL system. The design includes a proposed DIAL schematic, a review of mechanical challenges such as temperature and humidity stresses on UAV deployed DIAL systems, an assessment of the available capacity for additional instrumentation (based on the proposed design), and an overview of possible weight and volume improvements associated with the use of customized electronic and computer hardware, and through the integration of advanced fiber-optic and laser products. The results of the study show that less than 17% of the available weight, less than 19% of the volume capacity, and approximately 11% of the electrical capacity is utilized by the proposed water vapor DIAL system on the Altair UAV.

A Correlated Active Acoustic Leak Detection in a SFR Steam Generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Tae Joon; Jeong, Ji Young; Kim, Jong Man; Kim, Byung Ho; Kim, Yong Il

2009-01-01

The methods of acoustic leak detection are active acoustic leak detection and passive acoustic leak detection. The methods for passive acoustic leak detection are already established, but because our goal is development of passive acoustic leak detection for detecting a leakage range of small and micro leak rates, it is difficult detecting a leak in steam generator using this developed passive acoustic leak detection. Thus the acoustic leak detection system is required to be able to detect wide range of water leaks. From this view point we need to develop an active acoustic leak detection technology to be able to detect intermediate leak rates

Airborne Observations of Water Vapor Deuterium Excess in the Mid-Latitude Lower Troposphere

Science.gov (United States)

Salmon, O. E.; Welp, L.; Shepson, P. B.; Stirm, B. H.

2017-12-01

Water vapor is responsible for over half of the natural atmospheric greenhouse effect. As global temperatures increase due to fossil fuel combustion, atmospheric water vapor concentrations are also expected to increase in positive feedback. Additionally, studies have shown that urban areas can influence humidity levels, and the frequency and intensity of precipitation events. It is thus important to understand anthropogenic modification of the hydrological cycle, particularly around urban areas, where over half of the world's population resides. Airborne measurements of water vapor isotopologues containing 2H and 18O were conducted to better understand processes influencing atmospheric moisture levels around urban areas. Airborne measurements were conducted around the Indianapolis and Washington, D.C.-Baltimore areas during afternoon hours in February and March 2016, using a Los Gatos Research Water Vapor Isotope Analyzer installed in Purdue University's experimental aircraft, the Airborne Laboratory for Atmospheric Research. The measurements of 2H and 18O allow for the calculation of deuterium excess (= δ2H - 8*δ18O), which provides information about non-equilibrium processes, such as kinetic effects, air parcel mixing, and transpiration. There are few studies that have reported observations of deuterium excess above the surface level ( 100 m). During the measurement campaign, vertical profiles were frequently conducted from 300 m above the ground to an altitude of approximately 1.5 km, effectively characterizing water vapor isotope profiles spanning the boundary layer and lower free troposphere. Measurements probed the transition from planetary boundary layer air to free troposphere air to provide high resolution deuterium excess information across this interface. Processes such as Rayleigh distillation, atmospheric mixing, and surface fluxes potentially impacting water vapor deuterium excess through the boundary layer and free troposphere with be discussed.

Stability limit of liquid water in metastable equilibrium with subsaturated vapors.

Science.gov (United States)

Wheeler, Tobias D; Stroock, Abraham D

2009-07-07

A pure liquid can reach metastable equilibrium with its subsaturated vapor across an appropriate membrane. This situation is analogous to osmotic equilibrium: the reduced chemical potential of the dilute phase (the subsaturated vapor) is compensated by a difference in pressure between the phases. To equilibrate with subsaturated vapor, the liquid phase assumes a pressure that is lower than its standard vapor pressure, such that the liquid phase is metastable with respect to the vapor phase. For sufficiently subsaturated vapors, the liquid phase can even assume negative pressures. The appropriate membrane for this metastable equilibrium must provide the necessary mechanical support to sustain the difference in pressure between the two phases, limit nonhomogeneous mechanisms of cavitation, and resist the entry of the dilutant (gases) into the pure phase (liquid). In this article, we present a study of the limit of stability of liquid water--the degree of subsaturation at which the liquid cavitates--in this metastable state within microscale voids embedded in hydrogel membranes. We refer to these structures as vapor-coupled voids (VCVs). In these VCVs, we observed that liquid water cavitated when placed in equilibrium with vapors of activity aw,vapairhumiditynucleation theory or molecular simulations (Pcav=-140 to -180 MPa). To determine the cause of the disparity between the observed and predicted stability limit, we examine experimentally the likelihood of several nonhomogeneous mechanisms of nucleation: (i) heterogeneous nucleation caused by hydrophobic patches on void walls, (ii) nucleation caused by the presence of dissolved solute, (iii) nucleation caused by the presence of pre-existing vapor nuclei, and (iv) invasion of air through the hydrogel membrane into the voids. We conclude that, of these possibilities, (i) and (ii) cannot be discounted, whereas (iii) and (iv) are unlikely to play a role in determining the stability limit.

Climatic Analysis of Oceanic Water Vapor Transports Based on Satellite E-P Datasets

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Eric A.; Sohn, Byung-Ju; Mehta, Vikram

2004-01-01

Understanding the climatically varying properties of water vapor transports from a robust observational perspective is an essential step in calibrating climate models. This is tantamount to measuring year-to-year changes of monthly- or seasonally-averaged, divergent water vapor transport distributions. This cannot be done effectively with conventional radiosonde data over ocean regions where sounding data are generally sparse. This talk describes how a methodology designed to derive atmospheric water vapor transports over the world oceans from satellite-retrieved precipitation (P) and evaporation (E) datasets circumvents the problem of inadequate sampling. Ultimately, the method is intended to take advantage of the relatively complete and consistent coverage, as well as continuity in sampling, associated with E and P datasets obtained from satellite measurements. Independent P and E retrievals from Special Sensor Microwave Imager (SSM/I) measurements, along with P retrievals from Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) measurements, are used to obtain transports by solving a potential function for the divergence of water vapor transport as balanced by large scale E - P conditions.

Effects of convective ice evaporation on interannual variability of tropical tropopause layer water vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Ye, Hao; Dessler, Andrew E.; Yu, Wandi

2018-04-01

Water vapor interannual variability in the tropical tropopause layer (TTL) is investigated using satellite observations and model simulations. We break down the influences of the Brewer-Dobson circulation (BDC), the quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO), and the tropospheric temperature (ΔT) on TTL water vapor as a function of latitude and longitude using a two-dimensional multivariate linear regression. This allows us to examine the spatial distribution of the impact of each process on TTL water vapor. In agreement with expectations, we find that the impacts from the BDC and QBO act on TTL water vapor by changing TTL temperature. For ΔT, we find that TTL temperatures alone cannot explain the influence. We hypothesize a moistening role for the evaporation of convective ice from increased deep convection as the troposphere warms. Tests using a chemistry-climate model, the Goddard Earth Observing System Chemistry Climate Model (GEOSCCM), support this hypothesis.

Improved lifetime of chitosan film in converting water vapor to electrical power by adding carboxymethyl cellulose

Science.gov (United States)

Nasution, T. I.; Balyan, M.; Nainggolan, I.

2018-02-01

A Water vapor cell based on chitosan film has been successfully fabricated in film form to convert water vapor to electrical power. In order to improve the lifetime of water vapor cell, Carboxymethyl Cellulose (CMC) was added into 1% chitosan solution within concentration variations of 0.01, 0.05, 0.1 and 0.5%. The result showed that the lifetime of water vapor cell increased higher by adding the higher concentration of Carboxymethyl cellulose. The highest lifetime was evidenced by adding 0.5%CMC which maintained for 48 weeks. However, the average electrical power became lower to 4.621 µW. This electrical power lower than the addition of 0.1%CMC which maintained for 5.167 µW. While, the lifetime of chitosan-0.1%CMC film of 44 weeks is shorter compared to chitosan-0.5%CMC film. Based on FTIR characterization, it was founded that the chitosan structure did not change until the addition of 0.1%CMC. This caused the electrical power of water vapor cell degenerated. Therefore, chitosan-0.5%CMC film has excellent lifetime in converting water vapor to electrical power.

Calculational model for condensation of water vapor during an underground nuclear detonation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Knox, R.J.

1975-01-01

An empirally derived mathematical model was developed to calculate the pressure and temperature history during condensation of water vapor in an underground-nuclear-explosion cavity. The condensation process is non-isothermal. Use has been made of the Clapeyron-Clausius equation as a basis for development of the model. Analytic fits to the vapor pressure and the latent heat of vaporization for saturated-water vapor, together with an estimated value for the heat-transfer coefficient, have been used to describe the phenomena. The calculated pressure-history during condensation has been determined to be exponential, with a time constant somewhat less than that observed during the cooling of the superheated steam from the explosion. The behavior of the calculated condensation-pressure compares well with the observed-pressure record (until just prior to cavity collapse) for a particular nuclear-detonation event for which data is available

Sealing of leaks in the bioshield cooling system of three research reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

May, R.; Taylor, M.F.

1995-01-01

Water leaks have occurred in the bioshield cooling system of three research reactors. These leaks have been plugged with a sealant based on a blend of a water-based resin and a bentonite-type clay originally developed for sealing similar leaks on power reactors. The mechanism of sealing and development testing of the sealant are described. Application of the sealant to the three reactors sealed the leaks. However, unlike experience with leaks in steel and aluminium systems, some leaks reappeared after several months service - albeit at a leak rate only a very small fraction of the original leak rate. The recurrent defects were readily retreated with sealant and hence, in these instances, the treatment is an effective maintenance procedure for any ageing reactor rather than a permanent cure. (orig.)

Influence of absorption by environmental water vapor on radiation transfer in wildland fires

Science.gov (United States)

D. Frankman; B. W. Webb; B. W. Butler

2008-01-01

The attenuation of radiation transfer from wildland flames to fuel by environmental water vapor is investigated. Emission is tracked from points on an idealized flame to locations along the fuel bed while accounting for absorption by environmental water vapor in the intervening medium. The Spectral Line Weighted-sum-of-gray-gases approach was employed for treating the...

Colorimetric Detection of Water Vapor Using Metal-Organic Framework Composites.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Allendorf, Mark D. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

2017-12-01

Purpose: Water vapor trapped in encapsulation materials or enclosed volumes leads to corrosion issues for critical NW components. Sandia National Laboratories has created a new diagnostic to indicate the presence of water in weapon systems. Impact: Component exposure to water now can be determined instantly, without need for costly, time-consuming analytical methods.

Measurement of Vapor Flow As an Important Source of Water in Dry Land Eco-Hydrology

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Z.; He, Z.; Wang, Y.; Gao, Z.; Hishida, K.

2014-12-01

When the temperature of land surface is lower than that of air and deeper soils, water vapor gathers toward the ground surface where dew maybe formed depending on the prevailing dew point and wind speed. Some plants are able to absorb the dew and vapor flow while the soil can readily absorb both. Certain animals such as desert beetles and ants harvest the dew or fog for daily survival. Recently, it is also realized that the dew and vapor flow can be a life-saving amount of water for plant survival at the driest seasons of the year in arid and semi-arid regions. Researches are conducted to quantify the amount of near-surface vapor flow in arid and semi-arid regions in China and USA. Quantitative leaf water absorption and desorption functions were derived based on laboratory experiments. Results show that plant leaves absorb and release water at different speeds depending on species and varieties. The "ideal" native plants in the dry climates can quickly absorb water and slowly release it. This water-holding capacity of plant is characterized by the absorption and desorption functions derived for plant physiology and water balance studies. Field studies are conducted to measure the dynamic vapor flow movements from the atmosphere and the groundwater table to soil surface. Results show that dew is usually formed on soil and plant surfaces during the daily hours when the temperature gradients are inverted toward the soil surface. The amount of dew harvested using gravels on the soil surface was enough to support water melon agriculture on deserts. The vapor flow can be effectively intercepted by artificially seeded plants in semi-arid regions forming new forests. New studies are attempted to quantify the role of vapor flow for the survival of giant sequoias in the southern Sierra Nevada Mountains of California.

Retrieval of water vapor mixing ratios from a laser-based sensor

Science.gov (United States)

Tucker, George F.

1995-01-01

Langley Research Center has developed a novel external path sensor which monitors water vapor along an optical path between an airplane window and reflective material on the plane's engine. An infrared tunable diode laser is wavelength modulated across a water vapor absorption line at a frequency f. The 2f and DC signals are measured by a detector mounted adjacent to the laser. The 2f/DC ratio depends on the amount of wavelength modulation, the water vapor absorption line being observed, and the temperature, pressure, and water vapor content of the atmosphere. The present work concerns efforts to quantify the contributions of these factors and to derive a method for extracting the water vapor mixing ratio from the measurements. A 3 m cell was fabricated in order to perform laboratory tests of the sensor. Measurements of 2f/DC were made for a series of pressures and modulation amplitudes. During my 1994 faculty fellowship, a computer program was created which allowed 2f/DC to be calculated for any combination of the variables which effect it. This code was used to generate 2f/DC values for the conditions measured in the laboratory. The experimental and theoretical values agreed to within a few percent. As a result, the laser modulation amplitude can now be set in the field by comparing the response of the instrument to the calculated response as a function of modulation amplitude. Once the validity of the computer code was established, it was used to investigate possible candidate absorption lines. 2f/DC values were calculated for pressures, temperatures, and water vapor mixing ratios expected to be encountered in future missions. The results have been incorporated into a database which will be used to select the best line for a particular mission. The database will also be used to select a retrieval technique. For examples under some circumstances there is little temperature dependence in 2f/DC so temperature can be neglected. In other cases, there is a dependence

Significant Features of Warm Season Water Vapor Flux Related to Heavy Rainfall and Draught in Japan

Science.gov (United States)

Nishiyama, Koji; Iseri, Yoshihiko; Jinno, Kenji

2009-11-01

In this study, our objective is to reveal complicated relationships between spatial water vapor inflow patterns and heavy rainfall activities in Kyushu located in the western part of Japan, using the outcomes of pattern recognition of water vapor inflow, based on the Self-Organizing Map. Consequently, it could be confirmed that water vapor inflow patterns control the distribution and the frequency of heavy rainfall depending on the direction of their fluxes and the intensity of Precipitable water. Historically serious flood disasters in South Kyushu in 1993 were characterized by high frequency of the water vapor inflow patterns linking to heavy rainfall. On the other hand, severe draught in 1994 was characterized by inactive frontal activity that do not related to heavy rainfall.

Ground-based observations of Mars and Venus water vapor during 1972 and 1973

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barker, E.S.

1974-01-01

The Venus water vapor line at 8197.71 A has been monitored at several positions on the disk of Venus and at phase angles between 22 0 and 91 0 . Variations in the abundance have been found with both position and time. The total two-way transmission has varied from less than 5 to 77 μ of water vapor. Comparisons are made between water vapor abundance, presence of UV features and the CO 2 abundance determined from near simultaneous observations of CO 2 bands at the same position on the disk of Venus. The amount of Martian atmospheric water vapor has been monitored during the past two years at McDonald Observatory using the echelle coude scanner of the 272cm reflector. Two periods of the Martain year have been monitored. The first period was during and after the great 1971 dust storm (Lsub(s)=290 0 to 20 0 or summer in the southern hemisphere). The results obtained are compared to the Mariner 9 IRIS and Mars 3 observations made during the same period. During the second period (Lsub(s)=124 0 to 266 0 ) observations were made to follow the seasonal latitudinal and diurnal changes in the water abundance in the Martian atmosphere. Studies of the latitudinal and diurnal vapor distributions indicate the location of maximum and minimum abundances for this season are positively correlated with surface temperature variations. (Auth.)

An integrated leak detection system for the ALMR steam generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dayal, Y.; Gaubatz, D.C.; Wong, K.K.; Greene, D.A.

1995-01-01

The steam generator (SG) of the Advanced Liquid Metal Reactor (ALMR) system serves as a heat exchanger between the shell side secondary loop hot liquid sodium and the tube side water/steam mixture. A leak in the tube will result in the injection of the higher pressure water/steam into the sodium and cause an exothermic sodium-water reaction. An initial small leak (less than 1 gm/sec) can escalate into an intermediate size leak in a relatively short time by self enlargement of the original flaw and by initiating leaks in neighboring tubes. If not stopped, complete rupture of one or more tubes can cause injection rates of thousands of gm/sec and result in the over pressurization of the secondary loop rupture disk and dumping of the sodium to relieve pressure. The down time associated with severe sodium-water reaction damage has great adverse economic consequence. An integrated leak detection system (ILDS) has been developed which utilizes both chemical and acoustic sensors for improved leak detection. The system provides SG leak status to the reactor operator and is reliable enough to trigger automatic control action to protect the SG. The ILDS chemical subsystem uses conventional in-sodium and cover gas hydrogen detectors and incorporates knowledge based effects due to process parameters for improved reliability. The ILDS acoustic subsystem uses an array of acoustic sensors and incorporates acoustic beamforming technology for highly reliable and accurate leak identification and location. The new ILDS combines the small leak detection capability of the chemical system with the reliability and rapid detection/location capability of the acoustic system to provide a significantly improved level of protection for the SG over a wide range of operation conditions. (author)

Development of acoustic leak detection system in PNC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tanabe, H.; Kuroha, M.

1990-01-01

The development of an acoustic leak detector is under way at PNC as a detection system that has potential of quick response and high reliability for larger steam generators of future LMFBR plants. The studies have two aspects, i.e., an acoustic wave analysis in various sodium-water reactions and a background noise (BGN) analysis in a sodium-heated 50MWt steam generator (50MWGS). In the former analysis, wave profiles of the sodium-water reaction sound were analyzed and compared with those of inert gas injection sound. The comparison revealed that there were no wave profiles specific to a sodium-water reaction sound. The latter clarified that major acoustic sources in the steam generator were sodium flow and steam generation/flow and that the water leak rate at which a noise level was comparable with that of the background noise was about 0.5 g/sec. in the evaporator of 50MWSG. The estimation of acceleration levels of BGN and leak sounds in other plants reveals that an intermediate leak is detectable in the Monju evaporator with a present acoustic detection system. (author). 2 refs, 9 figs

Radiation leaking protection device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sunami, Yoshio; Mitsumori, Kojiro

1980-01-01

Purpose: To prevent radioactivity from leaking outside of a reactor container by way of pipeways passing therethrough, by supplying pressurized fluid between each of a plurality of valves for separating the pipeways. Constitution: Pressurized fluid is supplied between each of a plurality of valves for separating pipeways. For instance, water in a purified water tank is pressurized by a pressure pump and the pressure of the pressurized water is controlled by a differential pressure detector, a pressure controller and a pressure control valve. In the case if a main steam pipe is ruptured outside of the reactor container or to be repaired, the separation valves are wholly closed and then the pressurizing device is actuated to supply pressurized water containing no radioactivity from the purified water tank to the position between the valves. The pressure in the pressurized water is controlled such that it is always higher by a predetermined level than the pressure in the reactor. This prevents the radioacitivity in the reactor core from leaking outside of the container passing through the valves, whereby radiation exposure in the working can be reduced and the circumferential contamination upon accident of pipeway rupture can be decreased. (Kawakami, Y.)

Final evaluation of advanced and current leak detection systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kupperman, D.S.; Carlson, R.; Brewer, W.; Lanham, R.

1989-01-01

This report presents the results of a study to evaluate the adequacy of leak detection systems in light water reactors. The sources of numerous reported leaks and methods of detection have been documented. Research to advance the state of the art of acoustic leak detection is presented, and procedures for implementation are discussed

Study and mitigation of calibration factor instabilities in a water vapor Raman lidar

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. David

2017-07-01

Full Text Available We have investigated calibration variations in the Rameau water vapor Raman lidar. This lidar system was developed by the Institut National de l'Information Géographique et Forestière (IGN together with the Laboratoire Atmosphères, Milieux, Observations Spatiales (LATMOS. It aims at calibrating Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS measurements for tropospheric wet delays and sounding the water vapor variability in the lower troposphere. The Rameau system demonstrated good capacity in retrieving water vapor mixing ratio (WVMR profiles accurately in several campaigns. However, systematic short-term and long-term variations in the lidar calibration factor pointed to persistent instabilities. A careful testing of each subsystem independently revealed that these instabilities are mainly induced by mode fluctuations in the optic fiber used to couple the telescope to the detection subsystem and by the spatial nonuniformity of the photomultiplier photocathodes. Laboratory tests that replicate and quantify these instability sources are presented. A redesign of the detection subsystem is presented, which, combined with careful alignment procedures, is shown to significantly reduce the instabilities. Outdoor measurements were performed over a period of 5 months to check the stability of the modified lidar system. The calibration changes in the detection subsystem were monitored with lidar profile measurements using a common nitrogen filter in both Raman channels. A short-term stability of 2–3 % and a long-term drift of 2–3 % per month are demonstrated. Compared to the earlier Development of Methodologies for Water Vapour Measurement (DEMEVAP campaign, this is a 3-fold improvement in the long-term stability of the detection subsystem. The overall water vapor calibration factors were determined and monitored with capacitive humidity sensor measurements and with GPS zenith wet delay (ZWD data. The changes in the water vapor calibration factors

Contrasting Effects of Central Pacific and Eastern Pacific El Nino on Stratospheric Water Vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Garfinkel, Chaim I.; Hurwitz, Margaret M.; Oman, Luke D.; Waugh, Darryn W.

2013-01-01

Targeted experiments with a comprehensive chemistry-climate model are used to demonstrate that seasonality and the location of the peak warming of sea surface temperatures dictate the response of stratospheric water vapor to El Nino. In spring, El Nino events in which sea surface temperature anomalies peak in the eastern Pacific lead to a warming at the tropopause above the warm pool region, and subsequently to more stratospheric water vapor (consistent with previous work). However, in fall and in early winter, and also during El Nino events in which the sea surface temperature anomaly is found mainly in the central Pacific, the response is qualitatively different: temperature changes in the warm pool region are nonuniform and less water vapor enters the stratosphere. The difference in water vapor in the lower stratosphere between the two variants of El Nino approaches 0.3 ppmv, while the difference between the winter and spring responses exceeds 0.5 ppmv.

Development of knowledge-based operator support system for steam generator water leak events in FBR plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arikawa, Hiroshi; Ida, Toshio; Matsumoto, Hiroyuki; Kishida, Masako

1991-01-01

A knowledge engineering approach to operation support system would be useful in maintaining safe and steady operation in nuclear plants. This paper describes a knowledge-based operation support system which assists the operators during steam generator water leak events in FBR plants. We have developed a real-time expert system. The expert system adopts hierarchical knowledge representation corresponding to the 'plant abnormality model'. A technique of signal validation which uses knowledge of symptom propagation are applied to diagnosis. In order to verify the knowledge base concerning steam generator water leak events in FBR plants, a simulator is linked to the expert system. It is revealed that diagnosis based on 'plant abnormality model' and signal validation using knowledge of symptom propagation could work successfully. Also, it is suggested that the expert system could be useful in supporting FBR plants operations. (author)

Leak detector for reactor pressure vessel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morimoto, Mikio.

1991-01-01

A branched pipe is disposed to a leak off pipeline led from a flange surface which connects the main body and the upper lid of a reactor pressure vessel. An exhaust pump is disposed to the branched pipe and a moisture gage is disposed on the side of the exhaustion and a dry air supplier is connected to the branched pipe. Upon conducting a pressure-proof leak test for the reactor pressure vessel, the exhaust pump is operated and an electromagnet valve disposed at the upstream of the dry air supplier is opened and closed repeatedly. The humidity of air sucked by the exhaust pump is detected by the moisture gage. If leaks should be caused in the joining surface of the flange, leaked water is diffused as steams. Accordingly, occurrence of leak can be detected instantly based on the comparison with the moisture level of the dry air as a standard. In this way, a leak test can be conducted reliably in a short period of time with no change of for the reactor pressure container itself. (I.N.)

Operational experiences with on line BWR condenser tube leak verification

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bryant, R.A.; Duvall, W.E.; Kirkley, W.B.; Zavadoski, R.W.

1988-01-01

Verifying condenser tube leaks at a boiling water reactor is, at best, a difficult task carried out in hot steamy water boxes with concurrent radiation exposure. For small apparent leaks with slight chemical changes there is always uncertainty of whether the problem is a condenser tube leak or a feedback from radwaste. Most conventional methods (e.g soap tests, Saran wrap suction, and helium tests) usually involve a load reduction to isolate the water boxes one at a time and hours of drain down on each box. The sensitivity of the most sensitive test (helium) is of the order of 7500 l per day per box. Sulfur hexafluoride has been successfully used at a BWR to identify one leaking water box out of four while the unit was at 100 % power. The actual tubes leakig in the water box were identified by injecting helium during drain down of the box and subsequent manifold testing. Additional tests with sulfur hexafluoride on the second BWR unit indicated tight water boxes to within the sensitivity of the measurement, i.e. less than 19 l per day for all four boxes. Problems encountered in both tests included sulfur hexafluoride carry over from the plume of the cooling towers and off gas considerations. In brief sulfur hexafluoride can be used to quickly identify which particular water box has a condenser tube leak or, just as quickly, establish the integrity of all the water boxes to a level not previously attainable. (author)

Water vapor as a perspective coolant for fast reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kalafati, D.D.; Petrov, S.I.

1978-01-01

Based on analysis of foreign projects of nuclear power plants with steam-cooled fast reactors, it is shown that low breeding ratio and large doubling time were caused by using nickel alloys, high vapor pressure and small volume heat release. The possibility is shown of obtaining doubling time in the necessary limits of T 2 =10-12 years when the above reasons for steam-cooled reactors are eliminated. Favourable combination of thermophysical and thermodynamic properties of water vapor makes it perspective coolant for power fast reactors

Water vapor changes under global warming and the linkage to present-day interannual variabilities in CMIP5 models

Science.gov (United States)

Takahashi, Hanii; Su, Hui; Jiang, Jonathan H.

2016-12-01

The fractional water vapor changes under global warming across 14 Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 simulations are analyzed. We show that the mean fractional water vapor changes under global warming in the tropical upper troposphere between 300 and 100 hPa range from 12.4 to 28.0 %/K across all models while the fractional water vapor changes are about 5-8 %/K in other regions and at lower altitudes. The "upper-tropospheric amplification" of the water vapor change is primarily driven by a larger temperature increase in the upper troposphere than in the lower troposphere per degree of surface warming. The relative contributions of atmospheric temperature and relative humidity changes to the water vapor change in each model vary between 71.5 to 131.8 % and 24.8 to -20.1 %, respectively. The inter-model differences in the water vapor change is primarily caused by differences in temperature change, except over the inter-tropical convergence zone within 10°S-10°N where the model differences due to the relative humidity change are significant. Furthermore, we find that there is generally a positive correlation between the rates of water vapor change for long-tem surface warming and those on the interannual time scales. However, the rates of water vapor change under long-term warming have a systematic offset from those on the inter-annual time scales and the dominant contributor to the differences also differs for the two time scales, suggesting caution needs to be taken when inferring long-term water vapor changes from the observed interannual variations.

Raman scattering temperature measurements for water vapor in nonequilibrium dispersed two-phase flow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anastasia, C.M.; Neti, S.; Smith, W.R.; Chen, J.C.

1982-09-01

The objective of this investigation was to determine the feasibility of using Raman scattering as a nonintrusive technique to measure vapor temperatures in dispersed two-phase flow. The Raman system developed for this investigation is described, including alignment of optics and optimization of the photodetector for photon pulse counting. Experimentally obtained Raman spectra are presented for the following single- and two-phase samples: liquid water, atmospheric nitrogen, superheated steam, nitrogen and water droplets in a high void fraction air/water mist, and superheated water vapor in nonequilibrium dispersed flow

Energetic particle induced desorption of water vapor cryo-condensate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Menon, M.M.; Owen, L.W.; Simpkins, J.E.; Uckan, T.; Mioduszewski, P.K.

1990-01-01

An in-vessel cryo-condensation pump is being designed for the Advanced Divertor configuration of the DIII-D tokamak. To assess the importance of possible desorption of water vapor from the cryogenic surfaces of the pump due to impingement of energetic particles from the plasma, a 77 K surface on which a thin layer of water vapor was condensed was exposed to a tenuous plasma (density = 2 x 10 10 cm -3 , electron temperature = 3 eV). Significant desorption of the condensate occurred, suggesting that impingement of energeticparticles (10 eV) at flux levels of ∼10 16 cm 2 s -1 on cryogenic surfaces could potentially induce impurity problems in the tokamak plasma. A pumping configuration is presented in which this problem is minimized without sacrificing the pumping speed

Evaluating the skills of isotope-enabled general circulation models against in situ atmospheric water vapor isotope observations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Steen-Larsen, Hans Christian; Risi, C.; Werner, M.

2017-01-01

The skills of isotope-enabled general circulation models are evaluated against atmospheric water vapor isotopes. We have combined in situ observations of surface water vapor isotopes spanning multiple field seasons (2010, 2011, and 2012) from the top of the Greenland Ice Sheet (NEEM site: 77.45°N......: 2014). This allows us to benchmark the ability to simulate the daily water vapor isotope variations from five different simulations using isotope-enabled general circulation models. Our model-data comparison documents clear isotope biases both on top of the Greenland Ice Sheet (1-11% for δ18O and 4...... boundary layer water vapor isotopes of the Baffin Bay region show strong influence on the water vapor isotopes at the NEEM deep ice core-drilling site in northwest Greenland. Our evaluation of the simulations using isotope-enabled general circulation models also documents wide intermodel spatial...

Improved cell for water-vapor electrolysis

Science.gov (United States)

Aylward, J. R.

1981-01-01

Continuous-flow electrolytic cells decompose water vapor in steam and room air into hydrogen and oxygen. Sintered iridium oxide catalytic anode coating yields dissociation rates hundredfold greater than those obtained using platinum black. Cell consists of two mirror-image cells, with dual cathode sandwiched between two anodes. Gas traverses serpentine channels within cell and is dissociated at anode. Oxygen mingles with gas stream, while hydrogen migrates through porous matrix and is liberated as gas at cathode.

Pebax®1657/Graphene oxide composite membranes for improved water vapor separation

KAUST Repository

Akhtar, Faheem Hassan; Kumar, Mahendra; Peinemann, Klaus-Viktor

2016-01-01

In this study composite mixed matrix membranes containing hydrophilic microphase-separated block copolymer (Pebax® 1657) and graphene oxide nanosheets were prepared using a dip coating method. Water vapor and N2 gas permeation were measured as a function of different parameters: (i) layer thickness, (ii) content of graphene oxide (GO), and (iii) content of reduced GO. Surprisingly, a concentration of only 2 wt% of GO nanosheets well dispersed in the Pebax layer boosted the selectivity 8 times by decreasing the water vapor permeance by only 12% whereas N2 gas permeance decreased by 70%. Using reduced GO instead, the water vapor permeance declined by up to 16% with no influence on the N2 gas permeance. We correlated the permeation properties of the mixed matrix membranes with different models and found, that both the modified Nielsen model and the Cussler model give good correlation with experimental findings.

Pebax®1657/Graphene oxide composite membranes for improved water vapor separation

KAUST Repository

Akhtar, Faheem Hassan

2016-11-02

In this study composite mixed matrix membranes containing hydrophilic microphase-separated block copolymer (Pebax® 1657) and graphene oxide nanosheets were prepared using a dip coating method. Water vapor and N2 gas permeation were measured as a function of different parameters: (i) layer thickness, (ii) content of graphene oxide (GO), and (iii) content of reduced GO. Surprisingly, a concentration of only 2 wt% of GO nanosheets well dispersed in the Pebax layer boosted the selectivity 8 times by decreasing the water vapor permeance by only 12% whereas N2 gas permeance decreased by 70%. Using reduced GO instead, the water vapor permeance declined by up to 16% with no influence on the N2 gas permeance. We correlated the permeation properties of the mixed matrix membranes with different models and found, that both the modified Nielsen model and the Cussler model give good correlation with experimental findings.

Observation of Mountain Lee Waves with MODIS NIR Column Water Vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Lyapustin, A.; Alexander, M. J.; Ott, L.; Molod, A.; Holben, B.; Susskind, J.; Wang, Y.

2014-01-01

Mountain lee waves have been previously observed in data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) "water vapor" 6.7 micrometers channel which has a typical peak sensitivity at 550 hPa in the free troposphere. This paper reports the first observation of mountain waves generated by the Appalachian Mountains in the MODIS total column water vapor (CWV) product derived from near-infrared (NIR) (0.94 micrometers) measurements, which indicate perturbations very close to the surface. The CWV waves are usually observed during spring and late fall or some summer days with low to moderate CWV (below is approx. 2 cm). The observed lee waves display wavelengths from3-4 to 15kmwith an amplitude of variation often comparable to is approx. 50-70% of the total CWV. Since the bulk of atmospheric water vapor is confined to the boundary layer, this indicates that the impact of thesewaves extends deep into the boundary layer, and these may be the lowest level signatures of mountain lee waves presently detected by remote sensing over the land.

Leak rate models and leak detection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

Leak detection may be carried out by a number of detection systems, but selection of the systems must be carefully adapted to the fluid state and the location of the leak in the reactor coolant system. Computer programs for the calculation of leak rates contain different models to take into account the fluid state before its entrance into the crack, and they have to be verified by experiments; agreement between experiments and calculations is generally not satisfactory for very small leak rates resulting from narrow cracks or from a closing bending moment

Doppler method leak detection for LMFBR steam generators. Pt. 2. Detection characteristics of bubble in-water using large scale SG model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumagai, Hiromichi

2000-01-01

To prevent the expansion of tube damage and to maintain structural integrity in the steam generators (SGs) of a fast breeder reactor (FBR), it is necessary to detect precisely and immediately the leakage of water from heat transfer tubes. Therefore, an active acoustic method was developed. Previous studies have revealed that, in practical steam generators, the active acoustic method can detect bubbles of 10 l/s within 10 seconds. However to prevent the expansion of damage to neighboring tubes, it is necessary to detect smaller leakages of water from the heat transfer tubes. The Doppler method is designed to detect small leakages and to find the source of a leak before damage spreads to neighboring tubes. The detection sensitivity of the Doppler method and the influence of background noise were investigated experimentally. In-water experiments were performed using an SG full-sector model that simulates actual SGs. The results show that the Doppler method can detect bubbles of 0.1 l/s (equivalent to a water leak rate of about 0.1 g/s) within a few seconds and that the background noise has little effect on water leak detection performance. The Doppler method thus has great potential for the detection of water leakage in SGs. (author)

Distribution of binding energies of a water molecule in the water liquid-vapor interface

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chempath, Shaji [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Pratt, Lawrence R [TULANE UNIV

2008-01-01

Distributions of binding energies of a water molecule in the water liquid-vapor interface are obtained on the basis of molecular simulation with the SPC/E model of water. These binding energies together with the observed interfacial density profile are used to test a minimally conditioned Gaussian quasi-chemical statistical thermodynamic theory. Binding energy distributions for water molecules in that interfacial region clearly exhibit a composite structure. A minimally conditioned Gaussian quasi-chemical model that is accurate for the free energy of bulk liquid water breaks down for water molecules in the liquid-vapor interfacial region. This breakdown is associated with the fact that this minimally conditioned Gaussian model would be inaccurate for the statistical thermodynamics of a dilute gas. Aggressive conditioning greatly improves the performance of that Gaussian quasi-chemical model. The analogy between the Gaussian quasi-chemical model and dielectric models of hydration free energies suggests that naive dielectric models without the conditioning features of quasi-chemical theory will be unreliable for these interfacial problems. Multi-Gaussian models that address the composite nature of the binding energy distributions observed in the interfacial region might provide a mechanism for correcting dielectric models for practical applications.

Partitioning the effects of Global Warming on the Hydrological Cycle with Stable Isotopes in Water Vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Dee, S. G.; Russell, J. M.; Nusbaumer, J. M.; Konecky, B. L.; Buenning, N. H.; Lee, J. E.; Noone, D.

2016-12-01

General circulation models (GCMs) suggest that much of the global hydrological cycle's response to anthropogenic warming will be caused by increased lower-tropospheric water vapor concentrations and associated feedbacks. However, fingerprinting changes in the global hydrological cycle due to anthropogenic warming remains challenging. Held and Soden (2006) predicted that as lower-tropospheric water vapor increases, atmospheric circulation will weaken as climate warms to maintain the surface energy budget. Unfortunately, the strength of this feedback and the fallout for other branches of the hydrological cycle is difficult to constrain in situ or with GCMs alone. We demonstrate the utility of stable hydrogen isotope ratios in atmospheric water vapor to quantitatively trace changes in atmospheric circulation and convective mass flux in a warming world. We compare water isotope-enabled GCM experiments for control (present-day) CO2 vs. high CO2(2x, 4x) atmospheres in two GCMs, IsoGSM and iCAM5. We evaluate changes in the distribution of water vapor, vertical velocity (omega), and the stream function between these experiments in order to identify spatial patterns of circulation change over the tropical Pacific (where vertical motion is strong) and map the δD of water vapor associated with atmospheric warming. We also probe the simulations to isolate isotopic signatures associated with water vapor residence time, precipitation efficiency, divergence, and cloud physics. We show that there are robust mechanisms that moisten the troposphere and weaken convective mass flux, and that these mechanisms can be tracked using the δD of water vapor. Further, we find that these responses are most pronounced in the upper troposphere. These findings provide a framework to develop new metrics for the detection of global warming impacts to the hydrological cycle. Further, currently available satellite missions measure δD in the atmospheric boundary layer, the free atmosphere, or the

Cesium vapor cycle for an advanced LMFBR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fraas, A.P.

1975-01-01

A review indicates that a cesium vapor topping cycle appears attractive for use in the intermediate fluid circuit of an advanced LMFBR designed for a reactor outlet temperature of 1250 0 F or more and would have the following advantages: (1) it would increase the thermal efficiency by about 5 to 10 points (from approximately 40 percent to approximately 45 to 50 percent) thus reducing the amount of waste heat rejected to the environment by 15 to 30 percent. (2) the higher thermal efficiency should reduce the overall capital cost of the reactor plant in dollars per kilowatt. (3) the cesium can be distilled out of the intermediate fluid circuit to leave it bone-dry, thus greatly reducing the time and cost of maintenance work (particularly for the steam generator). (4) the large volume and low pressure of the cesium vapor region in the cesium condenser-steam generator greatly reduces the magnitude of pressure fluctuations that might occur in the event of a leak in a steam generator tube, and the characteristics inherent in a condenser make it easy to design for rapid concentration of any noncondensibles that may form as a consequence of a steam leak into the cesium region so that a steam leak can be detected easily in the very early stages of its development

Computer simulation of the NASA water vapor electrolysis reactor

Science.gov (United States)

Bloom, A. M.

1974-01-01

The water vapor electrolysis (WVE) reactor is a spacecraft waste reclamation system for extended-mission manned spacecraft. The WVE reactor's raw material is water, its product oxygen. A computer simulation of the WVE operational processes provided the data required for an optimal design of the WVE unit. The simulation process was implemented with the aid of a FORTRAN IV routine.

Water vapor measurements at ALOMAR over a solar cycle compared with model calculations by LIMA

Science.gov (United States)

Hartogh, P.; Sonnemann, G. R.; Grygalashvyly, M.; Song, Li; Berger, U.; Lübken, F.-J.

2010-01-01

Microwave water vapor measurements between 40 and 80 km altitude over a solar cycle (1996-2006) were carried out in high latitudes at Arctic Lidar Observatory for Middle Atmosphere Research (ALOMAR) (69.29°N, 16.03°E), Norway. Some smaller gaps and three interruptions of monitoring in the winters 1996/1997 and 2005/2006 and from spring 2001 to spring 2002 occurred during this period. The observations show a distinct year-to-year variability not directly related to solar Lyman-α radiation. In winter the water vapor mixing ratios in the upper domain were anticorrelated to the solar activity, whereas in summer, minima occurred in the years after the solar maximum in 2000/2001. In winter, sudden stratospheric warmings (SSWs) modulated the water vapor mixing ratios. Within the stratopause region a middle atmospheric water vapor maximum was observed, which results from the methane oxidation and is a regular feature there. The altitude of the maximum increased by approximately 5 km as summer approached. The largest mixing ratios were monitored in autumn. During the summer season a secondary water vapor maximum also occurred above 65 km most pronounced in late summer. The solar Lyman-α radiation impacts the water vapor mixing ratio particularly in winter above 65 km. In summer the correlation is positive below 70 km. The correlation is also positive in the lower mesosphere/stratopause region in winter due to the action of sudden stratospheric warmings, which occur more frequently under the condition of high solar activity and the enhancing the humidity. A strong day-to-day variability connected with planetary wave activity was found throughout the entire year. Model calculations by means of Leibniz-Institute Middle Atmosphere model (LIMA) reflect the essential patterns of the water vapor variation, but the results also show differences from the observations, indicating that exchange processes between the troposphere and stratosphere not modeled by LIMA could have

Adsorption characteristics of water vapor on ferroaluminophosphate for desalination cycle

KAUST Repository

Kim, Youngdeuk

2014-07-01

The adsorption characteristics of microporous ferroaluminophosphate adsorbent (FAM-Z01, Mitsubishi Plastics) are evaluated for possible application in adsorption desalination and cooling (AD) cycles. A particular interest is its water vapor uptake behavior at assorted adsorption temperatures and pressures whilst comparing them to the commercial silica gels of AD plants. The surface characteristics are first carried out using N2 gas adsorption followed by the water vapor uptake analysis for temperature ranging from 20°C to 80°C. We propose a hybrid isotherm model, composing of the Henry and the Sips isotherms, which can be integrated to satisfactorily fit the experimental data of water adsorption on the FAM-Z01. The hybrid model is selected to fit the unusual isotherm shapes, that is, a low adsorption in the initial section and followed by a rapid vapor uptake leading to a likely micropore volume filling by hydrogen bonding and cooperative interaction in micropores. It is shown that the equilibrium adsorption capacity of FAM-Z01 can be up to 5 folds higher than that of conventional silica gels. Owing to the quantum increase in the adsorbate uptake, the FAM-Z01 has the potential to significantly reduce the footprint of an existing AD plant for the same output capacity. © 2014 Elsevier B.V.

Major Upgrades to the AIRS Version-6 Water Vapor Profile Methodology

Science.gov (United States)

Susskind, Joel; Blaisdell, John; Iredell, Lena

2015-01-01

This research is a continuation of part of what was shown at the last AIRS Science Team Meeting and the AIRS 2015 NetMeeting. AIRS Version 6 was finalized in late 2012 and is now operational. Version 6 contained many significant improvements in retrieval methodology compared to Version 5. Version 6 retrieval methodology used for the water vapor profile q(p) and ozone profile O3(p) retrievals is basically unchanged from Version 5, or even from Version 4. Subsequent research has made significant improvements in both water vapor and O3 profiles compared to Version 6.

Microseismic response characteristics modeling and locating of underground water supply pipe leak

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, J.; Liu, J.

2015-12-01

In traditional methods of pipeline leak location, geophones must be located on the pipe wall. If the exact location of the pipeline is unknown, the leaks cannot be identified accurately. To solve this problem, taking into account the characteristics of the pipeline leak, we propose a continuous random seismic source model and construct geological models to investigate the proposed method for locating underground pipeline leaks. Based on two dimensional (2D) viscoacoustic equations and the staggered grid finite-difference (FD) algorithm, the microseismic wave field generated by a leaking pipe is modeled. Cross-correlation analysis and the simulated annealing (SA) algorithm were utilized to obtain the time difference and the leak location. We also analyze and discuss the effect of the number of recorded traces, the survey layout, and the offset and interval of the traces on the accuracy of the estimated location. The preliminary results of the simulation and data field experiment indicate that (1) a continuous random source can realistically represent the leak microseismic wave field in a simulation using 2D visco-acoustic equations and a staggered grid FD algorithm. (2) The cross-correlation method is effective for calculating the time difference of the direct wave relative to the reference trace. However, outside the refraction blind zone, the accuracy of the time difference is reduced by the effects of the refracted wave. (3) The acquisition method of time difference based on the microseismic theory and SA algorithm has a great potential for locating leaks from underground pipelines from an array located on the ground surface. Keywords: Viscoacoustic finite-difference simulation; continuous random source; simulated annealing algorithm; pipeline leak location

The Effect of Water Vapor on the Thermal Decomposition of Pyrite in N2 Atmosphere

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nesrin BOYABAT

2009-03-01

Full Text Available In this study, the effect of water vapor on the thermal decomposition of pyrite mineral in nitrogen atmosphere has been investigated in a horizontal tube furnace. Temperature, time and water vapor concentration were used as experimental parameters. According to the data obtained at nitrogen/ water vapor environment, it was observed that the water vapor on the decomposition of pyrite increased the decomposition rate. The decomposition reaction is well represented by the "shrinking core" model and can be divided into two regions with different rate controlling step. The rate controlling steps were determined from the heat transfer through the gas film for the low conversions, while it was determined from the mass transfer through product ash layer for the high conversions. The activation energies of this gas and ash film mechanisms were found to be 77 and 81 kJ/mol-1, respectively.

DETERMINING HOW VAPOR PHASE MTBE REACHES GROUND WATER

Science.gov (United States)

EPA Region 2 and ORD have funded a RARE project for FY 2005/2006 to evaluate the prospects that MTBE (and other fuel components) in vapors that escape from an underground storage tank (UST) can find its way to ground water produced by monitoring wells at a gasoline filling statio...

Retrieval of water vapor column abundance and aerosol properties from ChemCam passive sky spectroscopy

Science.gov (United States)

McConnochie, Timothy H.; Smith, Michael D.; Wolff, Michael J.; Bender, Steve; Lemmon, Mark; Wiens, Roger C.; Maurice, Sylvestre; Gasnault, Olivier; Lasue, Jeremie; Meslin, Pierre-Yves; Harri, Ari-Matti; Genzer, Maria; Kemppinen, Osku; Martínez, Germán M.; DeFlores, Lauren; Blaney, Diana; Johnson, Jeffrey R.; Bell, James F.

2018-06-01

We derive water vapor column abundances and aerosol properties from Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) ChemCam passive mode observations of scattered sky light. This paper covers the methodology and initial results for water vapor and also provides preliminary results for aerosols. The data set presented here includes the results of 113 observations spanning from Mars Year 31 Ls = 291° (March 30, 2013) to Mars Year 33 Ls= 127° (March 24, 2016). Each ChemCam passive sky observation acquires spectra at two different elevation angles. We fit these spectra with a discrete-ordinates multiple scattering radiative transfer model, using the correlated-k approximation for gas absorption bands. The retrieval proceeds by first fitting the continuum of the ratio of the two elevation angles to solve for aerosol properties, and then fitting the continuum-removed ratio to solve for gas abundances. The final step of the retrieval makes use of the observed CO2 absorptions and the known CO2 abundance to correct the retrieved water vapor abundance for the effects of the vertical distribution of scattering aerosols and to derive an aerosol scale height parameter. Our water vapor results give water vapor column abundance with a precision of ±0.6 precipitable microns and systematic errors no larger than ±0.3 precipitable microns, assuming uniform vertical mixing. The ChemCam-retrieved water abundances show, with only a few exceptions, the same seasonal behavior and the same timing of seasonal minima and maxima as the TES, CRISM, and REMS-H data sets that we compare them to. However ChemCam-retrieved water abundances are generally lower than zonal and regional scale from-orbit water vapor data, while at the same time being significantly larger than pre-dawn REMS-H abundances. Pending further analysis of REMS-H volume mixing ratio uncertainties, the differences between ChemCam and REMS-H pre-dawn mixing ratios appear to be much too large to be explained by large scale circulations and thus

COST AND PERFORMANCE REPORT: INNOVATIVE ACOUSTIC SENSOR TECHNOLOGIES FOR LEAK DETECTION IN CHALLENGING PIPE TYPES

Science.gov (United States)

2016-12-30

to limit the drawdown of local water supplies . Implementation of improved leak detection technologies and the timely repair of water mains will...functions and to limit the drawdown of local water supplies . DoD installations lose significant amounts of water through leaking pipe systems that are near... Water Supply Practices M36: Water Audits and Loss Control Programs (2009), leak detection surveys should be conducted every three years. Therefore, it

Improved estimation of leak location of pipelines using frequency band variation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Young Sup [Embedded System Engineering Department, Incheon National University, Incheon (Korea, Republic of); Yoon, Dong Jin [Safety Measurement Center, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2014-02-15

Leakage is an important factor to be considered for the management of underground water supply pipelines in a smart water grid system, especially if the pipelines are aged and buried under the pavement or various structures of a highly populated city. Because the exact detection of the location of such leaks in pipelines is essential for their efficient operation, a new methodology for leak location detection based on frequency band variation, windowing filters, and probability is proposed in this paper. Because the exact detection of the leak location depends on the precision of estimation of time delay between sensor signals due to leak noise, some window functions that offer weightings at significant frequencies are applied for calculating the improved cross-correlation function. Experimental results obtained by applying this methodology to an actual buried water supply pipeline, ∼ 253.9 m long and made of cast iron, revealed that the approach of frequency band variation with those windows and probability offers better performance for leak location detection.

Leak detection system design and operating considerations for the US-CRBRP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kruger, G.B.; Eng, K.Y.; Kelly, W.L.

1976-01-01

Diffusion membrane type hydrogen detectors are provided for monitoring the sodium exiting each evaporator and superheater in the Clinch River Breeder Reactor Plant. These detectors allow detection of small water to sodium leaks and provide the plant operator with an early warning signal. Hydrogen detectors are located at the exit sodium streams of each steam generator module, the vent from the module semi-stagnant region, the cold leg piping, and in an intermediate system sodium expansion tank cover gas region. In addition, an electrochemical oxygen detector is located in the cold leg piping. The leak detection system is capable of detecting the presence of steam/water leaks on the order of 0.45 x 10 -5 kg/sec or larger and of signaling within one to three minutes upon initiation of a leak, during normal operation. Operator action is taken upon receipt of a leak signal to shutdown the affected system, by closing steam/water isolation valves and depressurizing the affected unit

Improved estimation of leak location of pipelines using frequency band variation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Young Sup; Yoon, Dong Jin

2014-01-01

Leakage is an important factor to be considered for the management of underground water supply pipelines in a smart water grid system, especially if the pipelines are aged and buried under the pavement or various structures of a highly populated city. Because the exact detection of the location of such leaks in pipelines is essential for their efficient operation, a new methodology for leak location detection based on frequency band variation, windowing filters, and probability is proposed in this paper. Because the exact detection of the leak location depends on the precision of estimation of time delay between sensor signals due to leak noise, some window functions that offer weightings at significant frequencies are applied for calculating the improved cross-correlation function. Experimental results obtained by applying this methodology to an actual buried water supply pipeline, ∼ 253.9 m long and made of cast iron, revealed that the approach of frequency band variation with those windows and probability offers better performance for leak location detection.

GPS Water Vapor Tomography Based on Accurate Estimations of the GPS Tropospheric Parameters

Science.gov (United States)

Champollion, C.; Masson, F.; Bock, O.; Bouin, M.; Walpersdorf, A.; Doerflinger, E.; van Baelen, J.; Brenot, H.

2003-12-01

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is now a common technique for the retrieval of zenithal integrated water vapor (IWV). Further applications in meteorology need also slant integrated water vapor (SIWV) which allow to precisely define the high variability of tropospheric water vapor at different temporal and spatial scales. Only precise estimations of IWV and horizontal gradients allow the estimation of accurate SIWV. We present studies developed to improve the estimation of tropospheric water vapor from GPS data. Results are obtained from several field experiments (MAP, ESCOMPTE, OHM-CV, IHOP, .). First IWV are estimated using different GPS processing strategies and results are compared to radiosondes. The role of the reference frame and the a priori constraints on the coordinates of the fiducial and local stations is generally underestimated. It seems to be of first order in the estimation of the IWV. Second we validate the estimated horizontal gradients comparing zenith delay gradients and single site gradients. IWV, gradients and post-fit residuals are used to construct slant integrated water delays. Validation of the SIWV is under progress comparing GPS SIWV, Lidar measurements and high resolution meteorological models (Meso-NH). A careful analysis of the post-fit residuals is needed to separate tropospheric signal from multipaths. The slant tropospheric delays are used to study the 3D heterogeneity of the troposphere. We develop a tomographic software to model the three-dimensional distribution of the tropospheric water vapor from GPS data. The software is applied to the ESCOMPTE field experiment, a dense network of 17 dual frequency GPS receivers operated in southern France. Three inversions have been successfully compared to three successive radiosonde launches. Good resolution is obtained up to heights of 3000 m.

Controls on water vapor isotopes over Roorkee, India: Impact of convective activities and depression systems

Science.gov (United States)

Saranya, P.; Krishan, Gopal; Rao, M. S.; Kumar, Sudhir; Kumar, Bhishm

2018-02-01

The study evaluates the water vapor isotopic compositions and its controls with special reference to Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) season at Roorkee, India. Precipitation is usually a discrete event spatially and temporally in this part of the country, therefore, the information provided is limited, while, the vapors have all time availability and have a significant contribution in the hydrological cycle locally or over a regional scale. Hence for understanding the processes altering the various sources, its isotopic signatures were studied. The Isotope Water Vapour Line (Iso Val) was drawn together with the Global Meteoric Water Line (GMWL) and the best fit line was δD = 5.42 * δ18O + 27.86. The precipitation samples were also collected during the study period and were best fitted with δD = 8.20(±0.18) * δ18O + 9.04(±1.16) in the Local Meteoric Water Line (LMWL). From the back trajectory analysis of respective vapor samples, it is unambiguous that three major sources viz; local vapor, western disturbance and monsoon vapor are controlling the fate of moisture over Roorkee. The d-excess in ground-level vapor (GLV) reveals the supply of recycled moisture from continental water bodies and evapo-transpiration as additional moisture sources to the study area. The intensive depletion in isotopic ratios was associated with the large-scale convective activity and low-pressure/cyclonic/depression systems formed over Bay of Bengal.

FIELD DEMONSTRATION OF INNOVATIVE LEAK DETECTION/LOCATION TECHNOLOGIES COUPLED WITH WALL-THICKNESS SCREENING FOR WATER MAINS

Science.gov (United States)

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sponsored a large-scale field demonstration of innovative leak detection/location and condition assessment technologies on a 76-year old, 2,500-ft long, cement-lined, 24-in. cast iron water main in Louisville, KY from July through Septembe...

FUZZY INFERENCE BASED LEAK ESTIMATION IN WATER PIPELINES SYSTEM

OpenAIRE

N. Lavanya; G. Anand; S. Srinivasan

2015-01-01

Pipeline networks are the most widely used mode for transporting fluids and gases around the world. Leakage in this pipeline causes harmful effects when the flowing fluid/gas is hazardous. Hence the detection of leak becomes essential to avoid/minimize such undesirable effects. This paper presents the leak detection by spectral analysis methods in a laboratory pipeline system. Transient in the pressure signal in the pipeline is created by opening and closing the exit valve. These pressure var...

Vapor-liquid equilibria for the acetone-ethanol-n-propanol-tert-butanol-water system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tochigi, K.; Uchida, K.; Kojima, K.

1981-12-01

This study deals with the measurement of vapor-liquid equilibria for the five-component system acetone-ethanol-n-propanol-tert-butanol-water at 760 mmHg and prediction of vapor-liquid equilibria by the ASOG group contribution method. The five-component system in this work is composed of a part of the components obtained during ethanol production by vapor-phase hydration of ethylene. 6 refs.

Applying the Water Vapor Radiometer to Verify the Precipitable Water Vapor Measured by GPS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ta-Kang Yeh

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Taiwan is located at the land-sea interface in a subtropical region. Because the climate is warm and moist year round, there is a large and highly variable amount of water vapor in the atmosphere. In this study, we calculated the Zenith Wet Delay (ZWD of the troposphere using the ground-based Global Positioning System (GPS. The ZWD measured by two Water Vapor Radiometers (WVRs was then used to verify the ZWD that had been calculated using GPS. We also analyzed the correlation between the ZWD and the precipitation data of these two types of station. Moreover, we used the observational data from 14 GPS and rainfall stations to evaluate three cases. The offset between the GPS-ZWD and the WVR-ZWD ranged from 1.31 to 2.57 cm. The correlation coefficient ranged from 0.89 to 0.93. The results calculated from GPS and those measured using the WVR were very similar. Moreover, when there was no rain, light rain, moderate rain, or heavy rain, the flatland station ZWD was 0.31, 0.36, 0.38, or 0.40 m, respectively. The mountain station ZWD exhibited the same trend. Therefore, these results have demonstrated that the potential and strength of precipitation in a region can be estimated according to its ZWD values. Now that the precision of GPS-ZWD has been confirmed, this method can eventually be expanded to the more than 400 GPS stations in Taiwan and its surrounding islands. The near real-time ZWD data with improved spatial and temporal resolution can be provided to the city and countryside weather-forecasting system that is currently under development. Such an exchange would fundamentally improve the resources used to generate weather forecasts.

Small-scale experimental study of vaporization flux of liquid nitrogen released on water.

Science.gov (United States)

Gopalaswami, Nirupama; Olewski, Tomasz; Véchot, Luc N; Mannan, M Sam

2015-10-30

A small-scale experimental study was conducted using liquid nitrogen to investigate the convective heat transfer behavior of cryogenic liquids released on water. The experiment was performed by spilling five different amounts of liquid nitrogen at different release rates and initial water temperatures. The vaporization mass fluxes of liquid nitrogen were determined directly from the mass loss measured during the experiment. A variation of initial vaporization fluxes and a subsequent shift in heat transfer mechanism were observed with changes in initial water temperature. The initial vaporization fluxes were directly dependent on the liquid nitrogen spill rate. The heat flux from water to liquid nitrogen determined from experimental data was validated with two theoretical correlations for convective boiling. It was also observed from validation with correlations that liquid nitrogen was found to be predominantly in the film boiling regime. The substantial results provide a suitable procedure for predicting the heat flux from water to cryogenic liquids that is required for source term modeling. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Atmospheric pre-corrected differential absorption techniques to retrieve columnar water vapor: Application to AVIRIS 91/95 data

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schlaepfer, D. [Univ. of Zuerich (Switzerland). Dept. of Geography; Borel, C.C. [Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States); Keller, J. [Paul Scherrer Institut, Villigen (Switzerland)] [and others

1996-03-01

Water vapor is one of the main forces for weather development as well as for mesoscale air transport processes. The monitoring of water vapor is therefore an important aim in remote sensing of the atmosphere. Current operational systems for water vapor detection use primarily the emission in the thermal infrared (AVHRR, GOES, ATSR, Meteosat) or in the microwave radiation bands (DMSP). The disadvantage of current satellite systems is either a coarse spatial (horizontal) resolution ranging from one to tens of kilometers or a limited insight into the lower atmosphere. Imaging spectrometry on the other hand measures total column water vapor contents at a high spatial horizontal resolution and has therefore the potential of filling these gaps. The sensors of the AVIRIS instrument are capable of acquiring hyperspectral data in 224 bands located in the visible and near infrared at 10 run resolution. This data includes information on constituents of the earth`s surface as well as of the atmosphere. The optical measurement of water vapor can be performed using sensor channels located in bands or lines of the absorption spectrum. The AVIRIS sensor has been used to retrieve water vapor and with less accuracy carbon dioxide, oxygen and ozone. To retrieve the water vapor amount, the so called differential absorption technique has been applied. The goal of this technique is to eliminate background factors by taking a ratio between channels within the absorption band and others besides the band. Various rationing methods on the basis of different channels and calculation techniques were developed. The influence of a trace gas of interest on the radiance at the sensor level is usually simulated by using radiative transfer codes. In this study, spectral transmittance and radiance are calculated by MODTRAN3 simulations with the new DISORT option. This work testS the best performing differential absorption techniques for imaging spectrometry of tropospheric water vapor.

Generation of real-time mode high-resolution water vapor fields from GPS observations

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Chen; Penna, Nigel T.; Li, Zhenhong

2017-02-01

Pointwise GPS measurements of tropospheric zenith total delay can be interpolated to provide high-resolution water vapor maps which may be used for correcting synthetic aperture radar images, for numeral weather prediction, and for correcting Network Real-time Kinematic GPS observations. Several previous studies have addressed the importance of the elevation dependency of water vapor, but it is often a challenge to separate elevation-dependent tropospheric delays from turbulent components. In this paper, we present an iterative tropospheric decomposition interpolation model that decouples the elevation and turbulent tropospheric delay components. For a 150 km × 150 km California study region, we estimate real-time mode zenith total delays at 41 GPS stations over 1 year by using the precise point positioning technique and demonstrate that the decoupled interpolation model generates improved high-resolution tropospheric delay maps compared with previous tropospheric turbulence- and elevation-dependent models. Cross validation of the GPS zenith total delays yields an RMS error of 4.6 mm with the decoupled interpolation model, compared with 8.4 mm with the previous model. On converting the GPS zenith wet delays to precipitable water vapor and interpolating to 1 km grid cells across the region, validations with the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer near-IR water vapor product show 1.7 mm RMS differences by using the decoupled model, compared with 2.0 mm for the previous interpolation model. Such results are obtained without differencing the tropospheric delays or water vapor estimates in time or space, while the errors are similar over flat and mountainous terrains, as well as for both inland and coastal areas.

Modeling leaks from liquid hydrogen storage systems.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Winters, William Stanley, Jr.

2009-01-01

This report documents a series of models for describing intended and unintended discharges from liquid hydrogen storage systems. Typically these systems store hydrogen in the saturated state at approximately five to ten atmospheres. Some of models discussed here are equilibrium-based models that make use of the NIST thermodynamic models to specify the states of multiphase hydrogen and air-hydrogen mixtures. Two types of discharges are considered: slow leaks where hydrogen enters the ambient at atmospheric pressure and fast leaks where the hydrogen flow is usually choked and expands into the ambient through an underexpanded jet. In order to avoid the complexities of supersonic flow, a single Mach disk model is proposed for fast leaks that are choked. The velocity and state of hydrogen downstream of the Mach disk leads to a more tractable subsonic boundary condition. However, the hydrogen temperature exiting all leaks (fast or slow, from saturated liquid or saturated vapor) is approximately 20.4 K. At these temperatures, any entrained air would likely condense or even freeze leading to an air-hydrogen mixture that cannot be characterized by the REFPROP subroutines. For this reason a plug flow entrainment model is proposed to treat a short zone of initial entrainment and heating. The model predicts the quantity of entrained air required to bring the air-hydrogen mixture to a temperature of approximately 65 K at one atmosphere. At this temperature the mixture can be treated as a mixture of ideal gases and is much more amenable to modeling with Gaussian entrainment models and CFD codes. A Gaussian entrainment model is formulated to predict the trajectory and properties of a cold hydrogen jet leaking into ambient air. The model shows that similarity between two jets depends on the densimetric Froude number, density ratio and initial hydrogen concentration.

Steam generators of Phenix: Measurement of the hydrogen concentration in sodium for detecting water leaks in the steam generator tubes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cambillard, E.; Lacroix, A.; Langlois, J.; Viala, J.

1975-01-01

The Phenix secondary circuits are provided with measurement systems of hydrogen concentration in sodium, that allow for the detection of possible water leaks in steam generators and the location of a faulty module. A measurement device consists of : a detector with nickel membranes of 0, 3 mm wall thickness, an ion pump with a 200 l/s flow rate, a quadrupole mass spectrometer and a calibrated hydrogen leak. The temperature correction is made automatically. The main tests carried out on the leak detection systems are reported. Since the first system operation (October 24, 1973), the measurements allowed us to obtain the hydrogen diffusion rates through the steam generator tube walls. (author)

The AquaVIT-1 intercomparison of atmospheric water vapor measurement techniques

Science.gov (United States)

Fahey, D. W.; Gao, R.-S.; Möhler, O.; Saathoff, H.; Schiller, C.; Ebert, V.; Krämer, M.; Peter, T.; Amarouche, N.; Avallone, L. M.; Bauer, R.; Bozóki, Z.; Christensen, L. E.; Davis, S. M.; Durry, G.; Dyroff, C.; Herman, R. L.; Hunsmann, S.; Khaykin, S. M.; Mackrodt, P.; Meyer, J.; Smith, J. B.; Spelten, N.; Troy, R. F.; Vömel, H.; Wagner, S.; Wienhold, F. G.

2014-09-01

The AquaVIT-1 intercomparison of atmospheric water vapor measurement techniques was conducted at the aerosol and cloud simulation chamber AIDA (Aerosol Interaction and Dynamics in the Atmosphere) at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany, in October 2007. The overall objective was to intercompare state-of-the-art and prototype atmospheric hygrometers with each other and with independent humidity standards under controlled conditions. This activity was conducted as a blind intercomparison with coordination by selected referees. The effort was motivated by persistent discrepancies found in atmospheric measurements involving multiple instruments operating on research aircraft and balloon platforms, particularly in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere, where water vapor reaches its lowest atmospheric values (less than 10 ppm). With the AIDA chamber volume of 84 m3, multiple instruments analyzed air with a common water vapor mixing ratio, by extracting air into instrument flow systems, by locating instruments inside the chamber, or by sampling the chamber volume optically. The intercomparison was successfully conducted over 10 days during which pressure, temperature, and mixing ratio were systematically varied (50 to 500 hPa, 185 to 243 K, and 0.3 to 152 ppm). In the absence of an accepted reference instrument, the absolute accuracy of the instruments was not established. To evaluate the intercomparison, the reference value was taken to be the ensemble mean of a core subset of the measurements. For these core instruments, the agreement between 10 and 150 ppm of water vapor is considered good with variation about the reference value of about ±10% (±1σ). In the region of most interest between 1 and 10 ppm, the core subset agreement is fair with variation about the reference value of ±20% (±1σ). The upper limit of precision was also derived for each instrument from the reported data. The implication for atmospheric measurements is that the

Development of sodium leak detectors for PFBR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sylvia, J.I.; Rao, P. Vijayamohana; Babu, B.; Madhusoodanan, K.; Rajan, K.K.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Sodium leak detection system developed for PFBR using diverse principle. ► Miniature, remotely locatable diverse leak detector developed for Main Vessel. ► Mutual inductance type leak detectors designed and adapted for different locations. ► Sodium Ionisation detectors used for area monitoring. ► Crosswire type leak detector designed, developed and tested. - Abstract: The 500 MWe Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) is under advanced stage of construction at Kalpakkam near Chennai in India. The wide and high operating temperature, highly chemically active nature of sodium and its reaction with air make the sodium instrumentation complex over the conventional instrumentation. Over the years, traditional instruments such as wire type leak detectors, spark plug type leak detectors were developed and used in different sodium systems. The redundant and diverse leak detection method calls for development of special instrumentation for sodium systems which include sodium ionization (leak) detector for detecting minute sodium leak in addition to those systems based on mutual inductance principle. For detection of sodium leak from reactor Main Vessel (MV), diverse methods are used such as miniature, remotely locatable, Mutual Inductance type Leak Detector(MILD) and specially modified spark plug type leak detector. The design of MILD is suitably modified for detecting leak in double wall pipes and Diverse Safety Rod drive Mechanism (DSRDM). Steam/water leak in steam generator produces hydrogen and leads to high pressure and temperature in the system. Rupture disc is used as a safety device which punctures itself due to sudden pressure rise. To detect the discharge of sodium and its reaction products at the downstream of the rupture disc due to bursting of the rupture disc, cross wire type leak detector has been designed, developed and tested. The selection of the leak detection system depends on the location where leak has to be detected. This paper

Role of Water Vapor Content in the Effects of Aerosol on the Electrification of Thunderstorms: A Numerical Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pengguo Zhao

2016-10-01

Full Text Available We explored the role of the water vapor content below the freezing level in the response of idealized supercell storm electrical processes to increased concentrations of cloud condensation nuclei (CCN. Using the Weather Research and Forecasting model coupled with parameterizations electrification and discharging, we performed 30 simulations by varying both the CCN concentration and water vapor content below the freezing level. The sensitivity simulations showed a distinct response to increased concentrations of CCN, depending on the water vapor content below the freezing level. Enhancing CCN concentrations increased electrification processes of thunderstorms and produced a new negative charge region above the main positive charge center when there were ample amounts of water vapor below the freezing level. Conversely, there were weak effects on electrification and the charge structure in numerical experiments initialized with lower water vapor content below the freezing level.

GPS Water Vapor Tomography: First results from the ESCOMPTE Field Experiment

Science.gov (United States)

Masson, F.; Champollion, C.; Bouin, M.-N.; Walpersdorf, A.; van Baelen, J.; Doerflinger, E.; Bock, O.

2003-04-01

We develop a tomographic software to model the spatial distribution of the tropospheric water vapor from GPS data. First we present simulations based on a real GPS station distribution and simple tropospheric models, which prove the potentiality of the method. Second we apply the software to the ESCOMPTE data. During the ESCOMPTE field experiment, a dense network of 17 dual frequency GPS receivers has been operated for two weeks within a 20 km x 20 km area around Marseille (Southern France). The network extends from the sea level to the top of the Etoile chain (~700 m high). The input data are the slant delay values obtained by combining the estimated zenith delay values with the horizontal gradients. The effect of the initial tropospheric water vapor model, the number and thickness of the layers of the model, the a priori model and data covariance and some other parameters will be discussed. Simultaneously water vapor radiometer, solar spectrometer, Raman lidar and radiosondes have been deployed to get a data set usable for comparison with the tomographic inversion results and validation of the method. Comparison with meteorological models (MesoNH - Meteo-France) will be shown.

Sensors for Fluid Leak Detection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gonzalo Pajares Martinsanz

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Fluid leak detection represents a problem that has attracted the interest of researchers, but not exclusively because in industries and services leaks are frequently common. Indeed, in water or gas supplies, chemical or thermal plants, sea-lines or cooling/heating systems leakage rates can cause important economic losses and sometimes, what it is more relevant, environmental pollution with human, animal or plant lives at risk. This last issue has led to increased national and international regulations with different degrees of severity regarding environmental conservation.[...

Measurements of upper atmosphere water vapor made in situ with a new moisture sensor

Science.gov (United States)

Chleck, D.

1979-01-01

A new thin-film aluminum oxide sensor, Aquamax II, has been developed for the measurement of stratospheric and upper tropospheric water vapor levels. The sensor is briefly described with attention given to its calibration and performance. Data obtained from six balloon flights are presented; almost all the results show a constant water vapor mixing ratio, in agreement with other data from midlatitude regions.

Differential absorption and Raman lidar for water vapor profile measurements - A review

Science.gov (United States)

Grant, William B.

1991-01-01

Differential absorption lidar and Raman lidar have been applied to the range-resolved measurements of water vapor density for more than 20 years. Results have been obtained using both lidar techniques that have led to improved understanding of water vapor distributions in the atmosphere. This paper reviews the theory of the measurements, including the sources of systematic and random error; the progress in lidar technology and techniques during that period, including a brief look at some of the lidar systems in development or proposed; and the steps being taken to improve such lidar systems.

Optoacoustic measurements of water vapor absorption at selected CO laser wavelengths in the 5-micron region

Science.gov (United States)

Menzies, R. T.; Shumate, M. S.

1976-01-01

Measurements of water vapor absorption were taken with a resonant optoacoustical detector (cylindrical pyrex detector, two BaF2 windows fitted into end plates at slight tilt to suppress Fabry-Perot resonances), for lack of confidence in existing spectral tabular data for the 5-7 micron region, as line shapes in the wing regions of water vapor lines are difficult to characterize. The measurements are required for air pollution studies using a CO laser, to find the differential absorption at the wavelengths in question due to atmospheric constituents other than water vapor. The design and performance of the optoacoustical detector are presented. Effects of absorption by ambient NO are considered, and the fixed-frequency discretely tunable CO laser is found suitable for monitoring urban NO concentrations in a fairly dry climate, using the water vapor absorption data obtained in the study.

Developments in steam generator leak detection at Ontario Hydro

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Maynard, K.J.; Singh, V.P. [Ontario Hydro Technologies, Toronto, Ontario (Canada)

1998-07-01

A method for locating small tube leaks in steam generators has been developed and implemented at Ontario Hydro. The technique utilizes both helium leak detection and moisture leak detection. The combination of these two methods allows tube leaks to be detected in any part of the tube bundle, including those submerged below water near the tubesheet. The estimated detection limits for the helium and moisture leak detection systems are 0.001 kg/hr and 0.05 kg/hr respectively, expressed as leak rates measured at typical boiler operating conditions. This technology is best utilized in situations where the leak rate under operating conditions is smaller than the practical limit for fluorescein dye techniques ({approx}2 kg/hour). Other novel techniques have been utilized to increase the reliability and speed of the boiler leak search process. These include the use of argon carrier gas to stabilize the buoyant helium gas in the boiler secondary. (author)

Developments in steam generator leak detection at Ontario Hydro

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maynard, K.J.; Singh, V.P.

1998-01-01

A method for locating small tube leaks in steam generators has been developed and implemented at Ontario Hydro. The technique utilizes both helium leak detection and moisture leak detection. The combination of these two methods allows tube leaks to be detected in any part of the tube bundle, including those submerged below water near the tubesheet. The estimated detection limits for the helium and moisture leak detection systems are 0.001 kg/hr and 0.05 kg/hr respectively, expressed as leak rates measured at typical boiler operating conditions. This technology is best utilized in situations where the leak rate under operating conditions is smaller than the practical limit for fluorescein dye techniques (∼2 kg/hour). Other novel techniques have been utilized to increase the reliability and speed of the boiler leak search process. These include the use of argon carrier gas to stabilize the buoyant helium gas in the boiler secondary. (author)

Leak testing fuel stored in the ICPP fuel storage basin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, J.L.; Rhodes, D.W.

1977-06-01

Irradiated fuel to be processed at the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant is stored under water at the CPP-603 Fuel Storage Facility. Leakage of radionuclides through breaks in the cladding of some of the stored fuels contaminates the water with radionuclides resulting in radiation exposure to personnel during fuel handling operations and contamination of the shipping casks. A leak test vessel was fabricated to test individual fuel assemblies which were suspected to be leaking. The test equipment and procedures are described. Test results demonstrated that a leaking fuel element could be identified by this method; of the eleven fuel assemblies tested, six were estimated to be releasing greater than 0.5 Ci total radionuclides/day to the basin water

Adsorption characteristics of water vapor on ferroaluminophosphate for desalination cycle

KAUST Repository

Kim, Youngdeuk; Thu, Kyaw; Ng, Kim Choon

2014-01-01

The adsorption characteristics of microporous ferroaluminophosphate adsorbent (FAM-Z01, Mitsubishi Plastics) are evaluated for possible application in adsorption desalination and cooling (AD) cycles. A particular interest is its water vapor uptake

Study on the Measurement of Valve Leak Rate Using Acoustic Emission Technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Sang-Guk; Park, Jong-Hyuck; Yoo, Keun-Bae; Lee, Sun-Ki; Hong, Sung-Yull

2006-01-01

This study is to estimate the feasibility of acoustic emission(AE) method for the internal leak from the valves. In this study, 4 inch ball water valve leak tests using three different leak path and various leak rates were performed in order to analyze AE properties when leaks arise in valve seat. As a result of leak test for specimens simulated valve seat, we conformed that leak sound amplitude increased in proportion to the increase of leak rate, and leak rates were plotted versus peak acoustic amplitudes recorded within those two narrow frequency bands on each spectrum plot. The resulting plots of leak rate versus peak AE amplitude were the primary basis for determining the feasibility of quantifying leak acoustically. The large amount of data attained also allowed a favorable investigation of the effects of different leak paths, leak rates, pressure differentials and AE sensors on the AE amplitude spectrum. From the experimental results, it was suggested that the AE method for monitoring of leak was feasible. This paper describes quantitative measurements of fluid valve leak rates by the analysis of AE. Experimental apparatus were fabricated to accept a variety of leaking water valves in order to determine what characteristics of AE signal change with leak rate. The data for each valve were generated by varying the leak rate and recording the time averaged amplitude of AE versus frequency. Leak rates were varied by modifying the valve seating surfaces in ways designed to simulate actual defects observed in service. Most of the data analysis involved plotting the leak rate versus signal amplitude at a specific frequency to determine how well the two variables correlate in terms of accuracy, resolution, and repeatability

Small leak damage and protection systems in steam generators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Greene, D.A.

1976-01-01

A small leak of water into sodium in a liquid metal heated steam generator can cause damage to adjacent tubes, a phenomenon termed wastage. Theories on this phenomenon range from corrosion from sodium water reaction products to erosion by supersonic particles. An alternative approach considers the water injection to form a simple combustion process. Using this approach many aspects of over 250 wastage experiments can be explained both analytically and physically. The U.S. has an extensive technology in the general area of acoustic surveillance. High temperature in-sodium microphones, in-vessel waveguides, and data analysis techniques have been successfully demonstrated in national development programs. This technology has been applied specifically to the development of an acoustic leak detection/location monitor for small leaks in an operating steam generator

Water vapor radiative effects on short-wave radiation in Spain

Science.gov (United States)

Vaquero-Martínez, Javier; Antón, Manuel; Ortiz de Galisteo, José Pablo; Román, Roberto; Cachorro, Victoria E.

2018-06-01

In this work, water vapor radiative effect (WVRE) is studied by means of the Santa Barbara's Disort Radiative Transfer (SBDART) model, fed with integrated water vapor (IWV) data from 20 ground-based GPS stations in Spain. Only IWV data recorded during cloud-free days (selected using daily insolation data) were used in this study. Typically, for SZA = 60.0 ± 0.5° WVRE values are around - 82 and - 66 Wm-2 (first and third quartile), although it can reach up - 100 Wm-2 or decrease to - 39 Wm-2. A power dependence of WVRE on IWV and cosine of solar zenith angle (SZA) was found by an empirical fit. This relation is used to determine the water vapor radiative efficiency (WVEFF = ∂WVRE/∂IWV). Obtained WVEFF values range from - 9 and 0 Wm-2 mm-1 (- 2.2 and 0% mm-1 in relative terms). It is observed that WVEFF decreases as IWV increases, but also as SZA increases. On the other hand, when relative WVEFF is calculated from normalized WVRE, an increase of SZA results in an increase of relative WVEFF. Heating rates were also calculated, ranging from 0.2 Kday-1 to 1.7 Kday-1. WVRE was also calculated at top of atmosphere, where values ranged from 4 Wm-2 to 37 Wm-2.

Correction Technique for Raman Water Vapor Lidar Signal-Dependent Bias and Suitability for Water Wapor Trend Monitoring in the Upper Troposphere

Science.gov (United States)

Whiteman, D. N.; Cadirola, M.; Venable, D.; Calhoun, M.; Miloshevich, L; Vermeesch, K.; Twigg, L.; Dirisu, A.; Hurst, D.; Hall, E.;

Calcium Carbonate Formation in Water Distribution Systems and Autogenous Repair of Leaks by Inert Particle Clogging

OpenAIRE

Richards, Colin Scott

2016-01-01

The formation of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) (i.e. scale) in potable water systems has long been a concern in water treatment and distribution. A literature review reveals that CaCO3 scaling issues are re-emerging due to climate change, temperature increases in hot water systems and lower use of scaling and corrosion inhibitors. Moreover, we have gathered insights that suggest CaCO3 coatings can be beneficial and stop pipeline leaks via self-repair or clogging. Ironically, the actions we are ta...

Failed (leaking) spent fuel management and storage in the Paks NPP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burjan, T.

2011-01-01

At the cycle 22, unit 4, Paks NPP the fissile contents raised irregularly in the water of the primary circuit. At the end of the cycle sipping tests were performed for the entire core to find out the leaking fuel assembly primarily responsible for this phenomenon. The identified leaking assembly temporarily was placed in the Spent Fuel Relaxing Pool. For measuring environmental impact of leaking assemblies an investigation program was developed and implemented. The assessment covered the following: effects of the leaking fuel on the water of relaxing pool and on the gaseous emissions in case open storage; in case when the leaking cassette is in a special hermetical storage case, how much gas is collected in the locked case and what is its composition; how to change the measured sipping test signal depending on relaxing time of leaking fuel cassettes. Based on the evaluation of the investigation program results the NPP modified the operational instructions for the treatment and storage of failed fuel assemblies. (author)

Galactic water vapor emission: further observations of variability.

Science.gov (United States)

Knowles, S H; Mayer, C H; Sullivan, W T; Cheung, A C

1969-10-10

Recent observations of the 1.35-centimeter line emission of water vapor from galactic sources show short-term variability in the spectra of several sources. Two additional sources, Cygnus 1 and NGC 6334N, have been observed, and the spectra of W49 and VY Canis Majoris were measured over a wider range of radial velocity.

Differential Absorption Measurements of Atmospheric Water Vapor with a Coherent Lidar at 2050.532 nm

Science.gov (United States)

Koch, Grady J.; Dharamsi, Amin; Davis, Richard E.; Petros, Mulugeta; McCarthy, John C.

1999-01-01

Wind and water vapor are two major factors driving the Earth's atmospheric circulation, and direct measurement of these factors is needed for better understanding of basic atmospheric science, weather forecasting, and climate studies. Coherent lidar has proved to be a valuable tool for Doppler profiling of wind fields, and differential absorption lidar (DIAL) has shown its effectiveness in profiling water vapor. These two lidar techniques are generally considered distinctly different, but this paper explores an experimental combination of the Doppler and DIAL techniques for measuring both wind and water vapor with an eye-safe wavelength based on a solid-state laser material. Researchers have analyzed and demonstrated coherent DIAL water vapor measurements at 10 micrometers wavelength based on CO2 lasers. The hope of the research presented here is that the 2 gm wavelength in a holmium or thulium-based laser may offer smaller packaging and more rugged operation that the CO2-based approach. Researchers have extensively modeled 2 um coherent lasers for water vapor profiling, but no published demonstration is known. Studies have also been made, and results published on the Doppler portion, of a Nd:YAG-based coherent DIAL operating at 1.12 micrometers. Eye-safety of the 1.12 micrometer wavelength may be a concern, whereas the longer 2 micrometer and 10 micrometer systems allow a high level of eyesafety.

Water vapor pressure over molten KH2PO4 and demonstration of water electrolysis at ∼300ºC

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Berg, Rolf W.; Nikiforov, Aleksey Valerievich; Petrushina, Irina

2016-01-01

A new potentially high-efficiency electrolyte for water electrolysis: molten monobasic potassium phosphate, KH2PO4 or KDP has been investigated at temperatures ∼275–325 °C. At these temperatures, KH2PO4 was found to dissociate into H2O gas in equilibrium with a melt mixture of KH2PO4—K2H2P2O7—KPO3...... of water and methane or hydrogen to be 0.40 ± 0.02 or 1.2 ± 0.03. At equilibrium the vapor pressure was much lower than the vapor pressure above liquid water at the same temperature. Electrolysis was realized by passing current through closed ampoules (vacuum sealed quartz glass electrolysis cells...... with platinum electrodes and the electrolyte melt). The formation of mixtures of hydrogen and oxygen gases as well as the water vapor was detected by Raman spectroscopy. In this way it was demonstrated that water is present in the new electrolyte: molten KH2PO4 can be split by electrolysis via the reaction 2H2O...

Retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions in the upper troposphere and the lower stratosphere from SCIAMACHY limb measurements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Rozanov

2011-05-01

Full Text Available This study describes the retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS altitude range from space-borne observations of the scattered solar light made in limb viewing geometry. First results using measurements from SCIAMACHY (Scanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric CHartographY aboard ENVISAT (Environmental Satellite are presented here. In previous publications, the retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions has been achieved exploiting either the emitted radiance leaving the atmosphere or the transmitted solar radiation. In this study, the scattered solar radiation is used as a new source of information on the water vapor content in the UTLS region. A recently developed retrieval algorithm utilizes the differential absorption structure of the water vapor in 1353–1410 nm spectral range and yields the water vapor content in the 11–25 km altitude range. In this study, the retrieval algorithm is successfully applied to SCIAMACHY limb measurements and the resulting water vapor profiles are compared to in situ balloon-borne observations. The results from both satellite and balloon-borne instruments are found to agree typically within 10 %.

Small-scale modelling of the physiochemical impacts of CO2 leaked from sub-seabed reservoirs or pipelines within the North Sea and surrounding waters.

Science.gov (United States)

Dewar, Marius; Wei, Wei; McNeil, David; Chen, Baixin

2013-08-30

A two-fluid, small scale numerical ocean model was developed to simulate plume dynamics and increases in water acidity due to leakages of CO2 from potential sub-seabed reservoirs erupting, or pipeline breaching into the North Sea. The location of a leak of such magnitude is unpredictable; therefore, multiple scenarios are modelled with the physiochemical impact measured in terms of the movement and dissolution of the leaked CO2. A correlation for the drag coefficient of bubbles/droplets free rising in seawater is presented and a sub-model to predict the initial bubble/droplet size forming on the seafloor is proposed. With the case studies investigated, the leaked bubbles/droplets fully dissolve before reaching the water surface, where the solution will be dispersed into the larger scale ocean waters. The tools developed can be extended to various locations to model the sudden eruption, which is vital in determining the fate of the CO2 within the local waters. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Water vapor mass balance method for determining air infiltration rates in houses

Science.gov (United States)

David R. DeWalle; Gordon M. Heisler

1980-01-01