Verification of a video image has been a major problem for safeguards for several years. Various verification schemes have been tried on analog video signals ever since the mid-1970`s. These schemes have provided a measure of protection but have never been widely adopted. The development of reasonably priced complex video processing integrated circuits makes it possible to digitize a video image and then compress the resulting digital file into a smaller file without noticeable loss of resolution. Authentication and/or encryption algorithms can be more easily applied to digital video files that have been compressed. The compressed video files require less time for algorithm processing and image transmission. An important safeguards application for authenticated, compressed, digital video images is in unattended video surveillance systems and remote monitoring systems. The use of digital images in the surveillance system makes it possible to develop remote monitoring systems that send images over narrow bandwidth channels such as the common telephone line. This paper discusses the video compression process, authentication algorithm, and data format selected to transmit and store the authenticated images.
The Swedish Nuclear Power Inspectorate (SKI) and the US Department of Energy (DOE) sponsored work on a Remote Monitoring System (RMS) that was installed in August 1994 at the Barseback Works north of Malmo, Sweden. The RMS was designed to test the front end detection concept that would be used for unattended remote monitoring activities. Front end detection reduces the number of video images recorded and provides additional sensor verification of facility operations. The function of any safeguards Containment and Surveillance (C/S) system is to collect information which primarily is images that verify the operations at a nuclear facility. Barseback is ideal to test the concept of front end detection since most activities of safeguards interest is movement of spent fuel which occurs once a year. The RMS at Barseback uses a network of nodes to collect data from microwave motion detectors placed to detect the entrance and exit of spent fuel casks through a hatch. A video system using digital compression collects digital images and stores them on a hard drive and a digital optical disk. Data and images from the storage area are remotely monitored via telephone from Stockholm, Sweden and Albuquerque, NM, USA. These remote monitoring stations operated by SKI and SNL respectively, can retrieve data and images from the RMS computer at the Barseback Facility. The data and images are encrypted before transmission. This paper presents details of the RMS and test results of this approach to front end detection of safeguard activities.
June 1993, the A-PRIMED project (Agile Product Realization of electrMEchanical Devices) was formed with a concurrent engineering team of product designers, analysts, CNC machinists, robotic assembly scientists, electronics communications developers, statisticians and human factors scientists at Sandia National Laboratories, to develop and demonstrate a process for a much faster design-to-production cycle for precision electromechanical devices. The team had to develop the culture and infrastructure to support communications between remotely located members, as well as demonstrate a shortened cycle time made possible by developing new technologies. These new technologies were then adopted by the team and introduced to their work partners to support new work processes. By March 1995, the A-PRIMED team has used the new technologies and work processes to design and build qualified new products in only 24 days.
Sorption of iodide (I{sup {minus}}) on cinnabar (HgS) and chalcocite (Cu{sub 2}S) was examined as a function of pH at 25{degrees}C in a series of batch experiments. Calculated distribution ratios (K{sub d}) far exceed those reported for other minerals; maximal K{sub d}`s of 1375 cc/g (Cu{sub 2}S) and 3080 c/g (HgS) were observed between pH 4-5, but wre substantial at all pH`s measured (4 < pH < 10). Iodide sorption apparently occurs by the formation of an insoluble surface solid solution with exposed Hg and Cu sites. Surface solid solution formation is favored at low pH due to the lessened electrostatic repulsion of the iodide ion by the sulfide surfaces.
A numerical solution for buoyant natural convection within a square enclosure containing a fluid with highly temperature dependent viscosity is presented. Although the fluid properties employed do not represent any real fluid, the large variation in the fluid viscosity with temperature is characteristic of turbulent flow modeling with eddy-viscosity concepts. Results are obtained using a primitive variable formulation and the resistor method. The results presented include velocity, temperature and pressure distributions within the enclosure as well as shear stress and heat flux distributions along the enclosure walls. Three mesh refinements were employed and uncertainty values are suggested for the final mesh refinement. These solutions are part of a contributed benchmark solution set for the subject problem.
The isotope {sup 99}Mo would be produced at Sandia using ACRR and the collocated Hot Cell Facility. {sup 99}Mo would be produced by irradiating targets coated with {sup 235}U in the form of highly enriched U{sub 3}O{sub 8}; after 7 days, the target would be removed and the isotope extracted using the Cintichem process. The Monte Carlo neutronics computer code MCNP was used to determine the optimum configuration for production, using various fractions of the US demand. Although ACRR operates at a low power level, the US demand for {sup 99}Mo can be easily met using a reasonable number of targets.
Techniques for characterizing density gradients generated during typical powder compaction processes are reviewed and several are evaluated. The techniques reviewed are ultrasonic velocity measurements, laser ultrasonic velocity measurements, x-ray radiography, autoradiography, computer tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and simple image analysis of polished cross-sections. Experimental results are reported for all of these techniques except autoradiography, CT and MRI. The test specimens examined were right circular cylinders of a high length/diameter ratio (to ensure significant density variation) pressed from commercial spray-dried alumina powders. Although the density gradients could be detected with all four techniques, ultrasonic velocity measurements gave the best contour map of gradients and is therefore most suitable for model validation. On the other hand, it was concluded that x-ray radiography is preferable in situations where cost and/or number of samples are more important that high resolution.
Bimodal space reactor systems provide both thermal propulsion for the spacecraft orbital transfer and electrical power to the spacecraft bus once it is on station. These systems have the potential to increase both the available payload in high energy orbits and the available power to that payload. These increased mass and power capabilities can be used to either reduce mission cost by permitting the use of smaller launch vehicles or to provide increased mission performance from the current launch vehicle. A major barrier to the deployment of these bimodal systems has been the cost associated with their development. This paper describes a bimodal spacecraft bus with performance potential to permit more than 70% of the instrumented payload of the Titan IV/Centaur to be launched from the Atlas IIAS. The development cost is minimized by basing the design on existing component technologies.
Smokes are frequently used as visual obscurants in access delay applications. A new generation of low temperature pyrotechnic smokes is being developed. Terephthalic Acid (TPA) smoke was developed by the U.S. Army and Sebacic Acid (SA) smoke is being developed by Thiokol Corp. The advantages these smokes offer over traditional pyrotechnic smokes include; low generation temperature (approximately 450{degree}C), lower toxicity, and lower corrosivity. The low generation temperature reduces smoke layering effects and allows the addition of sensory irritants, such as o-Chlorobenzylidene Malononitrile (CS), to the formulation. Some advantages low temperature pyrotechnic smokes offer over nonpyrotechnic smokes include; low cost, simplicity, compactness, light weight, long storage life, and orientation insensitive operation. Low cost permits distribution of multiple units for reduced vulnerability and refill flexibility. Some disadvantages may include the combustibility of the smoke particulate; however, the published lower explosive limit of the mentioned materials is approximately ten times greater than the concentration required for effective obscuration. The TPA smoke cloud contains small quantities of benzene, formaldehyde, and carbon monoxide; no benzene or formaldehyde was identified during preliminary SA smoke analyses performed by Thiokol Corp. Sandia performed tests and analyses on TPA smoke to determine the smoke cloud composition, the quantity of particulate produced per canister, and the relationship between airborne particulate concentration and measured optical density values. Current activities include characterization of SA smoke.
Because of the low humidity environments required in the fabrication of nuclear explosives, assembly technicians can be charged to tens of kilovolts while operating, for example, compressed air, venturi-type, `explosion proof` vacuum cleaners. Nuclear explosives must be isolated from all sources of, and return paths for, AC power and from any part of the lightning protection system. This requirement precludes the use of static ground conductors to drain any charge accumulations. Accordingly, an experimental study of the basic charging mechanisms associated with vacuum operations were identified, the charge generation efficacies of various commercial cleaners were established, and a simple method for neutralizing the charge was devised.
Polymeric silica sols, were deposited on commercial {gamma}-alumina supports to prepare gas separation membranes. Optimization of the sol fractal dimension and radius of gyration and minimization of condensation rate led to formation of a discrete film with pores of molecular dimensions. Two coatings of this sol (A2{sup **}) led to a membrane with ideal separation factor of 7 for helium versus nitrogen after calcination to 400C (helium permeance 0.002 cm{sup 3}/cm{sup 2}-s-cm Hg). Partial sintering of these membranes resulted in a further reduction in pore size or narrowing of pore size distribution as evidenced by larger separation factors e.g. 9 for helium versus nitrogen (helium permeance 0.0028 cm{sup 3}/cm{sup 2}-s-cm Hg) with only one A2{sup **} coating. Single gas measurements also showed high ideal separation factors for helium versus methane, propylene, sulfur hexafluoride and carbon dioxide. The deposited A2{sup **} membrane was reacted with titanium isopropoxide (Ti(O i-Pr){sub 4}) to improve both its thermal and chemical stability and modify its pore size. This reaction led to an increase in the membrane selectivity to >300 for He versus N{sub 2} below to 120C, and CO{sub 2} versus CH{sub 4}, when measured below 200C. A2{sup **} was also used as a host matrix for preparing imogolite composite membranes that showed molecular sieving behavior.
The aluminum alloy process implemented in Sandia`s Photovoltaic Device Fabrication Laboratory (PDFL) has major beneficial effects on the performance of commercial multicrystalline-silicon (mc-Si) substrates. Careful analysis of identically processed cells (except for the alloyed layer) in matched mc-Si substrates clearly indicates that the majority of the benefit arises from improved bulk minority carrier diffusion length. Based on spectral response measurements and PC-1D modeling the authors have observed improvements due to the alloy process of up to 400% in the average diffusion length in moderate-area cells and around 50% in large-area cells. The diffusion length is dramatically improved in the interior of the silicon grains in alloyed substrates, resulting in the majority of the recombination occurring at the grain boundaries and localized areas with high defect densities.
During the January 1994 Summit Presidents Clinton and Yeltsin agreed on the goal of ensuring the ``transparency and irreversibility`` of the nuclear arms reduction process. As a result, negotiations are presently underway between the United States Government and the Russian Federation to confirm the stockpiles of plutonium and highly enriched uranium removed from nuclear weapons. In December 1994 the United States presented a paper to the Russian Federation proposing additional measures to provide broader transparency of nuclear arms reduction. The US Department of Energy is studying the implementation of these broader transparency measures at appropriate DOE facilities. The results of the studies include draft protocols for implementation, assessments of the implementation procedures and the impacts on the facilities and estimates of the cost to implement these measures at various facilities.
Under the Department of Energy (DOE)/United States Air Force (USAF) Memorandum of Understanding, a system is being designed that will use high pressure carbon dioxide for the separation of oils, greases, and solvents from non-hazardous solid waste. The contaminants are dissolved into the high pressure carbon dioxide and precipitated out upon depressurization. The carbon dioxide solvent can then be recycled for continued use. Excellent extraction capability for common manufacturing oils, greases, and solvents has been measured. It has been observed that extraction performance follows the dilution model if a constant flow system is used. The solvents tested are extremely soluble and have been extracted to 100% under both liquid and mild supercritical carbon dioxide conditions. These data are being used to design a 200 liter extraction system.
The widely dispersed, unmanned launch facilities (LFs) for land-based ICBMs (intercontinental ballistic missiles) currently do not have visual assessment capability for existing intrusion alarms. The security response force currently must assess each alarm on-site. Remote assessment will enhance manpower, safety, and security efforts. Sandia National Laboratories was tasked by the USAF Electronic Systems Center to research, recommend, and demonstrate a cost-effective remote video assessment capability at missile LFs. The project`s charter was to provide: system concepts; market survey analysis; technology search recommendations; and operational hardware demonstrations for remote video assessment from a missile LF to a remote security center via a cost-effective transmission medium and without using visible, on-site lighting. The technical challenges of this project were to: analyze various video transmission media and emphasize using the existing missile system copper line which can be as long as 30 miles; accentuate and extremely low-cost system because of the many sites requiring system installation; integrate the video assessment system with the current LF alarm system; and provide video assessment at the remote sites with non-visible lighting.
The WIPP Disposal Room Model (DRM) is a numerical model with three major components constitutive models of TRU waste, crushed salt backfill, and intact halite -- and several secondary components, including air gap elements, slidelines, and assumptions on symmetry and geometry. A sensitivity analysis of the Disposal Room Model was initiated on two of the three major components (waste and backfill models) and on several secondary components as a group. The immediate goal of this component sensitivity analysis (Phase I) was to sort (rank) model parameters in terms of their relative importance to model response so that a Monte Carlo analysis on a reduced set of DRM parameters could be performed under Phase II. The goal of the Phase II analysis will be to develop a probabilistic definition of a disposal room porosity surface (porosity, gas volume, time) that could be used in WIPP Performance Assessment analyses. This report documents a literature survey which quantifies the relative importance of the secondary room components to room closure, a differential analysis of the creep consolidation model and definition of a follow-up Monte Carlo analysis of the model, and an analysis and refitting of the waste component data on which a volumetric plasticity model of TRU drum waste is based. A summary, evaluation of progress, and recommendations for future work conclude the report.
This paper presents a survey of technologies useful in providing early warning in physical security systems. Early warning is important in virtually all types of security systems whether they are used for temporary (tactical, portable, or semi-permanent) applications, border warning, fixed-site detection, or standoff surveillance detection. With the exception of the standoff surveillance detection systems, all systems discussed in this paper usually involve a moving target. The fact that a person(s) to be detected in a standoff surveillance scenario is not moving presents challenging problems and requires different applications of technology. The technologies commonly used to detect moving targets and some suggestions for detection of stationary targets are addressed in this paper.
The Department of Energy`s Office of Fissile Material Disposition (FMD) is analyzing long-term storage and disposition options for surplus weapons-usable fissile materials, preparing a programmatic environmental impact statement (PEIS), preparing for a record of decision (ROD) regarding this material and conducting other activities. The primary security objectives of this program are to reduce major security risks and strengthen arms reduction and nonproliferation (NP). To help achieve these objectives, a safeguards and security (S&S) team consisting of participants from Sandia, Los Alamos, and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories was established. The S&S activity for this program is a cross-cutting task which addresses all of the FMD program options. It includes both domestic and international safeguards and includes areas such as physical protection, nuclear materials accountability and material containment and surveillance. This paper will discuss the activities of the Fissile Materials Disposition Program (FMDP) S&S team as well as some specific S&S issues associated with various FMDP options/facilities. Some of the items to be discussed include the threat, S&S requirements, S&S criteria for assessing risk, S&S issues concerning fissile material processing/facilities, and international and domestic safeguards.
An experimental investigation into active control of bending vibrations in thick bar and plate-like structural elements is described. This work is motivated by vibration problems in machine tools and photolithography machines that require greater control authority than available from conventional surface mounted PZT patches or PVDF films. Focus of this experiment is a cantilevered circular steel bar in which PZT stacks are mounted in cutouts near the bar root. Axially aligned and offset from the neutral axis, these actuators control the bending vibrations by generating moments in the bar through their compressive loads. A Positive Feedback control law is used to significantly augment the damping in the first bending mode. Implications of the experimental results for machine tool stability enhancement are discussed.
Photonic device activities at Sandia National Laboratories are founded on an extensive materials research program that has expanded to include device development, and an applications focus that heavily emphasizes communications and interconnects. The resulting program spans a full range of photonics research, development, and applications projects, from materials synthesis and device fabrication to packaging, test, and subsystem development. The heart of this effort is the Compound Semiconductor Research Laboratory which was established in 1988 to bring together device and materials research and development to support Sandia`s role in weapons technologies. This paper presents an overview of Sandia`s photonics program and its directions, using three communications-based applications as examples.
Sandia is developing a Personnel and Material Tracking System (PAMTRAK) which uses a variety of techniques to monitor material inside a vault in real-time. It can detect material movement using video cameras inside the vault or motion sensors attached to the material. It also contains two prototype attribute monitoring systems that continuously measure material weight, temperature or movement. A site can use any of these alone or together to extend physical inventory intervals. PAMTRAK can reduce the cost of storing material by reducing inventory frequency and radiation exposure to workers. Analysis at Savannah River in 1992 estimated that installing PAMTRAK in the 7 active and future vaults at that site would save $1,073,000 per year by reducing inventory frequency from monthly to yearly. Performing similar calculations now, assuming lower radiation exposure limits of 700m Rem per year, new inventory reduction guidelines allowing a baseline interval of 6 months, and an achieved inventory interval of 3 years, results in an estimated average savings of $400,000 per year. PAMTRAK, since it is real-time, can detect theft or diversion soon enough to give the guard force a chance of recovering the material and apprehending the perpetrator. In performing an inventory a site typically checks only a fraction of the material using random, statistical sampling, while PAMTRAK monitors all material in the vault. In addition to static environments such as vaults, PAMTRAK can be used to protect material in active work areas. Several of the sensor types can ignore activity around material but still report alarms if the material is moved or handled. PAMTRAK includes a personnel tracking capability that allows a site to monitor and restrict personnel movements. It can exclude workers from designated areas unless they have explicit permission to be there. It can also enforce the 2-person rule by requiring a worker to be accompanied by at least one other qualified worker.
Fletcher, S.K.; Jansma, R.; Lim, J.; Murphy, M.; Wyss, G.
When software is used in safety-critical, security-critical, or mission-critical situations, it is imperative to understand and manage the risks involved. A risk assessment methodology and toolset have been developed which are specific to software systems. This paper describes the concepts of the methodology, with emphasis on the experience of designing a toolset to support the methodology. Also presented are results of applying the methodology to two real software-based products: the software toolset itself, and a network firewall.
This glossary was prepared in fulfillment of the Glossary Preparation Task identified in the Program Plan for providing Assistance to the Russian Federation in Nuclear Material Control and Accounting and Physical Protection. The Program Plan is part of the Cooperative Threat Reduction Program as provided for under House Resolution (H.R.) 3807 (Title II, as referenced under Public Law (P.L.) 102-229. The terms in this glossary were derived from physical protection training material prepared at Sandia. The training material, and thus refinements to the glossary, has undergone years of development in presentation to both domestic and international audiences. Also, Russian Colleagues and interpreters have reviewed the translations for accuracy.
A method of determining the dynamic operating cost benefits of energy storage systems for utility applications is presented. The production costing program DYNASTORE is used to analyze economic benefits for ``utility B,`` an isolated island utility, using heuristic unit commitment algorithms. The unit commitment is done using chronologic load data and a detailed model of the utility characteristics. Several unit commitment scenarios are run for utility B, and the results are presented. Comparisons between various Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) applications, as well as cases with and without battery storage, are shown. Results show that for utility B, a BESS of 300 MW size used for either load leveling or spinning reserve provides the greatest economic benefit.
An investigation was made into the effect of microstructure on the peak toughness and shape of the crack growth resistance curves for two ceramic-metal composites. An Al{sup 2}O{sup 3}/Al composite formed by Reactive Metal Penetration was used along with an AlN/Al composite formed using a reactive infiltration technique. The results indicate that the toughness increases with an increase in the volume fraction of the metal phase for a particular composite composition, and the peak toughness and shape of the R-Curve also depend on the composite microstructure and metal composition.
Data are presented from the Air Intake Shaft Test, an in situ test fielded at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). The construction of this shaft, well after the initial three access shafts, presented an unusual opportunity to obtain valuable detailed data on the mechanical response of a shaft for application to seal design. These data include selected fielding information, test configuration, instrumentation activities, and comprehensive results from a large number of gages. Construction of the test began in December 1987; gage data in this report cover the period from May 1988 through July 1995, with the bulk of the data obtained after obtaining access in November, 1989 and from the heavily instrumented period after remote gage installation between May, 1990, and October, 1991.
This paper describes a new project undertaken by Sandia National Laboratories to develop an agile, automated, high-precision edge finishing system. The project has a two-year duration and was initiated in October, 1994. This project involves re-designing and adding additional capabilities to an existing finishing workcell at Sandia; and developing intelligent methods for automating process definition and for controlling finishing processes. The resulting system will serve as a prototype for systems that will be deployed into highly flexible automated production lines. The production systems will be used to produce a wide variety of products with limited production quantities and quick turnaround requirements. The prototype system is designed to allow programming, process definition, fixture re-configuration, and process verification to be performed off-line for new products. CAD/CAM (Computer Aided Design/Computer Aided Manufacturing) models of the part will be used to assist with the automated process development and process control tasks. To achieve Sandia`s performance goals, the system will be employ advanced path planning, burr prediction expert systems, automated process definition, statistical process models in a process database, and a two-level control scheme using hybrid position-force control and fuzzy logic control. In this paper, we discuss the progress and the planned system development under this project.
This document represents a summary of 27 foreign-based environmental restoration and waste management technologies that have been screened and technically evaluated for application to the cleanup problems of the Department of Energy (DOE) nuclear weapons complex. The evaluation of these technologies was initiated in 1992 and completed in 1995 under the DOE`s International Technology Coordination Program of the Office of Technology Development. A methodology was developed for conducting a country-by-country survey of several regions of the world where specific environmental technology capabilities and market potential were investigated. The countries that were selected from a rank-ordering process for the survey included: then West Germany, the Netherlands, France, Japan, Taiwan, the Czech and Slovak Republics, and the Former Soviet Union. The notably innovative foreign technologies included in this document were screened initially from a list of several hundred, and then evaluated based on criteria that examined for level of maturity, suitability to the DOE needs, and for potential cost effective application at a DOE site. Each of the selected foreign technologies that were evaluated in this effort for DOE application were subsequently matched with site-specific environmental problem units across the DOE complex using the Technology Needs Assessment CROSSWALK Report. For ease of tracking these technologies to site problem units, and to facilitate their input into the DOE EnviroTRADE Information System, they were categorized into the following three areas: (1) characterization, monitoring and sensors, (2) waste treatment and separations, and (3) waste containment. Technical data profiles regarding these technologies include title and description, performance information, development status, key regulatory considerations, intellectual property rights, institute and contact personnel, and references.
Experiences as an environmental activist have produced some insights into addressing the current public over-reaction to environmental risks, and in particular to the risks posed by nuclear industry development.
This overview presents current research at Sandia National Laboratories in the Virtual Reality and Intelligent Simulation Lab. Into an existing distributed VR environment which we have been developing, and which provides shared immersion for multiple users, we are adding virtual actor support. The virtual actor support we are adding to this environment is intended to provide semi-autonomous actors, with oversight and high-level guiding control by a director/user, and to allow the overall action to be driven by a scenario. We present an overview of the environment into which our virtual actors will be added in Section 3, and discuss the direction of the Virtual Actor research itself in Section 4. We will briefly review related work in Section 2. First however we need to place the research in the context of what motivates it. The motivation for our construction of this environment, and the line of research associated with it, is based on a long-term program of providing support, through simulation, for situational training, by which we mean a type of training in which students learn to handle multiple situations or scenarios. In these situations, the student may encounter events ranging from the routine occurance to the rare emergency. Indeed, the appeal of such training systems is that they could allow the student to experience and develop effective responses for situations they would otherwise have no opportunity to practice, until they happened to encounter an actual occurance. Examples of the type of students for this kind of training would be security forces or emergency response forces. An example of the type of training scenario we would like to support is given in Section 4.2.
MicroDexterity Systems Inc. and Sandia National Laboratories are collaborating on the design of a six degree-of-freedom surgeon-controlled micropositioner and a six degree-of-freedom surgeon-controlled master for use in microsurgery. A control system will provide the linkage between the force-reflecting master and micropositioner for force scaling, position scaling, and tremor filtering. The technologies developed by this project are expected to enhance the skills of surgeons, improve the success rates for existing microsurgical procedures, make new high-dexterity procedures possible, and ultimately reduce surgical costs by increasing the precision and speed of operations. This paper discusses the motivation, approach, and accomplishments to date.
We report a new application of atomic force microscopy (AFM) for process characterization of GaAs integrated circuit fabrication. By using the near atomic-level z-resolution of AFM, we are able to gain information not available by other imaging techniques in a number of steps in the sequence for GaAs IC fabrication. A nondestructive method of determining whether micron-sized vias have been etched to completion is presented. In addition, the AFM has been used to evaluate material removal following several of fabrication steps. Shallow trench formation occurs as a result of GaAs removal during the sidewall etch for a commonly used sidewall spacer process. This effect has been not been observed previously by other techniques. Other examples of unintentional removal of small amounts of GaAs during shallow wet and dry etches are presented. These examples show the utility of AFM as an in-line process characterization tool.
This report evaluates telerobotic and teleoperational arm-based retrieval systems that require advanced robotic controls. These systems will be deployed in waste retrieval activities in Hanford`s Single Shell Tanks (SSTs). The report assumes that arm-based, retrieval systems will combine a teleoperational arm and control system enhanced by a number of advanced and telerobotic controls. The report describes many possible enhancements, spanning the full range of the control spectrum with the potential for technical maturation. The enhancements considered present a variety of choices and factors including: the enhancements to be included in the actual control system, safety, detailed task analyses, human factors, cost-benefit ratios, and availability and maturity of technology. Because the actual system will be designed by an offsite vendor, the procurement specifications must have the flexibility to allow bidders to propose a broad range of ideas, yet build in enough restrictions to filter out infeasible and undesirable approaches. At the same time they must allow selection of a technically promising proposal. Based on a preliminary analysis of the waste retrieval task, and considering factors such as operator limitations and the current state of robotics technology, the authors recommend a set of enhancements that will (1) allow the system to complete its waste retrieval mission, and (2) enable future upgrades in response to changing mission needs and technological advances.
Most neutron spectrum determination methodologies ignore self-shielding effects in dosimetry foils and treat covers with an exponential attenuation model. This work provides a quantitative analysis of the approximations in this approach. It also provides a methodology for improving the fidelity of the treatment of the dosimetry sensor response to a level consistent with the user`s spectrum characterization approach. A library of correction functions for the energy-dependent sensor response has been compiled that addresses dosimetry foils/configurations in use at the Sandia National Laboratories Radiation Metrology Laboratory.
We introduce an up-scaled, buoyant invasion percolation model (UIP) for application to non-wetting, dense, non-aqueous phase liquid (DNAPL) migration at the geologic formation scale within the saturated zone of an aquifer. The UEP model incorporates a gravitational potential to model the displacement of fluids of different densities and can be used for either LNAPLs (lighter than water) or DNAPLs (denser than water). We demonstrate model behavior in a simulated braided stream deposit. Simulations show the influence of textural changes across layers and gravity forces in controlling DNAPL migration. While our results are encouraging, the application of this up-scaled percolation model requires a series of tests both in the laboratory and in the field before judgment of sufficient validity for its intended purpose is achieved.
Initiated in 1991; the Dish/Stirling Joint Venture Program (DSJVP) is a 5-year, $17.2 million joint venture which is funded by Cummins Power Generation, Inc. (CPG) of Columbus, Indiana and the United States Department of Energy`s (DOE) Solar Thermal and Biomass Power Division. Sandia National Laboratories administers and provides technical management for this contract on the DOE`s behalf. In January, 1995; CPG advanced to Phase 3 of this three-phase contract. The objective of the DSJVP is to develop and commercialize a 7-kW. Dish/Stirling System for remote power markets by 1997. In this paper, the technical status of the major subsystems which comprise the CPG 7-kW{sub e} Dish/Stirling System is presented. These subsystems include the solar concentrator, heat pipe receiver, engine/alternator, power conditioning, and automatic controls.
The report describes a preliminary evaluation of models for transforming regional climate model output from a regional to a local scale for the Yucca Mountain area. Evaluation and analysis of both empirical and numerical modeling are discussed which is aimed at providing site-specific, climate-based information for use by interfacing activities. Two semiempirical approaches are recommended for further analysis.
A mathematical formulation is presented for describing the transport of air, water and energy through porous media. The development follows a continuum mechanics approach. The theory assumes the existence of various average macroscopic variables which describe the state of the system. Balance equations for mass and energy are formulated in terms of these macroscopic variables. The system is supplemented with constitutive equations relating fluxes to the state variables, and with transport property specifications. Specification of various mixing rules and thermodynamic relations completes the system of equations. A numerical simulation scheme, employing the method of lines, is described for one-dimensional flow. The numerical method is demonstrated on sample problems involving nonisothermal flow of air and water. The implementation is verified by comparison with existing numerical solutions.
Measurements of capillary barrier performance have been conducted in above-grade wooden structures (boxes) configured to measure the water balance. The capillary-barrier portion of the boxes is 6.0 m long, 2.0 m wide, and 1.2 m high with a slope of 5%. A coarse-grained material was placed in the bottom 25-cm of the box with a 90-cm deep fine-grained material (local soil) on top. A region for laterally diverted water to accumulate and drain was created in the last 1.0 m of the box. The soil at the top is terraced into five, 1.4 m long, level intervals to prevent runoff when adding water. Water is added uniformly to the entire top of the box at a rate of about 66 l/day, or an infiltration rate of 1.7 m/year. The top of the box is covered with fiber-reinforced plastic to minimize evaporation of water, discourage plant growth, and prevent rainfall from contacting the soil. Five drains are spaced along the bottom of the coarse layer. These drains discretize the coarse layer into five collection regions to provide a means of identifying the breakthrough location into the coarse layer. A drain is also located in the downdip collection region of the box. Soil moisture changes were measured in the fine-grained material with a frequency-domain reflectometry (FDR) probe, which was calibrated using soil from the field site at a known moisture content and density.
The objective of Sandia`s refining of coal-derived liquids project is to determine the relationship between hydrotreating conditions and Product characteristics. The coal-derived liquids used in this work were produced In HTI`s first proof-of-concept run using Illinois No. 8 coal. Samples of the whole coal liquid product, distillate fractions of this liquid, and Criterion HDN-60 catalyst were obtained from Southwest Research Inc. Hydrotreating experiments were performed using a continuous operation, unattended, microflow reactor system. A factorial experimental design with three variables (temperature, (310{degrees}C to 388{degrees}C), liquid hourly space velocity (1 to 3 g/h/cm{sup 3}(cat)), pressure (500 to 1000 psig H{sub 2}) is being used in this project. Sulfur and nitrogen contents of the hydrotreated products were monitored during the hydrotreating experiments to ensure that activity was lined out at each set of reaction conditions. Results of hydrotreating the whole coal liquid showed that nitrogen values in the products ranged from 549 ppM at 320{degrees}C, 3 g/h/cm{sup 3}(cat), 500 psig H{sub 2} to <15 ppM at 400{degrees}C, 1 g/h/ cm{sup 3}(cat), 1000 psig H{sub 2}.
A laboratory investigation has been carried out to determine the effects of elevated temperature and stress on the creep deformation of welded tuffs recovered from Busted Butte in the vicinity of Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Water saturated specimens of tuff from thermal/mechanical unit TSw2 were tested in creep at a confining pressure of 5.0 MPa, a pore pressure of 4.5 MPa, and temperatures of 25 and 250 C. At each stress level the load was held constant for a minimum of 2.5 {times} 10{sup 5} seconds and for as long as 1.8 {times} 10{sup 6} seconds. One specimen was tested at a single stress of 80 MPa and a temperature of 250 C. The sample failed after a short time. Subsequent experiments were initiated with an initial differential stress of 50 or 60 MPa; the stress was then increased in 10 MPa increments until failure. The data showed that creep deformation occurred in the form of time-dependent axial and radial strains, particularly beyond 90% of the unconfined, quasi-static fracture strength. There was little dilatancy associated with the deformation of the welded tuff at stresses below 90% of the fracture strength. Insufficient data have been collected in this preliminary study to determine the relationship between temperature, stress, creep deformation to failure, and total failure time at a fixed creep stress.
This report discusses the testing and evaluation of thirteen commercially available exterior digital video motion detection (VMD) systems. The systems were evaluated for use in a specific outdoor application. The report focuses primarily on the testing parameters, each system`s advertised features, and the nuisance alarm and detection test results.
Bridged polysilsesquioxanes represent an interesting family of hybrid organic-inorganic composite materials. It has been shown that manipulation of the organic bridging component offers the potential for the synthesis of a variety of materials with a range of surface areas and porosities. In addition, incorporation of a heteroatom within the bridging organic component allows for further chemical transformation of the polysilsesquioxane material.
This paper presents the relations that describe thermodynamic equilibrium in a three-phase system. Multiple components, including air, water, and oil components, are considered in three phases: (1) aqueous, (2) oil, and (3) gas. Primary variables are specified for each of seven possible phase combinations. These primary variables are then used to determine the necessary secondary variables to completely describe the system. Criteria are also developed to check the stability of each phase configuration and determine possible transitions from one phase configuration to another phase configuration via phase appearances and disappearances.
The authors analyze the problem of radiation trapping (imprisonment) by the method of Holstein. The process is described by an integrodifferential equation which shows that the effective radiative decay rate of the system depends on the size and the shape of the active medium. Holstein obtains a global decay rate for a particular geometry by assuming that the radiating excited species evolves into a steady state spatial mode. The authors derive a new approximation for the trapped decay which has a space dependent decay rate and is easy to implement in a detailed computer simulation of a plasma confined within an arbitrary geometry. They analyze the line shapes that are relevant to a near-atmospheric-pressure mixture of He and Xe. This line-shape analysis can be utilized in either the Holstein formulae or the space-dependent decay approximation.
Polyelectrolyte (PE) gels are swollen polymer/solvent networks that undergo a reversible volume collapse/expansion through various types of stimulation. Applications that could exploit this large deformation and solvent expulsion/absorption characteristics include robotic {open_quotes}fingers{close_quotes} and drug delivery systems. The goals of the research were to first explore the feasibility of using the PE gels as {open_quotes}smart materials{close_quotes} - materials whose response can be controlled by an external stimulus through a feedback mechanism. Then develop a predictive capability to simulate the dynamic behavior of these gels. This involved experimentally characterizing the response of well-characterized gels to an applied electric field and other stimuli to develop an understanding of the underlying mechanisms which cause the volume collapse. Lastly, the numerical analysis tool was used to simulate various potential engineering devices based on PE gels. This report discusses the pursuit of those goals through experimental and computational means.
Reactor-scale ex-vessel boiling experiments were performed in the CYBL facility at Sandia National Laboratories. The boiling flow pattern outside the RPV bottom head shows a center pulsating region and an outer steady two-phase boundary layer region. The local heat transfer data can be correlated in terms of a modified Rohsenow correlation.
In some nuclear reactor core melt accidents, a potential exists for molten core debris to be dispersed into the containment under high pressure. Resulting energy transfer to the containment atmosphere can pressurize the containment. This process, known as direct containment heating (DCH), has been the subject of extensive experimental and analytical programs sponsored by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). DCH modeling has been a major focus for the development of the CONTAIN code. In support of the peer review, extensive analyses of DCH experiments were performed in order to assess the CONTAIN code`s DCH models and improve understanding of DCH phenomenology. The present paper summarizes this assessment effort.
This study assessed the impact of aging on the performance and reliability of active fire protection systems including both fixed fire suppression and fixed fire detection systems. The experience base shows that most nuclear power plants have an aggressive maintenance and testing program and are finding degraded fire protection system components before a failure occurs. Also, from the data reviewed it is clear that the risk impact of fire protection system aging is low. However, it is assumed that a more aggressive maintenance and testing program involving preventive diagnostics may reduce the risk impact even further.
The Environmental Restoration (ER) Project has been tasked with the characterization, assessment, remediation and long-term monitoring of contaminated waste sites at Sandia National Laboratories/New Mexico (SNL/NM). Many of these sites will require remediation which will involve the use of baseline technologies, innovative technologies that are currently under development, and new methods which will be developed in the near future. The Technology Applications Program (TAP) supports the ER Project and is responsible for development of new technologies for use at the contaminated waste sites, including technologies that will be used for remediation and restoration of these sites. The purpose of this report is to define the remediation needs of the ER Project and to identify those remediation needs for which the baseline technologies and the current development efforts are inadequate. The area between the remediation needs and the existing baseline/innovative technology base represents a technology gap which must be filled in order to remediate contaminated waste sites at SNL/NM economically and efficiently. In the first part of this report, the remediation needs of the ER Project are defined by both the ER Project task leaders and by TAP personnel. The next section outlines the baseline technologies, including EPA defined Best Demonstrated Available Technologies (BDATs), that are applicable at SNL/NM ER sites. This is followed by recommendations of innovative technologies that are currently being developed that may also be applicable at SNL/NM ER sites. Finally, the gap between the existing baseline/innovative technology base and the remediation needs is identified. This technology gap will help define the future direction of technology development for the ER Project.
A telephone survey was conducted to evaluate the quality of service provided to the primary customers of the Corporate Ergonomics Group (CEG). One hundred clients who received services between October 1993 and June 1994 were asked questions on their expectations, implementation of ergonomic recommendations, follow-ups, time required, productivity improvements, symptom alleviation, and satisfaction. Suggestions on how processes could be improved were also solicited. In general, recommendations are being implemented, worksite evaluations are going smoothly, and customers are satisfied with the process. The CEG was pleased to learn that half of the people who implemented recommendations experienced improvements in productivity, and four out of five symptomatic customers experienced partial or complete relief. Through analysis of the data and by studying clients` suggestions for process improvement, the CEG has developed a strategy for changing and improving current procedures and practices. These plans can be found in the last section of this report.
The SERAPBIM (SEgmented RAil PHased Induction Motor) concept is a linear induction motor concept which uses rapidly-pulsed magnetic fields and a segmented reaction rail, as opposed to low-frequency fields and continuous reaction rails found in conventional linear induction motors. These improvements give a high-traction, compact, and efficient linear motor that has potential for advanced high speed rail propulsion. In the SERAPBIM concept, coils on the vehicle push against a segmented aluminum rail, which is mounted on the road bed. Current is pulsed as the coils cross an edge of the segmented rail, inducing surface currents which repel the coil. The coils must be pulsed in synchronization with the movement by reaction rail segments. This is provided by a sense-and-fire circuit that controls the pulsing of the power modulators. Experiments were conducted to demonstrate the feasibility of the pulsed induction motor and to collect data that could be used for scaling calculations. A 14.4 kg aluminum plate was accelerated down a 4 m track to speeds of over 15 m/sec with peak thrust up to 18 kN per coilset. For a trainset capable of 200 mph speed, the SERAPHIM concept design is based on coils which are each capable of producing up to 3.5 kN thrust, and 30 coil pairs are mounted on each power car. Two power cars, one at each end of the train, provide 6 MW from two gas turbine prime power units. The thrust is about 210.000 N and is essentially constant up to 200 km/hr since wheel slippage does not limit thrust as with conventional wheeled propulsion. A key component of the SERAPHIM concept is the use of passive wheel-on-rah support for the high speed vehicle. Standard steel wheels are capable of handling over 200 mph. The SERAPHIM cost is comparable to that for steel-wheel high-speed rail, and about 10% to 25% of the projected costs for a comparable Maglev system.
The Vital Issues Process, developed by the Sandia National Laboratories Strategic Technologies Department, was utilized by the Health Care Task Force Advisory Group to apply structure to their policy deliberations. By convening three expert panels, an overarching goal for the New Mexico health care system, seven desired outcomes, nine policy options, and 17 action items were developed for the New Mexico health care system. Three broadly stated evaluation criteria were articulated and used to produce relative rankings of the desired outcomes and policy options for preventive care and information systems. Reports summarizing the policy deliberations were submitted for consideration by the Health Care Task Force, a Joint Interim Committee of the New Mexico Legislature, charged with facilitating the development and implementation of a comprehensive health care delivery system for New Mexico. The Task Force reported its findings and recommendations to the Second Session of the 41st New Mexico State Legislature in January 1994.
The Automated Assembly Team of the APRIMED Project (abbreviated as A{prime}) consists of two parts: the Archimedes Project, which is an ongoing project developing automated assembly technology, and the A{prime} Robot Team. Archimedes is a second generation assembly planning system that both provides a general high-level assembly sequencing capability and, for a smaller class of products, facilitates automatic programming of a robotic workcell to assemble them. The A{prime} robot team designed, developed, and implemented a flexible robot workcell which served as the automated factory of the A{prime} project. In this document we briefly describe the role of automated assembly planning in agile manufacturing, and specifically describe the contributions of the Archimedes project and the A{prime} robot team to the A{prime} project. We introduce the concepts of the Archimedes automated assembly planning project, and discuss the enhancements to Archimedes which were developed in response to the needs of the A{prime} project. We also present the work of the A{prime} robot team in designing and developing the A{prime} robot workcell, including all tooling and programming to support assembly of the A{prime} discriminator devices. Finally, we discuss the process changes which these technologies have enabled in the A{prime} project.
This is a preliminary report of a multi-year collaboration of the authors addressing the subject: Can a facility be designed for team learning and would it improve the efficiency and effectiveness of team interactions? Team learning in this context is a broad definition that covers all activities where small to large groups of people come together to work, to learn, and to share through team activities. Multimedia, networking, such as World Wide Web and other tools, are greatly enhancing the capability of individual learning. This paper addresses the application of technology and design to facilitate group or team learning. Many organizational meetings need tens of people to come together to do work as a large group and then divide into smaller subgroups of five to ten to work and then to return and report and interact with the larger group. Current facilities were not, in general, designed for this type of meeting. Problems with current facilities are defined and a preliminary design solution to many of the identified problems is presented.
The results of previously completed vertical outcrop sampling transacts are summarized with respect to planning downhole sampling. The summary includes statistical descriptions and descriptions of the spatial variability of the sampled parameters. Descriptions are made on each individual transect, each thermal/mechanical unit and each previously defined geohydrologic unit. Correlations between parameters indicate that saturated hydraulic conductivity is not globally correlated to porosity. The correlation between porosity and saturated hydraulic conductivity is both spatially and lithologically dependent. Currently, there are not enough saturated hydraulic conductivity and sorptivity data to define relationships between these properties and porosity on a unit by unit basis. Also, the Prow Pass member of the Crater Flat Tuff and stratigraphically lower units have gone essentially unsampled in these outcrop transacts. The vertical correlation length for hydrologic properties is not constant across the area of the transacts. The average sample spacing within the transacts ranges from 1.25 to 2.1 meters. It appears that, with the exception of the Topopah Spring member units, a comparable sample spacing will give adequate results in the downhole sampling campaign even with the nonstationarity of the vertical correlation. The properties within the thermal/mechanical units and geohydrologic units of the Topopah Spring member appear to have a spatial correlation range less than or equal to the current sample spacing within these units. For the downhole sampling, a sample spacing of less than 1.0 meters may be necessary within these units.
This report describes the first practical, non-invasive technique for detecting and imaging currents internal to operating integrated circuits (ICs). This technique is based on magnetic force microscopy and was developed under Sandia National Laboratories` LDRD (Laboratory Directed Research and Development) program during FY 93 and FY 94. LDRD funds were also used to explore a related technique, charge force microscopy, for voltage probing of ICs. This report describes the technical work performed under this LDRD as well as the outcomes of the project in terms of publications and awards, intellectual property and licensing, synergistic work, potential future work, hiring of additional permanent staff, and benefits to DOE`s defense programs (DP).
Sandia National Laboratories has established a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with consortium members of the National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (NCMS) to develop fundamental generic technology in the area of printed wiring board materials and surface finishes. Improved solderability of copper substrates is an important component of the Sandia-NCMS program. We are investigating the effects of surface roughness on the wettability and solderability behavior of several different types of copper board finishes. In this paper, we present roughness and solderability characterizations for a variety of chemically-etched copper substrates. Initial testing on six chemical etches demonstrate that surface roughness can be greatly enhanced through chemical etching. Noticeable improvements in solder wettability were observed to accompany increases in roughness. A number of different algorithms and measures of roughness were used to gain insight into surface morphologies that lead to improved solderability.
Sandia National Laboratories conducts the photovoltaic balance of systems (BOS) program, which is sponsored by the US Department of Energy`s Office of Energy Management. Under this program, SNL lets commercialization contracts and conducts a laboratory program designed to advance BOS technology, improve BOS component reliability, and reduce the BOS life-cycle-cost. This report details the testing of the first large US manufactured hybrid inverter and its associated maximum power tracker.
The overpressurization of a 1:6-scale reinforced concrete containment building demonstrated that liner tearing is a plausible failure mode in such structures under severe accident conditions. A combined experimental and analytical program was developed to determine the important parameters which affect liner tearing and to develop reasonably simple analytical methods for predicting when tearing will occur. Three sets of test specimens were designed to allow individual control over and investigation of the mechanisms believed to be important in causing failure of the liner plate. The series of tests investigated the effect on liner tearing produced by the anchorage system, the loading conditions, and the transition in thickness from the liner to the insert plate. Before testing, the specimens were analyzed using two- and three-dimensional finite element models. Based on the analysis, the failure mode and corresponding load conditions were predicted for each specimen. Test data and post-test examination of test specimens show mixed agreement with the analytical predictions with regard to failure mode and specimen response for most tests. Many similarities were also observed between the response of the liner in the 1:6-scale reinforced concrete containment model and the response of the test specimens. This work illustrates the fact that the failure mechanism of a reinforced concrete containment building can be greatly influenced by details of liner and anchorage system design. Further, it significantly increases the understanding of containment building response under severe conditions.
As part of an Environmentally Conscious Manufacturing (ECM) Program, a study was conducted at Sandia National Laboratories to identify an alternative cleaning process that would effectively replace trichloroethylene (TCE) for cleaning mechanical piece parts of Switch Tube assemblies. Eight aqueous alkaline cleaners, as well as an isopropyl alcohol and isopropyl alcohol/Cyclohexane cleaning process, were studied as potential replacements. Cleaning efficacy, materials compatibility, etch rate and corrosion studies were conducted and used to screen potential candidates. Cleaning efficacy was determined using visual examination, goniometer/contact angle measurements, Auger electron spectroscopy, X-ray Photoelectron spectroscopy and an evaporative rate analysis technique known as MESERAN Surface Analysis. Several cleaners were identified as potential replacements for TCE based solely on the cleaning efficacy results. Some of the cleaners, however, left undesirable residues studies were completed, Brulin 815GD (an aqueous alkaline cleaner) was selected as the replacement for TCE.
This paper describes the planning of evaluation for one large-scale national energy program with-scale, national energy program with international reporting requirements, US. Climate Change Action Plant. Referred to as Energy Partnerships for a Strong Economy, this program includes 19 DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EE) initiatives and three other DOE projects. The evaluation strategy is to have a six year effort with ongoing performance measurement, market studies and process evaluations when deviations from targeted outcomes occur, and a final evaluation report that combines these results with other impact evaluations deemed necessary. The evaluation planning and implementation will use a collaborative approach involving program managers and stakeholders, including program partners and customers, to ensure that evaluation results are useful and utilized. Performance mapping will be used to describe the programs to be evaluated and determine data collection needs and key evaluation questions. The evaluation plan uses multiple evaluation methods, including model and engineering estimates, self-reporting by partners, case studies, surveys, and modified peer/expert review in order to accommodate the scope and diversity of programs and the need to measure progress as well as impact.
The part-load behavior of a typical 30-MWe SEGS (solar electric generating systems) plant was studied using a detailed thermodynamic model. As part of this analysis, a new solar field model was derived, based on measurement results of an LS-2 Collector and accounting for various conditions of receiver tubes, lost mirrors and measured reflectivity. A comparison was made of the model results to real plant conditions for a winter and summer day in order to test the accuracy of the model. The effects of bare tubes, different wind speeds, mirror reflectivity and other factors were studied showing, e.g., that heat losses due to wind are predicted to be very low. The comparison also shows that the model still lacks the capability to fully account for actual solar field conditions. The model was also compared to the SOLERGY model, showing differences between the assumptions used in both models. Finally different operating conditions of the plant were studied for a summer, fall, and winter day to provide a better understanding of how changing solar field outlet temperatures affect gross and net output of the plant. This clearly indicates that the lowest possible superheating temperature maximizes the gross electric output. On a net basis this conclusion is modified due to the high parasitics of the HTF (heat transfer fluid) pumps. It was found that the optimum operating strategy depends on the insolation conditions, e.g., different superheating temperatures should be chosen in summer, fall and winter. If the pressure drop in the solar field is reduced due to replacement of flex hoses with ball joints, increasing the HTF flow is more reasonable, so that at low isolation conditions the lowest possible superheating temperature also leads to the maximum net output.
The Energy Policy Act of 1992 required the DOE to develop recommendations and implement government programs to assist the domestic uranium industry in increasing export opportunities. In 1993, as part of that effort, the Office of Nuclear Energy identified several key factors that could (or have) significantly impact(ed) export opportunities for domestic uranium. This report addresses one of these factors: regulatory and policy impediments to the flow of uranium products between the US and other countries. It speaks primarily to the uranium market for civil nuclear power. Changes in the world political and economic order have changed US national security requirements, and the US uranium industry has found itself without the protected market it once enjoyed. An unlevel playing field for US uranium producers has resulted from a combination of geology, history, and a general US political philosophy of nonintervention that precludes the type of industrial policy practiced in other uranium-exporting countries. The US has also been hampered in its efforts to support the domestic uranium-producing industry by its own commitment to free and open global markets and by international agreements such as GATT and NAFTA. Several US policies, including the imposition of NRC fees and licensing costs and Harbor Maintenance fees, directly harm the competitiveness of the domestic uranium industry. Finally, requirements under US law, such as those in the 1979 Nuclear Nonproliferation Act, place very strict limits on the use of US-origin uranium, limitations not imposed by other uranium-producing countries. Export promotion and coordination are two areas in which the US can help the domestic uranium industry without violating existing trade agreements or other legal or policy constraints.
The fabrication of a prosthetic socket for a below-the-knee amputee requires knowledge of the underlying bone structure in order to provide pressure relief for sensitive areas and support for load bearing areas. The goal is to enable the residual limb to bear pressure with greater ease and utility. Conventional methods of prosthesis fabrication are based on limited knowledge about the patient`s underlying bone structure. A 3D ultrasound imaging system was developed at Sandia National Laboratories. The imaging system provides information about the location of the bones in the residual limb along with the shape of the skin surface. Computer assisted design (CAD) software can use this data to design prosthetic sockets for amputees. Ultrasound was selected as the imaging modality. A computer model was developed to analyze the effect of the various scanning parameters and to assist in the design of the overall system. The 3D ultrasound imaging system combines off-the-shelf technology for image capturing, custom hardware, and control and image processing software to generate two types of image data -- volumetric and planar. Both volumetric and planar images reveal definition of skin and bone geometry with planar images providing details on muscle fascial planes, muscle/fat interfaces, and blood vessel definition. The 3D ultrasound imaging system was tested on 9 unilateral below-the- knee amputees. Image data was acquired from both the sound limb and the residual limb. The imaging system was operated in both volumetric and planar formats. An x-ray CT (Computed Tomography) scan was performed on each amputee for comparison. Results of the test indicate beneficial use of ultrasound to generate databases for fabrication of prostheses at a lower cost and with better initial fit as compared to manually fabricated prostheses.
Combination glass electrodes were tested for determining H{sup +} concentrations in concentrated pure and mixed NaCl and Na{sub 2}SO{sub 4} solutions, as well as natural brine systems. NaCl, Na{sub 2}SO{sub 4}, and mixtures of NaCl and Na{sub 2}SO{sub 4} solutions were analyzed. Correction factors for estimating pC{sub H}{sup +} (negative logarithm of H{sup +} concentration) were determined from measured/observed pH values. Required Gran-type titrations were done with HCl and/or NaOH. The titration method is described and a step-by-step procedure provided; it has been used previously for determining pC{sub H}{sup +} values of synthetic chloride-dominated brines. Precautions are required to determine correction factors for electrolytes that react with H{sup +} or OH{sup {minus}} [sulfate brines for titration with acid; magnesium brines for titration with base because of precipitation of Mg(OH)2]. Correction factors A (pC{sub H}{sup +} = pH{sub ob} + A) from HCl titrations were similar to those from NaOH titrations where the concentration of free H{sup +} was calculated using a thermodynamic model. These values should be applicable to solns with a very large range in measured pH values (2 to 12). Because a large number of solns were titrated with HCl and the A values are similar for HCl and NaOH titrations, the A values for NaCl and Na2SO4 solns were fit as a function of molality to allow extrapolation. For NaCl solns 0 to 6.0 M, A can be obtained by multiplying the molality by 0.159. For Na2SO4 solns 0 to 2.0 M, the values of A can be obtained from (0.221 {minus} 0.549X + 0.201X{sup 2}), where X is the molality of Na{sub 2}SO{sub 4}. Orion-Ross electrode evaluations indicated that the A values did not differ significantly for different electrodes. Results suggest that the data in this report can be used to estimate A values for different NaCl and Na{sub 2}SO{sub 4} solns even for noncalibrated electrodes.
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) technology is currently receiving extensive attention in the computer networking arena. Many experts predict that ATM will be the future networking technology for both the Local Area Network (LAN) and the Wide Area Network (WAN). This paper presents the results of a collaboration between Sandia National Laboratories` Advanced Networking Department and Engineering Sciences Center to study the implementation of ATM in one of Sandia`s most heavily loaded production networks. The network consists of over 120 Sun Sparc 10s and 20s, two SparcCenter 2000s, a 12 node parallel IBM SP-2, and several other miscellaneous high-end workstations. The existing network was first characterized through extensive traffic measurements to better understand the capabilities and limitations of the existing network technologies and to provide a baseline for comparison to an ATM network. This characterization was used to select a subset of the network elements which would benefit most from conversion to the ATM technology. This subset was then converted to equipment based on the latest ATM standards. With direct OC-3c (155 Mbps) host connections for the workstations and the file and compute servers, we demonstrated as much as 122 Mbps throughput (memory-to-memory TCP/IP transfers) between endpoints. Flow control in the classical many-to-one client server environment was also investigated. Throughout all of our tests, the interaction of the user applications with the network technologies was documented and possible improvements were tested. The performance and reliability of the ATM network was compared to the original network to determine the benefits and liabilities of the ATM technology.
A method to reduce nightly parasitic power consumption in a molten salt central receiver is discussed where salt is drained from the piping and heat tracing is turned off to allow the piping to cool to ambient overnight, then in the morning the pipes are filled while they are cold. Since the piping and areas of the receiver in a molten-nitrate salt central-receiver solar power plant must be electrically heated to maintain their temperatures above the nitrate salt freezing point (430{degrees}F, 221{degrees}C), considerable energy could be used to maintain such temperatures during nightly shut down and bad weather. Experiments and analyses have been conducted to investigate cold filling receiver panels and piping as a way of reducing parasitic electrical power consumption and increasing the availability of the plant. The two major concerns with cold filling are: (1) how far can the molten salt penetrate cold piping before freezing closed and (2) what thermal stresses develop during the associated thermal shock. Experiments and analysis are discussed.
Models for direct containment heating (DCH) in the CONTAIN code for severe accident analysis have been reviewed and a standard input prescription for their use has been defined. The code has been exercised against a large subset of the available DCH data base. Generally good agreement with the experimental results for containment pressurization ({Delta}P) and hydrogen generation has been obtained. Extensive sensitivity studies have been performed which permit assessment of many of the strengths and weaknesses of specific model features. These include models for debris transport and trapping, DCH heat transfer and chemistry, atmosphere-structure heat transfer, interactions between nonairborne debris and blowdown steam, potential effects of debris-water interactions, and hydrogen combustion under DCH conditions. Containment compartmentalization is an important DCH mitigator in the calculations, in agreement with experimental results. The CONTAIN model includes partially parametric treatments for some processes that are not well understood. The importance of the associated uncertainties depends upon the details of the DCH scenario being analyzed. Recommended sensitivity studies are summarized that allow the user to obtain a reasonable estimate of the uncertainties in the calculated results.
In this paper we study the question: How useful is randomization in speeding up Exclusive Write PRAM computations? Our results give further evidence that randomization is of limited use in these types of computations. First we examine a compaction problem on both the CREW and EREW PRAM models, and we present randomized lower bounds which match the best deterministic lower bounds known. (For the CREW PRAM model, the lower bound is asymptotically optimal.) These are the first non-trivial randomized lower bounds known for the compaction problem on these models. We show that our lower bounds also apply to the problem of approximate compaction. Next we examine the problem of computing boolean functions on the CREW PRAM model, and we present a randomized lower bound, which improves on the previous best randomized lower bound for many boolean functions, including the OR function. (The previous lower bounds for these functions were asymptotically optimal, but we improve the constant multiplicative factor.) We also give an alternate proof for the randomized lower bound on PARITY, which was already optimal to within a constant additive factor. Lastly, we give a randomized lower bound for integer merging on an EREW PRAM which matches the best deterministic lower bound known. In all our proofs, we use the Random Adversary method, which has previously only been used for proving lower bounds on models with Concurrent Write capabilities. Thus this paper also serves to illustrate the power and generality of this method for proving parallel randomized lower bounds.
The queue-read, queue-write (QRQW) parallel random access machine (PRAM) model is a shared memory model which allows concurrent reading and writing with a time cost proportional to the contention. This is designed to model currently available parallel machines more accurately than either the CRCW PRAM or EREW PRAM models. Many algorithmic results have been developed for the QRQW PRAM. However, the only lower bound results have been fairly simple reductions from lower bounds for other models, such as the EREW PRAM or the ``few-write`` CREW PRAM. Here we present a lower bound specific to the QRQW PRAM. This lower bound is on the problem of Linear Approximate Compaction (LAC), whose input consists of at most m marked items in an array of size n, and whose output consists of the rn marked items in an array of size 0(m). There is an O({radical}log n), expected time randomized algorithm for LAC on the QRQW PRAM. We prove a lower bound of {Omega}(log log log n) expected time for any randomized algorithm for LAC. This bound applies regardless of the number of processors and memory cells of the QRQW PRAM. The previous best lower bound was {Omega}(log* n) time, taken from the known lower bound for LAC on the CRCW PRAM.
The authors have characterized the pyrochlore-to-perovskite crystallization process in solution-derived Pb(Zr{sub 0.20}Ti{sub 0.80})O{sub 3} thin films on (100) MgO single crystal substrates. It has been determined that the perovskite phase nucleated preferentially at the film/MgO interface out of a nanocrystalline ({approx}100{angstrom} grains) pyrochlore matrix. During the early stages of the pyrochlore-to-perovskite conversion process, perovskite growth proceeded nearly isotropically from the substrate to form hemispherically shaped grains. Deviations from isotropic growth were shown to result from a growth dependence based on the crystallographic orientation of a growing perovskite grain relative to the orientations of pyrochlore grains being transformed. The volume change that occurs during the pyrochlore-to-perovskite transformation along with two-dimensional grain growth has been used to develop a mechanism for formation of porosity that commonly is concentrated in grain boundary regions.
Sandia National Laboratories has established a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with consortium members of the National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (NCMS) to develop fundamental generic technology in the area of printed wiring board materials and surface finishes. Improved solderability of copper substrates is an important component of the Sandia-NCMS program. The authors are investigating the effects of surface roughness on the wettability and solderability behavior of several different types of copper board finishes. In this paper, the authors present roughness and solderability characterizations for a variety of chemically-etched copper substrates. Initial testing on six chemical etches demonstrate that surface roughness can be greatly enhanced through chemical etching. Noticeable improvements in solder wettability were observed to accompany increases in roughness. A number of different algorithms and measures of roughness were used to gain insight into surface morphologies that lead to improved solderability.
This report describes the results of experiments performed to determine the viability of titanium dioxide photocatalysis towards the treatment of water contaminated with different metal-EDTA complexes. Both the PB-EDTA and Ni-EDTA complexes were chosen for study, as they represent respectively metals that are and are not capable of photodeposition onto the TiO{sub 2} catalyst during the photoreaction. Batch reactions were carried out in a jacketed glass pot reactor using 300 ml of 50m g/l metal chelated with an equimolar amount of EDTA and 0.1wt% of TiO{sub 2} in the solution. The UV source used was a 100 W low-pressure Hg spot lamp. The two systems were studied using Degussa P-25 titanium dioxide, and Aldrich titanium dioxide loaded with Pt and Au. Around 80% removal of the Ni-EDTA complex was attained after 120 min using both catalysts with no photodeposition of Ni onto the catalyst. However, pH precipitation treatment of the reacted solutions indicated that the Ni was still complexed, probably to complexing agents that were EDTA oxidation products. Apparent zero-order kinetics was observed in the P-25 catalyst reaction, whereas apparent first-order kinetics was observed in the metal-loaded TiO{sub 2} catalyst. In contrast the Pb-EDTA complex was completely removed in 10 min using both catalysts. Also, complete Pb deposition onto the catalyst was attained in 30 min for both catalysts. The Pb deposition seemed to first require the degradation of the complex. Total organic carbon was reduced in the Ni-EDTA system 15--21% using both catalysts, and about 33% in the Pb-EDTA system using both catalysts. No reduction of either metal or metal complex was observed when no catalyst was present and the other conditions held constant.
Borehole-to-surface electromagnetic (EM) methods are an attractive alternative to Surface-based EM methods for a variety of environmental and engineering applications. They have improved sensitivity to the subsurface resistivity distribution because of the closer proximity to the area of interest offered by the borehole for the source or the receiver. For the borehole-to-surface measurements the source is in the borehole and the receivers are on the surface. On the other hand, for the surface-to-borehole methods, the source is on the surface and the receiver is in a borehole. The surface-to-borehole method has an added advantage since measurements are often more accurate due to the lower noise environment for the receiver. For these methods, the source can be a grounded electric dipole or a vertical magnetic dipole source. An added benefit of these techniques is field measurements are made using a variety of arrays where the system is tailored to the application and where one can take advantage of some new imaging methods. In this short paper the authors describe the application of the borehole-to-surface method, discuss benefits and shortcomings, and give two field examples where they have been used for underground imaging. The examples were the monitoring of a salt water flooding of an oil well and the characterization of a fuel oil spill.
The authors performed an X-ray diffraction study of tetrahedral-coordinated-amorphous carbon (a-tC) films prepared by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). Samples properties were analyzed as a function of laser energy and thickness. For all thicknesses and laser energies, films were made up of clusters with a basic unit size of 7 - 11 nm. Thicker films, as well as films prepared at higher laser densities exhibit larger clusters, in the tens of nanometers. The clusters are not readily observable by AFM, which may indicate the presence of a flat (graphitized) top film surface.
The structural evaluation test unit is roughly equivalent to a 1/3 scale model of a high level waste rail cask. The test unit was designed to just meet the requirements of NRC Regulatory Guide 7.6 when subjected to a 9 m (30 ft) free drop resulting in an impact velocity of 13.4 m/s (30 mph) onto an unyielding target in the end-on orientation. The test unit was then subjected to impacts with higher velocities to determine the amount of built-in conservatism in this design approach. Test impacts of 13.4, 20.1 and 26.8 m/s (30, 45, and 60 mph) were performed. This paper will describe the design, testing, and comparison of measured strains and deformations to the equivalent analytical predictions.
A Discrete element computer program named DMC (Distinct Motion Code) has been developed for modeling rock blasting. This program employs explicit time integration and uses spherical or cylindrical elements which are represented as circles in 2-D. DMC calculations have been compared with measurements on bench blasts in the field with relatively good comparison. Structural rock mass characteristics have a significant impact on any blast and DMC has not, until now, included these effects. This paper discusses a recently added DMC capability for treating joints and bedding planes in bench blast simulations. Material strength is treated in DMC by creating links between spheres to hold them together. The links can be broken based on any criterion; simple tension, compression and shear are currently employed. Joint sets are treated in DMC by defining the dip of each set toward or away from the bench face along with the joint spacing. Strength links that cross joint planes can have their strength properties modified or they can be deleted. Modification of the link patterns based on joint sets creates distinct blocks of spheres outlined by the intersecting joints. These blocks of spheres move together as a solid unit unless stress and strain conditions within the block indicate that links should be broken. Simulations using this capability show some blocks remaining intact throughout the blast and some being partially or completely broken. When this occurs, the joint pattern is shown to influence the characteristics of the blast. Upon completion of this capability both rock breakage and motion will be modeled during the same simulation. Much work remains to be done on this concept making this paper a progress report on the development of this new capability.
Hydrogen is found to readily diffuse into InGaN, InAlN and InGaAlN epitaxial layers during plasma exposures at 170-250{degree}C for 40 sec-30 min. The diffusivity of hydrogen is > 10{sup -11} cm{sup 2} {center_dot} s{sup -1} at 170{degree}C, and the native donor species are passivated by association with the hydrogen. Reactivation of these species occurs at 450-500{degree}C, but the hydrogen remains in the material until {ge} 800{degree}C.
Pb(Zr,Ti)O{sub 3} (PZT) thin films are being developed for use in optical and electronic memory devices. To study ferroelectric switching behavior, the authors have produced relatively untextured PZT thin films on Si substrates. They have developed a method for using X-ray diffraction to observe domain switching in situ. This study involved the use of a micro-diffractometer to monitor the switching behavior in relatively small (0.7 mm diameter) electroded areas. Diffraction analyses were done while DC voltages were applied and removed, representing several places in the hysteresis loop. In particular, the authors were looking for relative intensity changes in the [h00],[00l] diffraction peaks as a function of position in the hysteresis loop. This study indicates that the 90{degrees} domain switching exhibited by bulk ferroelectrics, is very limited in films on Si when grain sizes are less than about 1{mu}m.
Increasingly constrained budgets in the defense community, both DoD and DOE, have created a need to emphasize affordability in the development of future weapons systems and components. Increased use of commercially compatible components will play an important role, but there will always remain a need for specialized production, especially at the system level. We will present on-going work at Sandia National Laboratories (referred to from here as Sandia) aimed at insuring the affordability of low-volume, defence-specific systems.
The 6.4 MeV p({sup l5}N,{alpha}{gamma}){sup 12}C resonant nuclear reaction has been used to investigate the role of hydrogen as a contributing factor in the formation of stress-induced voids in very large scale integrated circuit metallizations. Hydrogen profiles were measured from a series of layered structures consisting of aluminum-copper alloy metallizations deposited on borophosphosilicate glass and capped with a variety of commercial passivation materials in order to examine differences in the concentrations and depth distributions of hydrogen within the layered structures.
Accident source terms, source term probabilities, consequences, and risks are developed for ship collisions that might occur in US ports during the shipment of spent fuel from foreign research reactors to the United States.
Increasing computational speed has led to the development and use of sophisticated numerical methods in radioactive material (RAM) transportation container design. The design of a RAM container often involves a complex coupling of structural, thermal, and radioactive shielding analyses. Sandia National Laboratories has integrated automatic mesh generation, explicit structural finite element analysis, transient thermal finite element analysis, and numerical optimization techniques into a unified RAM container design tool to increase the efficiency of both the design process and the resultant design through coupled analyses. Although development of this technique has progressed significantly, inaccurate numerical gradients due to design space nonsmoothness and excessive computational time have hampered successful implementation of numerical optimization as a ``black box`` design tool. This paper presents the details of analysis tool integration, simplified model development, constraint boundary nonsmoothness difficulties, and numerical optimization results for a lightweight composite-overpack Type B RAM package subject to dynamic crush and fuel fire accident condition constraints.
Fletcher, S.K.; Halbgewachs, R.; Jansma, R.; Lim, J.; Murphy, M.; Wyss, G.
An historical look at software systems reveals a progression of thinking about protection and risk management. In this paper, three generations are defined. For each, we examine the prevalent views of risk, risk assessment, and risk mitigation. We also examine prevalent strategies for assurance. Many gaps exist in current knowledge of how to manage and assess risks in software systems. This paper presents a new perspective which enables comprehensive risk-based design and evaluation of systems, spanning a range of surety concerns (including correctness and safety, in addition to traditional security concerns), and addressing multiple system aspects. We believe this to be a new and unique multidisciplinary approach which transcends both traditional security approaches and traditional risk analysis methods. It facilitates a risk analysis completely tailored to the system at hand, instantiating its threats, its barriers, and its needs for risk reduction.
Etch rates for binary nitrides in ECR Cl{sub 2}/CH{sub 4}/H{sub 2}/Ar are reported as a function of temperature, rf-bias, microwave power, pressure and relative gas proportions. GaN etch rates remain relatively constant from 30 to 125{degrees}C and then increase to a maximum of 2340 {angstrom}-min{sup {minus}1} at 170{degrees}C. The AlN etch rate decreases throughout the temperature range studied with a maximum of 960 {angstrom}-min{sup {minus}1} at 30{degrees}C. When CH{sub 4} is removed from the plasma chemistry, the GaN and InN etch rates are slightly lower, with less dramatic changes with temperature. The surface composition of the III-V nitrides remains unchanged over the temperatures studied. The GaN and InN rates increase significantly with rf power, and the fastest rates for all three binaries are obtained at 2 mTorr. Surface morphology is smooth for GaN over a wide range of conditions, whereas InN surfaces are more sensitive to plasma parameters.
In a light-water reactor core melt accident, if the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) fails while the reactor coolant system (RCS) at high pressure, the expulsion of molten core debris may pressurize the reactor containment building (RCB) beyond its failure pressure. A failure in the bottom head of the RPV, followed by melt expulsion and blowdown of the RCS, will entrain molten core debris in the high-velocity steam blowdown gas. This chain of events is called a high-pressure melt ejection (HPME). Four mechanisms may cause a rapid increase in pressure and temperature in the reactor containment: (1) blowdown of the RCS, (2) efficient debris-to-gas heat transfer, (3) exothermic metal-steam and metal-oxygen reactions, and (4) hydrogen combustion. These processes, which lead to increased loads on the containment building, are collectively referred to as direct containment heating (DCH). It is necessary to understand factors that enhance or mitigate DCH because the pressure load imposed on the RCB may lead to early failure of the containment.
In this paper, a massively parallel implementation of the boundary element method to study particle transport in Stokes flow is discussed. The numerical algorithm couples the quasistatic Stokes equations for the fluid with kinematic and equilibrium equations for the particles. The formation and assembly of the discretized boundary element equations is based on the torus-wrap mapping as opposed to the more traditional row- or column-wrap mappings. The equation set is solved using a block Jacobi iteration method. Results are shown for an example application problem, which requires solving a dense system of 6240 equations more than 1200 times.
Poly (1, 4 bis(triethoxysilyl)benzene) (PTESB), a representative of a new type of organic-inorganic hybrid polysilsesquioxane material, was characterized by fluorescence spectroscopy for both microenvironmental polarity and solvent accessibility. A dansyl fluorescent molecule was incorporated into the bulk as well as onto the surface of both PTESB and silica materials. Information about the microenvironment polarity and accessibility of PTESB to various organic solvents was determined and compared to that of silica gel. This study found that both the bulk and surface of PTESB are less polar than that of the silica material. The silica material is accessible to polar solvents and water, while YMB is accessible to polar solvents but not to water. The hydrophobicity of PTESB differentiates these new materials from silica gel.
By developing an approximation to the first integral of the Poisson equation, one can obtain solutions for the voltage-current characteristics of a radio-frequency (rf) plasma sheath that are valid over the whole range of inertial response of the ions to an imposed rf voltage or current-specified conditions. The theory adequately reproduces the time-dependent voltage-current characteristics of the two extreme cases corresponding to the Lieberman rf sheath theory and the Metze-Ernie-Oskam theory. Contained within the approximation is a time constant which controls the amount of ion response to the rf electric field. A prescription is given for determining this ion relaxation time constant, which also determines the time-dependent ion impact energy on the electrode surface.
Organometallic and hydride compounds are widely used as precursors for the epitaxial growth of GaAs and other compound semiconductors. These precursors are most commonly used to perform organometallic vapor phase epitaxy (OMVPE) and also in related deposition techniques such as atomic layer epitaxy (ALE) and metalorganic molecular beam epitaxy (MOMBE). We have investigated the surface chemical properties of these precursors on GaAs(100) using a variety of surface science diagnostics. Results have shed light on the mechanisms of precursor decomposition which lead to film growth and carbon doping. For instance, kinetics of trimethylgallium (TMGa) decomposition on the Ga-rich and As-rich surfaces, measured by TPD, are in semiquantitative agreement with ALE results; indicating that the dominant growth mechanism during ALE is heterogeneous. Furthermore, there is no compelling evidence for the production of methane (CH{sub 4}) on the GaAs surface when TMGa and arsine (AsH{sub 3}) are coadsorbed.
This paper describes a new optical interconnect architecture and the integrated optoelectronic circuit technology for implementing a parallel, reconfigurable, multiprocessor network. The technology consists of monolithic array`s of optoelectronic switches that integrate vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers with three-terminal heterojunction phototransistors, which effectively combined the functions of an optical transceiver and an optical spatial routing switch. These switches have demonstrated optical switching at 200 Mb/s, and electrical-to-optical data conversion at > 500 Mb/s, with a small-signal electrical-to-optical modulation bandwidth of {approximately} 4 GHz.
Bimodal space reactor systems provide both thermal propulsion for the spacecraft orbital transfer and electrical power to the spacecraft bus once it is on station. These systems have the potential to increase both the available payload in high energy orbits and the available power to that payload. These increased mass and power capabilities can be used to either reduce mission cost by permitting the use of smaller launch vehicles or to provide increased mission performance from the current launch vehicle. A major barrier to the deployment of these bimodal systems has been the cost associated with their development. This paper describes a bimodal reactor system with performance potential to permit more than 70% of the instrumented payload of the Titan IV/Centaur to be launched from the Atlas IIAS. The development cost is minimized by basing the design on existing component technologies.
Sandia Laboratories has developed a thin film diamond substrate technology to meet the requirements for high power and high density circuits. Processes were developed to metallize, photopattern, laser process, and, package diamond thin film networks which were later assembled into high power multichip modules (MCMS) to test for effectiveness at removing heat. Diamond clearly demonstrated improvement in heat transfer during 20 Watt, strip heating experiments with junction-to-ambient temperature increases of less than 24 C compared to 126 C and 265 C for the aluminum nitride and ceramic versions, respectively.
Accurate finite-element simulation of 3-D nonlinear heat transfer in complex systems may require meshes composed of tens of thousands of finite elements and hours of CPU time on today`s fastest computers. To treat applications in which thousands of calculations may be necessary such as for risk assessment or design of high-temperature manufacturing processes, methods are needed which can solve these problems far more efficiently and maintain an acceptably high degree of accuracy. For this purpose, we developed the Thermal Evaluation and Matching Program for Risk Applications (TEMPRA). The primary differentiator between TEMPRA and comparable codes is its numerical formulation, which is designed to be unconditionally stable even with very large time steps, to afford good accuracy even with relatively coarse meshing, and to facilitate benchmarking/calibration through the use of adjustable parameters. Analysis for a sample problem shows that TEMPRA can obtain temperature response solutions with errors of less than 10% using approximately 1/1000 of the computer time required by a typical finite element code.
Prosperity Games are an outgrowth and adaptation of move/countermove and seminar War Games. Prosperity Games are simulations that explore complex issues in a variety of areas including economics, politics, sociology, environment, education and research. These issues can be examined from a variety of perspectives ranging from a global, macroeconomic and geopolitical viewpoint down to the details of customer/supplier/market interactions in specific industries. All Prosperity Games are unique in that both the game format and the player contributions vary from game to game. This report documents the Prosperity Game conducted under the sponsorship of the Electronics Subcommittee of the Civilian Industrial Technology Committee (under the National Science and Technology Council), and the Electronics Partnership Project. Players were drawn from the electronics industry, from government, national laboratories, and universities, and from Japan and Austria. The primary objectives of this game were: To connect the technical and non-technical (i.e., policy) issues that were developed in the roadmap-making endeavor of the National Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (NENI);to provide energy, enthusiasm and people to help the roadmap succeed; and to provide insight into high-leverage public and private investments. The deliberations and recommendations of these teams provide valuable insights as to the views of this diverse group of decision makers concerning policy changes, foreign competition, the robustness of strategic thinking and planning, and the development, delivery and commercialization of new technologies.
The transmission of mechanical power is often accomplished through the use of gearing. The recently developed surface micromachined microengine provides us with an actuator which is suitable for driving surface micromachined geared systems. In this paper we will present aspects of the microengine as they relate to the driving of geared mechanisms, issues relating to the design of micro gear mechanisms, and details of a design of a microengine-driven geared shutter mechanism.
Goal of the Smart Gun Technology project is to eliminate the capability of an unauthorized user from firing a law enforcement officer`s firearm by implementing user-recognizing-and-authorizing surety technologies. This project is funded by the National Institute of Justice. This document reports the projects first objective: to find and document the requirements for a user-recognizing-and-authorizing firearm technology that law enforcement officers will value. This report details the problem of firearm takeaways in law enforcement, the methodology used to develop the law enforcement officers` requirements, and the requirements themselves.
Two test bed concentrators (TBCs) were designed to provide high-performance test beds for advanced solar receivers and converters. However, the second-surface silvered-glass mirror facets on the TBCs, which were originally manufactured by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, have experienced severe silver corrosion. To restore reflectance, TBC-2 was refurbished with a lustering technique developed at Sandia National Laboratories. In the lustering technique, second-surface silvered thin-glass mirrors were applied over the corroded facets, thereby increasing the dish reflectivity and raising the available power of TBC-2 from approximately 70 to 78 kW{sub t}. Degradation of the original optical accuracy of the TBC facets was determined to be minimal. Lustering was chosen over facet replacement because of the lower cost, the anticipated improvement in corrosion resistance, and the shorter project duration. This report includes background information, details of the lustering process, and test results from TBC-2 characterization, both before and after lustering.
Nanometer size silicon nitride particles are synthesized using a pulsed radio frequency plasma technique. The plasma is modulated with a square-wave on/off cycle of varying period to control size and morphology and to deduce the growth kinetics. In situ laser light scattering and ex situ particle analysis are used to study the nucleation and growth. For SiH{sub 4}/Ar plasmas which nucleate silicon particles, an initial extremely rapid growth phase is followed by a slower growth rate, approaching the rate of thin film deposition on adjacent flat surfaces. In SiH{sub 4}/NH{sub 3} plasmas, silicon nitride particle size can be tightly controlled by adjusting the plasma-on time. The size dispersion of the particles is large and is consistent with a process of continual nucleation during the plasma-on period. The observed polydispersity differs dramatically from that reported from other laboratories.
A non-contact capacitive sensing system has been developed for guiding automated welding equipment along typical v-groove geometries. The Multi-Axis Seam Tracking (MAST) sensor has been designed to produce four electric fields for locating and measuring the v-groove geometry. In this system, the MAST sensor is coupled with a set of signal conditioning electronics making it possible to output four varying voltages proportional to the electric field perturbations. This output is used for motion control purposes by the automated welding platform to guide the weld torch directly over the center of the v-groove. This report discusses the development of this capacitive sensing system. A functional description of the system and MAST sensor response characteristics for typical weld v-groove geometries are provided. The effects of the harsh thermal and electrical noise environments of plasma arc welding on sensor performance are discussed. A comparison of MAST sensor fabrication from glass-epoxy and thick-film ceramic substrates is provided. Finally, results of v-groove tracking experiments on a robotic welding platform are described.
Since resonant sensors have a temperature sensitivity which is often greater than their sensitivity to the phenomena they are being used to detect, it is imperative to include either temperature control or temperature compensation in any resonant sensor system. The authors have developed a temperature-compensation scheme for resonant sensors which is amenable to integration into a resonator-driver integrated circuit. An integrated circuit incorporating this scheme has been designed, built, and tested.
Continuing trends in device fabrication towards smaller feature sizes, lower thermal budgets and advanced device structures put greater emphasis on controlling the surface structure and reactivity during processing. Since the evolution of the semiconductor surface during processing is determined by the interaction of multiple surface processes, understanding how to control and modify these processes on the atomic level would enable us to exert greater control over the resulting morphology and composition. Low energy ions represent one method for bringing controlled amounts of energy to the surface to modify surface structure and kinetics. The kinetic energy deposited by the ions can break bonds and displace atoms, creating defect populations significantly in excess of the equilibrium concentration. Consequences of these non-equilibrium conditions include the enhancement of surface kinetic processes, increased surface reactivity and formation of metastable structures and compositions. These effects can be beneficial (ion enhanced mass transport can lead to surface smoothing) or they can be detrimental (residual defects can degrade electrical properties or lead to amorphization). The net results depend on a complex balance that depends on many parameters including ion mass, energy, flux and temperature. In the following section, we review progress both in our fundamental understanding of the production of low-energy ion-induced defects and in the use of low energy ions to enhance surface morphology, stimulate low temperature growth and obtain non-equilibrium structures and compositions.
The Department of Energy Order 55003A requires facility-specific hazards assessment be prepared, maintained, and used for emergency planning purposes. This hazards assessment document describes the chemical and radiological hazards associated with the Kauai Test Facility, Barking Sands, Kauai, Hawaii. The Kauai Test Facility`s chemical and radiological inventories were screened according to potential airborne impact to onsite and offsite individuals. The air dispersion model, ALOHA, estimated pollutant concentrations downwind from the source of a release, taking into consideration the toxicological and physical characteristics of the release site, the atmospheric conditions, and the circumstances of the release. The greatest distance to the Early Severe Health Effects threshold is 4.2 kilometers. The highest emergency classification is a General Emergency at the {open_quotes}Main Complex{close_quotes} and a Site Area Emergency at the Kokole Point Launch Site. The Emergency Planning Zone for the {open_quotes}Main Complex{close_quotes} is 5 kilometers. The Emergency Planning Zone for the Kokole Point Launch Site is the Pacific Missile Range Facility`s site boundary.
Uranium contamination of groundwaters and surface waters near abandoned mill tailings piles is a serious concern in many areas of the western United States. Uranium usually exists in either the U(IV) or the U(VI) oxidation state. U(VI) is soluble in water and, as a result, is very mobile in the environment. U(IV), however, is generally insoluble in water and, therefore, is not subject to aqueous transport. In recent years, researchers have discovered that certain anaerobic microorganisms, such as the sulfate-reducing bacteria Desulfovibrio desulfuricans, can mediate the reduction of U(VI) to U(IV). Although the ability of this microorganism to reduce U(VI) has been studied in some detail by previous researchers, the kinetics of the reactions have not been characterized. The purpose of this research was to perform kinetic studies on Desulfovibrio desulficans bacteria during simultaneous reduction of sulfate and uranium and to determine the phase in which uranium exists after it has been reduced and precipitated from solution. The studies were conducted in a laboratory-scale chemostat under substrate-limited growth conditions with pyruvate as the substrate. Kinetic coefficients for substrate utilization and cell growth were calculated using the Monod equation. The maximum rate of substrate utilization (k) was determined to be 4.70 days{sup {minus}1} while the half-velocity constant (K{sub s}) was 140 mg/l COD. The yield coefficient (Y) was determined to be 0.17 mg cells/mg COD while the endogenous decay coefficient (k{sub d}) was calculated as 0.072 days{sup {minus}1}. After reduction, U(IV) Precipitated from solution in the uraninite (UO{sub 2}) phase. Uranium removal efficiency as high as 90% was achieved in the chemostat.
The packaging, designated the H1636A is a high-performing packageing for large payloads. The H1636A is 50 in. in diameter and 113 in. in length and weighs approximately 4600 lb when empty. The design objective was to meet 1996 proposed IAEA Type C criteria for air transport of large quantities of radioactive material (RAM). That is, the package should survive the standard Type B tests and more severe tests such as an impact onto an unyielding target at 280 ft/s and a one-hour jet fuel fire. The packaging consists of a large double-walled stainless steel outer drum filled with uniform density polyurethane foam. A stainless steel containment vessel (CV) with an inside diameter of 23 in. and a length of 78 in. carries the RAM. The CV has a nominal thickness of 0.375 in. and seals with two elastomeric 0-rings. The lid of the CV is joined to the body with a unique closure called a tape joint. The tape joint utilizes interlocking features preloaded with wedges and can withstand significant deformation.
Which current pulsed accelerator technology was developed during the late 60`s through the late 80`s to satisfy the needs of various military related applications such as effects simulators, particle beam devices, free electron lasers, and as drivers for Inertial Confinement Fusion devices. The emphasis in these devices is to achieve very high peak power levels, with pulse lengths on the order of a few 10`s of nanoseconds, peak currents of up to 10`s of MA, and accelerating potentials of up to 10`s of MV. New which average power systems, incorporating thermal management techniques, are enabling the potential use of high peak power technology in a number of diverse industrial application areas such as materials processing, food processing, stack gas cleanup, and the destruction of organic contaminants. These systems employ semiconductor and saturable magnetic switches to achieve short pulse durations that can then be added to efficiently give MV accelerating, potentials while delivering average power levels of a few 100`s of kilowatts to perhaps many megawatts. The Repetitive High Energy Puled Power project is developing short-pulse, high current accelerator technology capable of generating beams with kJ`s of energy per pulse delivered to areas of 1000 cm{sup 2} or more using ions, electrons, or x-rays. Modular technology is employed to meet the needs of a variety of applications requiring from 100`s of kV to MV`s and from 10`s to 100`s of kA. Modest repetition rates, up to a few 100`s of pulses per second (PPS), allow these machines to deliver average currents on the order of a few 100`s of mA. The design and operation of the second generation 300 kW RHEPP-II machine, now being brought on-line to operate at 2.5 MV, 25 kA, and 100 PPS will be described in detail as one example of the new high average power, high current pulsed accelerator technology.
Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) has traditionally used chlorinated and fluorinated organic solvents for general degreasing applications. Many of these solvents have been labeled by the Federal Government as ozone depleting chemicals and as toxic and/or suspected carcinogens. As a result, these solvents will no longer be recommended for use within the DOE weapons complex. There are three major classes of materials that are of concern for cleaning: organics, metals and ceramics. Each of these materials has its own special cleaning problems. Solvents that were used in the past, such as 1,1,1-trichloroethane (TCA) and trichloroethylene (TCE), were extremely efficient at removing everything from oils and greases to salts without leaving corrosive residues or permanently absorbing into the materials. These traditional degreasing solvents were essentially ``all-inone`` cleaners: quick, reliable, and easy to use. Unfortunately, a ``drop-in`` cleaner for such a wide variety of materials and contaminants will probably never be identified. So far, it has been difficult to identify environmentally conscious cleaners that clean as well as TCE and TCA. Most alternative cleaners require more volume to do the job, and also require longer exposure to get the job done. With these things in mind, we are hoping to identify and qualify new cleaners that will take care of general classes of materials.
At Sandia National Laboratories the Biomedical Engineering Program uses existing weapons-related technology in medical applications in order to reduce health care costs, improve diagnoses, and promote efficient health care delivery. This paper describes several projects which use Sandia technologies to solve biomedical problems. Specific technical capabilities that are important to this program include sensor data interpretation, robotics, lasers and optics, microelectronics, image processing and materials.
The increased demand for freight movements through international ports of entry and the signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) have increased freight traffic at border ports of entry. The State-of-the-Art Port of Entry Workshop initiated a dialogue among technologists and stakeholders to explore the potential uses of technology at border crossings and to set development priorities. International ports of entry are both information and labor intensive, and there are many promising technologies that could be used to provide timely information and optimize inspection resources. Participants universally held that integration of technologies and operations is critical to improving port services. A series of Next Steps was developed to address stakeholder issues and national priorities, such as the National Transportation Policy and National Drug Policy. This report documents the views of the various stakeholders and technologists present at the workshop and outlines future directions of study.
A thermomechanical analysis of unidirectional continuous fiber metal matrix composites is presented. The analysis includes the effects of processing induced residual thermal stresses, interface cracking, and inelastic matrix behavior on damage evolution. Due to the complexity of the nonlinear effects, the analysis is performed computationally using the finite element method. The interface fracture is modeled by a nonlinear constitutive model. The problem formulation is summarized and results are presented for a four-ply unidirectional SCS-6/{beta}21S titanium composite under high temperature isothermal mechanical fatigue.
The chemistry and physical properties of fullerenes, the third, molecular allotrope of carbon, have been studied using both experimental and computational techniques. Early computational work investigated the stability of fullerene isomers and oxides, which was followed by extensive work on hydrogenated fullerenes. Our work led to the first synthesis of a polymer containing C{sub 60} and the synthesis of the simplest hydrocarbon derivatives of C{sub 60} and C{sub 70}. The excellent agreement between theory and experiment ({plus_minus} 0.1 kcal/mol in the relative stability of isomers) has provided insight into the chemical nature of fullerenes and has yielded a sound basis for prediction of the structure of derivatized fullerenes. Such derivatives are the key to the preparation of fullerene-based materials.
The TRC code, a mid-course tracking code for ballistic missiles, has previously been implemented on a 1024-processor MIMD (Multiple Instruction -- Multiple Data) massively parallel computer. Measures of Effectiveness (MOE) for this algorithm have been developed for this computing environment. The MOE code is run in parallel with the TRC code. Particularly useful MOEs include the number of missed objects (real objects for which the TRC algorithm did not construct a track); of ghost tracks (tracks not corresponding to a real object); of redundant tracks (multiple tracks corresponding to a single real object); and of unresolved objects (multiple objects corresponding to a single track). All of these are expressed as a function of time, and tend to maximize during the time in which real objects are spawned (multiple reentry vehicles per post-boost vehicle). As well, it is possible to measure the track-truth separation as a function of time. A set of calculations is presented illustrating these MOEs as a function of time for a case with 99 post-boost vehicles, each of which spawns 9 reentry vehicles.
Instrumentation which directly monitors the temperature of a coring bit used to retrieve core samples of high level nuclear waste stored in tanks at Hanford was developed at Sandia National Laboratories. Monitoring the temperature of the coring bit is desired to enhance the safety of the coring operations. A unique application of mature technologies was used to accomplish the measurement. This report documents the results of development testing performed at Sandia to assure the instrumentation will withstand the severe environments present in the waste tanks.
In extraterrestrial applications, satellite payloads have printed circuit modules that are housed in boxes or chassis. The box may be a one piece wall or a segmented wall. These two wall options are compared for function and cost.
The deformation characteristics of pellets of electrolyte-binder (EB) mixes based on MgO were measured under simulated, thermal-battery conditions. Measurements (using a statistically designed experimental strategy) were made as a function of applied pressure, temperature, and percentage of theoretical density for four molten-salt electrolytes at two levels of MgO. The EB mixes are used as separators in Li-alloy thermal batteries. The electrolytes included LiCl-KCI eutectic, LiCl-LiBr-KBr eutectic, LiBr-KBr-LiF eutectic, and a LiCl-LiBr-LiF electrolyte with a minimum-melting composition. The melting points ranged from 313 C to 436 C. The experimental data were used to develop statistical models that approximate the deformation behavior of pellets of the various EB mixes over the range of experimental conditions we examined. This report, discusses the importance of the deformation response surfaces to thermal-battery design.
Passive Soil Vapor Extraction was tested at the Chemical Waste Landfill (CWL) site at Sandia National Laboratories, New Mexico (SNLIW). Data collected included ambient pressures, differential pressures between soil gas and ambient air, gas flow rates into and out of the soil and concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCS) in vented soil gas. From the differential pressure and flow rate data, estimates of permeability were arrived at and compared with estimates from other studies. Flow, differential pressure, and ambient pressure data were collected for nearly 30 days. VOC data were collected for two six-hour periods during this time. Total VOC emissions were calculated and found to be under the limit set by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Although a complete process evaluation is not possible with the data gathered, some of the necessary information for designing a passive venting process was determined and the important parameters for designing the process were indicated. More study is required to evaluate long-term VOC removal using passive venting and to establish total remediation costs when passive venting is used as a polishing process following active soil vapor extraction.
A comprehensive environmental sample management program allocates much of its resources to collecting, managing, and manipulating information. A computerized system that collects information at the field sampling point, tracks the sample to analytical labs and loads electronic data deliverables from these labs, while maintaining chain of custody and data integrity, is efficient and cost effective for providing consistent and accurate, legally defensible sample data. In June 1993, a team was formed to gather Sample Management Office requirements and begin development of a sample tracking system. This paper is an overview of experiences encountered when Sandia transferred and implemented sample software from the Waste Area Group (WAG6) at ORNL.
The International Technology Exchange Program (ITEP) of the Department of Energy`s (DOE`s) Office of Environmental Management (EM) is responsible for promoting the import of innovative technologies to better address EM`s needs and the export of US services into foreign markets to enhance US competitiveness. Under this program, potentially innovative environmental restoration technologies, either commercially available or under development in the Netherlands and France, were identified, described, and evaluated. It was found that 12 innovative environmental restoration technologies, which are either commercially available or under development in the Netherlands and France, may have some benefit for the DOE EM program and should be considered for transfer to the United States.
The Vital Issues process (VIp) is a strategic planning tool initially developed by Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) for the Office of Foreign Intelligence (OFI)* of the US Department of Energy (DOE). It was further developed and refined through its application to a variety of strategic purposes for a range of public and semipublic organizations. The VIp provides a structured mechanism for assisting organizations in accomplishing specified objectives by identifying and prioritizing a portfolio of strategic issues, programmatic areas, or responses to a specified problem. It employs day-long panel meetings in a specified format to elicit a broad range of perspectives on a particular issue in a nonconfrontational manner and to facilitate the interaction and synthesis of diverse viewpoints on a specific topic. The VIp is unique in its incorporation of two primary approaches in each panel session: a qualitative or transactional segment, which entails the synthesis of the alternatives through negotiations or discussion, and a quantitative or net benefit maximization segment, an analytical approach, which involves prioritization of the alternatives using pairwise comparisons. This combination of facilitated group discussion and quantitative ranking provides input to strategic management decisions in the form of stakeholder-defined and -prioritized items as well as information on potential barriers to the implementation of policies and programs. This is the final volume in the series Identifying Vital Issues: New Intelligence Strategies for a New World, a three-volume set that gives an accounting of the VIp as implemented for OFI. This volume provides an in-depth description of the methodology used in the VIp.
The International Technology Program (IT?), formerly the international Technology Exchange Program (ITEP), of the Department of Energy`s (DOE`s) Office of Environmental Restoration and Waste Management (EM) is responsible for promoting: (1) the import of innovative technologies to better address EM`s needs; and (2) the export of US services into foreign markets to enhance US competitiveness. Under this program: (1) the environmental restoration market in Germany was evaluated, including the description of the general types of environmental problems, the environmental regulations, and specific selected contaminated sites; and (2) potentially innovative environmental restoration technologies, either commercially available or under development in Germany, were identified, described and evaluated. It was found that: (1) the environmental restoration market in Germany is very large, on the order of several billion US dollars per year, with a significant portion possibly available to US businesses; and (2) a large number (54) of innovative environmental restoration technologies, which are either commercially available or under development in Germany, may have some benefit to the DOE EM program and should be considered for transfer to the US.
This report describes the development and testing of a compact heat-pipe heat exchanger kW(e) designed to transfer thermal energy from hot combustion gases to the heater tubes of a 25-kW(e) Stirling engine. In this system, sodium evaporates from a surface that is heated by a stream of hot gases. The liquid metal then condenses on the heater tubes of a Stirling engine, where energy is transferred to the engine`s helium working fluid. Tests on a prototype unit illustrated that a compact (8 cm {times} 13 cm {times} 16 cm) sodium evaporator can routinely transfer 15 kW(t) of energy at an operating vapor temperature of 760 C. Four of these prototype units were eventually used to power a 25-kW(e) Stirling engine system. Design details and test results from the prototype unit are presented in this report.
This report describes the research accomplishments achieved under the LDRD Project ``Electron Phase Coherent Effects in Nanostructures and Coupled 2D Systems.`` The goal of this project was to discover and characterize novel quantum transport phenomena in small semiconductor structures at low temperatures. Included is a description of the purpose of the research, the various approaches used, and a detailed qualitative description of the numerous new results obtained. The first appendix gives a detailed listing of publications, presentations, patent applications, awards received, and various other measures of the LDRD project success. Subsequent appendices consist of reprinted versions of several specific,`` scientific journal publications resulting from this LDRD project.
An integral part of the licensing procedure for the potential nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, involves prediction of the in situ rheology for the design and construction of the facility and the emplacement of canisters containing radioactive waste. The data used to model the thermal and mechanical behavior of the repository and surrounding lithologies include dry and saturated bulk densities, average grain density, porosity, compressional and shear wave velocities, elastic moduli, and compressional and tensional fracture strengths. In this study, a suite of experiments was performed on cores recovered from the USW NRG-717A borehole drilled in support of the Exploratory Studies Facility (ESF) at Yucca Mountain. USW NRG-7/7A was drilled to a depth of 1,513.4 feet through five thermal/mechanical units of Paintbrush tuff and terminating in the tuffaceous beds of the Calico IEUS. The thermal/mechanical stratigraphy was defined by Orfiz et al. to group rock horizons of similar properties for the purpose of simplifying modeling efforts. The relationship between the geologic stratigraphy and the thermal/mechanical stratigraphy is presented. The tuff samples in this study have a wide range of welding characteristics, and a smaller range of mineralogy and petrology characteristics. Generally, the samples are silicic, ash-fall tuffs that exhibit large variability in their elastic and strength properties.
Relationships between countries generally exist somewhere in the grey area between war and peace. Crisis prevention activities are important in this area, and should have two goals: stabilizing tense situations that could push countries toward war, and supporting or reinforcing efforts to move countries toward peace. A Crisis Prevention Center (CPC) should facilitate efforts to achieve these goals. Its functions can be grouped into three broad, interrelated categories: establishing and facilitating communication among participating countries; supporting negotiations and consensus-building on regional security issues; and supporting implementation of agreed confidence and security building measures. Technology will play a critical role in a CPC. Technology is required for establishing communication systems to ensure the timely flow of information between countries and to provide the means for organizing and analyzing this information. Technically-based cooperative monitoring can provide an objective source of information on mutually agreed issues, thereby supporting the implementation of confidence building measures and treaties. Technology can be a neutral subject of interaction and collaboration between technical communities from different countries, thereby providing an important channel for improving relationships. Potential first steps for a CPC in the Middle Ease could include establishing communication channels and a dedicated communications center in each country, together with an agreement to use the system as a ``Hot Line` in bilateral and multilateral-lateral emergency situations. Bilateral cooperative monitoring centers could be established to assist with implementation of agreements. A centrally located CPC could serve as a regional communications hub, coordinating a number of functions aimed at stabilizing regional tensions and supporting confidence building activities. Specific recommendations for confidence building activities are discussed.
A novel multi-chip module (MCM) design and manufacturing methodology which utilizes active CMOS circuits in what is normally a passive substrate realizes the `smart substrate` for use in highly testable, high reliability MCMS. The active devices are used to test the bare substrate, diagnose assembly errors or integrated circuit (IC) failures that require rework, and improve the testability of the final MCM assembly. A static random access memory (SRAM) MCM has been designed and fabricated in Sandia Microelectronics Development Laboratory in order to demonstrate the technical feasibility of this concept and to examine design and manufacturing issues which will ultimately determine the economic viability of this approach. The smart substrate memory MCM represents a first in MCM packaging. At the time the first modules were fabricated, no other company or MCM vendor had incorporated active devices in the substrate to improve manufacturability and testability, and thereby improve MCM reliability and reduce cost.
Sandia National Laboratories and the Institute for Global Conflict and Cooperation hosted a workshop on the application of cooperative monitoring to the Middle East. The workshop, held in Albuquerque, New Mexico, from July 17 through 21, 1994, was sponsored by the US Department of Energy, the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, and the US Department of State. The meeting, which focused on use of technical monitoring tools and sharing of collected information to facilitate regional agreements, included participants from five regional countries as well as from American universities, the US government, and US National Laboratories. Some attendees previously participated in meetings of the Arms Control and Regional Security working group of the Middle East Multilateral Peace Talks. The workshop combined presentations, demonstrations and hands-on experimentation with monitoring hardware and software. An exercise was conducted to evaluate and recommend cooperative monitoring options for a model agreement between two hypothetical countries. Historical precedents were reviewed and the role of environmental and natural resource conflicts explored. These activities were supplemented by roundtable discussions covering Middle East security issues, the relationship of ``national means`` to cooperative monitoring, and cooperative monitoring of ballistic missiles in the Middle East.
This report presents the results of an experimental study of the aerosol produced by the combustion of high-velocity molten-uranium droplets produced by the simultaneous heating and electromagnetic launch of uranium wires. These tests are intended to simulate the reduction of high-velocity fragments into aerosol in high-explosive detonations or reactor accidents involving nuclear materials. As reported earlier, the resulting aerosol consists mainly of web-like chain agglomerates. A condensation nucleus counter was used to investigate the decay of the total particle concentration due to coagulation and losses. Number size distributions based on mobility equivalent diameter obtained soon after launch with a Differential Mobility Particle Sizer showed lognormal distributions with an initial count median diameter (CMD) of 0.3 {mu}m and a geometric standard deviation, {sigma}{sub g} of about 2; the CMD was found to increase and {sigma}{sub g} decrease with time due to coagulation. Mass size distributions based on aerodynamic diameter were obtained for the first time with a Microorifice Uniform Deposit Impactor, which showed lognormal distributions with mass median aerodynamic diameters of about 0.5 {mu}m and an aerodynamic geometric standard deviation of about 2. Approximate methods for converting between number and mass distributions and between mobility and aerodynamic equivalent diameters are presented.
This contribution proposes the format of the {open_quotes}Algorithm-Specific Information{close_quotes} and {open_quotes}Signature{close_quotes} fields within the {open_quotes}Proposed Generic Authentication Information Element{close_quotes} for authentication IEs based on the Digital Signature Standard (DSS). These fields are designed to allow various levels of authentication {open_quotes}strength{close_quotes} (or robustness), and many of these fields may be omitted in systems that optimize authentication performance by sharing common (public) Digital Signature Algorithm (DSA) parameters. This allows users and site security officers to design their authenicated signaling according to site security and performance requirements.
A natural and basic problem in scheduling theory is to provide good average quality of service to a stream of jobs that arrive over time. In this paper we consider the problem of scheduling n jobs that are released over time in order to minimize the average completion time of the set of jobs. In contrast to the problem of minimizing average completion time when all jobs are available at time 0, all the problems that we consider are NP-hard, and essentially nothing was known about constructing good approximations in polynomial time. We give the first constant-factor approximation algorithms for several variants of the single and parallel machine model. Many of the algorithms are based on interesting algorithmic and structural relationships between preemptive and nonpreemptive schedules and linear programming relaxations of both. Many of the algorithms generalize to the minimization of average weighted completion time as well.
The cryogenic thermometers used in superconducting accelerators must function in very adverse environments. Typical conditions are a temperature range of 1.5--300 K, high irradiation doses and magnetic fields which must be endured for the 20 to 50 year life of the accelerator. The authors determined the principal requirements for cryogenic thermometers in accelerator installations and for industrial applications. Some constructions of the thermometer mounting fixtures used in the ``Nuclotron`` (Dubna, Russia) and the SSCL (Dallas, USA) accelerator installations are described. The experimental results for long-term stability of the cryogenic thermometers applied are presented. The basic recommendations on the application technology of the cryogenic thermometers in large superconducting accelerator systems are given.
Numerous Federal facilities within the US involve multiple government agencies that face overlapping environmental concerns. This paper highlights the benefits of looking beyond the strict letter of environmental regulations that might affect a single tenant or environmental site to cooperative environmental efforts that focus on the entire facility, consistent with the missions of participating agencies. Using Kirtland Air Force Base (AFB) as a model, seven areas of Department of Defense (DoD) and Department of Energy (DOE) environmental cooperation are discussed that span technical, regulatory compliance, and administrative issues.
Detailed simulations have been performed for the TEVES (Thermal Enhanced Vapor Extraction System) Project using the TOUGH2 code considering air, water, and a single-component NAPL. A critical parameter varied in the simulations is the borehole vacuum which directly affects air flow through the system and indirectly influences soil temperatures and water and NAPL fluid masses. Contaminant migration from the heated zone into the unheated soil can occur if the borehole vacuum, or borehole flow rate, is not sufficient. Under these conditions, evaporation of liquids (water and NAPL) due to the heating can cause flow from the heated zone into the unheated soil. Insufficient air sweep may be indicated by a vapor dominated mass flow rate into the borehole, at least for the present configuration. Sufficient air flow through the heated zone must be provided to contain the contaminants within the heated zone.
The DOE requires that sensitive unclassified data be protected while being transmitted electronically. On most large networks it is difficult and expensive to provide the required level of physical protection. At Sandia National Laboratories, we are assembling the structure necessary to protect sensitive unclassified data using software-based encryption. This approach has the advantage that the data can be protected after arrival at its destination without additional investment While Sandia has expertise in cryptography, we had not used cryptography in this field. This discussion deals with the client-server model of file-based data exchange and interactive access to on-line data bases using Unix workstations, Macs and PCs.
The goal of the Offsite Demonstration Project for Mixed Waste Landfill Integrated Demonstration (MWLID)-developed environmental site characterization and remediation technologies is to facilitate the transfer, use, and commercialization of these technologies to the public and private sector. The meet this goal, the project identified environmental restoration needs of mixed waste and/or hazardous waste landfill owners (Native American, municipal, DOE, and DoD); documenting potential demonstration sites and the contaminants present at each site; assessing the environmental regulations that would effect demonstration activities; and evaluating site suitability for demonstrating MWLID technologies at the tribal and municipal sites identified. Eighteen landfill sites within a 40.2-km radius of Sandia National Laboratories are listed on the CERCLIS Site/Event Listing for the state of New Mexico. Seventeen are not located within DOE or DoD facilities and are potential offsite MWLID technology demonstration sites. Two of the seventeen CERCLIS sites, one on Native American land and one on municipal land, were evaluated and identified as potential candidates for off-site demonstrations of MWLID-developed technologies. Contaminants potentially present on site include chromium waste, household/commercial hazardous waste, volatile organic compounds, and petroleum products. MWLID characterization technologies applicable to these sites include Magnetometer Towed Array, Cross-borehole Electromagnetic Imaging, SitePlanner {trademark}/PLUME, Hybrid Directional Drilling, Seamist{trademark}/Vadose Zone Monitoring, Stripping Analyses, and x-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy for Heavy Metals.
The industrial sector is the most complex and diverse segment of the US economy. There are more than 360,000 industrial facilities in the US, using tens of thousands of processes with millions of different pieces of equipment and employing nearly 30 million people to make hundreds of thousands of products. These facilities consume large quantities of raw materials and energy resources every year. Their waste streams, as well as the technology options for preventing them, are very specific not only to individual industries, but even to plants within the same industry that produce similar products. On October 24, 1992, President Bush signed the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPAct) into law as Public Law 102-486. Section 2108 of the Act requires the DOE to identify opportunities to demonstrate energy efficient pollution prevention technologies and processes. As a first step in DOE`s response to congress, Sandia National Laboratories lead a fast tracked project to compile information from the open literature, and pilot a process for identifying and prioritizing opportunity areas from industrial and federal experts. Approximately 300 documents were collected and reviewed, and knowledgeable individuals in government, universities, and trade associations were interviewed. A panel of experts from petroleum industry was assembled for the future opportunity assessments pilot These activities were conducted between May and August, 1993. Project background and results are summarized.
Human intrusion scenarios at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) involve penetration of the repository and an underlying brine reservoir by a future borehole. Brine and gas from the brine reservoir and the repository may flow up the borehole and into the overlying Culebra formation, which is saturated with water containing different amounts of dissolved `solids resulting in a spatially varying density. Current modeling approaches involve perturbing a steady-state Culebra flow field by inflow of gas and/or brine from a breach borehole that has passed through the repository. Previous studies simulating steady-state flow in the Culebra have been done. One specific study by LaVenue et al. (1990) used the SWIFT 2 code, a single-phase flow and transport code, to develop the steady-state flow field. Because gas may also be present in the fluids from the intrusion borehole, a two-phase code such as TOUGH2 can be used to determine the effect that emitted fluids may have on the steady-state Culebra flow field. Thus a comparison between TOUGH2 and SWIFT2 was prompted. In order to compare the two codes and to evaluate the influence of gas on flow in the Culebra, modifications were made to TOUGH2. Modifications were performed by the authors to allow for element-specific values of permeability, porosity, and elevation. The analysis also used a new equation of state module for a water-brine-air mixture, EOS7 (Pruess, 1991), which was developed to simulate variable water densities by assuming a miscible mixture of water and brine phases and allows for element-specific brine concentration in the INCON file.
The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) is a US Department of Energy (DOE) research and development facility for the underground disposal of transuranic waste in southeastern New Mexico. The WIPP repository is located 655 m below the land surface in the lower portion of the Salado Formation, which is comprised of beds of pure and impure halite with thin interbeds of anhydrite and related clay seams. The regional dip of the Salado Formation is approximately 1{degree} southeast in the vicinity of the repository. The proposed waste storage area has eight waste disposal panels, each of which will contain seven rooms. The repository is designed to follow a single stratigraphic horizon. Due to the dip, the north end of the repository will be about 10 meters higher than the south end. Waste that is emplaced in the disposal rooms will generate gas due to microbial degradation, anoxic corrosion, and radiolysis. Brine inflow to the rooms from the surrounding Salado Formation may significantly influence the gas generation rate and the total amount of gas generated. The salt surrounding the repository will creep in response to the excavation, reducing the room volume. Gas generation in the room may increase the pressure sufficiently to drive brine and gas into the surrounding Salado Formation. Migration of gas and brine in the Salado is an important factor in evaluating the performance of the repository. The studies summarized in this paper have. been performed to evaluate brine and gas flow processes in the WIPP disposal system and to identify some of the important processes. These studies are done in support of, but are not part of, the formal Performance Assessment (PA) effort. Because of probabilistic and system-scale requirements, the PA effort uses the Sandia-developed BRAGFLO (BRine And Gas FLOw) code for multiphase flow calculations.
The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) is a US Department of Energy facility designed to demonstrate the safe underground disposal of transuranic waste. Following waste emplacement, each room will be backfilled with crushed salt. Due to deviatoric stress introduced by excavation, the walls of the waste disposal rooms in the repository will deform over time, consolidating waste containers and salt backfill, thereby decreasing the void volume of the repository. Long-term repository assessment must consider the processes of gas generation, room closure and expansion due to salt creep, and multiphase (brine and gas) fluid flow, as well as the complex coupling between these three processes. Stone (1992) used the mechanical creep closure code SANCHO to simulate the closure of a single, perfectly sealed disposal room filled with waste and backfill. The results of the SANCHO f-series simulations provide a relationship between gas generation, room closure, and room pressure. Several methods for coupling this relationship with multiphase fluid flow into and out of a room were examined by Freeze et al. TOUGH2 was employed to couple the processes of gas generation, room closure/consolidation, and multiphase brine and gas flow. Two empirically-based methods for approximating salt creep and room consolidation were implemented in TOUGH2: the pressure-time-porosity line interpolation approach and the fluid-phase-salt approach. Both approaches utilized links to the SANCHO f-series simulation results to calculate room-void-volume changes with time during a simulation.
The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) is a US Department of Energy research and development facility for the underground disposal of transuranic waste from US defense-related activities. The WIPP repository is located within the Salado Formation, which is comprised of beds of pure and impure halite with thin interbeds of anhydrite and related clay seams. This formation is brine saturated with a pore pressure of approximately 12.5 MPa at the repository horizon. The Salado Formation dips gently southeast, on the average approximately 1{degree}, with steeper dips locally. Elevated repository pressures, caused by gas generated as emplaced waste corrodes and degrades, may drive brine and gas out of the repository into the surrounding formation. Stratigraphic dip may cause increased brine inflow to the repository through countercurrent flow in the interbeds and enhanced gas migration distances in the updip direction due to buoyancy. Two-dimensional simulations of isolated WIPP repository room have been performed using TOUGH2 for horizontal and 1{degree} dipping stratigraphy. The impact of dip on multiphase flow at the WIPP may be significant. With dip, an additional mechanism for brine inflow may occur, namely the formation of a cell of countercurrent brine and gas flow in the interbeds. The additional volume of brine inflow resulting from the countercurrent flow cell may be of similar magnitude to brine inflow without dip. Therefore, dip must be included in any repository model to include the countercurrent brine inflow mechanism. Gas migration may also be significantly influenced due to dip. Gas migration distances may increase dramatically with preferential migration updip.
MELCOR models the progression of severe accidents in light water reactor nuclear power plants. Recent efforts in MELCOR development to incorporate CORCON-Mod3 models for core-concrete interactions, new models for advanced reactors, and improvements to several other existing models have resulted in release of MELCOR 1.8.3. In addition, continuing efforts to expand the code assessment database have filled in many of the gaps in phenomenological coverage. Efforts are now under way to develop models for chemical interactions of fission products with structural surfaces and for reactions of iodine in the presence of water, and work is also in progress to improve models for the scrubbing of fission products by water pools, the chemical reactions of boron carbide with steam, and the coupling of flow blockages with the hydrodynamics. Several code assessment analyses are in progress, and more are planned.
Sandia National Laboratories performs R and D in structural dynamics and vibration suppression for precision applications in weapon systems, space, underwater, transportation and civil structures. Over the last decade these efforts have expanded into the areas of active vibration control and ``smart`` structures and material systems. In addition, Sandia has focused major resources towards technology to support weapon product development and agile manufacturing capability for defense and industrial applications. This paper will briefly describe the structural dynamics modeling and verification process currently in place at Sandia that supports vibration control and some specific applications of these techniques to manufacturing in the areas of lithography, machine tools and flexible robotics.
To improve process reliability and deposition methods, it is essential to identify the rate-limiting step in TEOS-based SiO{sub 2} CVD and its dependence on process conditions. For this purpose, experiments designed to evaluate by-product inhibition effects and to identify the rate-limiting step in TEOS decomposition have been carried out in a research reactor using GCMS and FTIR. By repetitively sampling a series of reactions in which TEOS was first mixed with ethylene, ethanol, and water in the gas-phase, GCMS was used to show clearly that these reaction by-products do not inhibit the heterogeneous reaction step on SiO{sub 2} at 1,000K. FTIR was used to determine that ethoxy groups from TEOS dissociative chemisorption have a significant lifetime on the SiO{sub 2} surface at CVD temperatures and have an activation energy for decomposition of 16kcal/mol{+-}4kcal/mol. This is much higher than the activation energy of 6 kcal/mol reported for the initial chemisorption step and is near the 22 kcal/mol reported for the overall activation energy for SiO{sub 2} deposition in a cold-wall reactor. These results suggest that, whether or not surface ethoxy groups inhibit TEOS reactions, their decomposition may be directly related to the rate-limiting step in SiO{sub 2} deposition.
If current plans are realized, within the next few years, an extraordinary set of coordinated research efforts focusing on energy flows in the Arctic will be implemented. All are motivated by the prospect of global climate change. SHEBA (Surface Energy Budget of the Arctic Ocean), led by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Office of Naval Research (ONR), involves instrumenting an ice camp in the perennial Arctic ice pack, and taking data for 12--18 months. The ARM (Atmospheric Radiation Measurement) North Slope of Alaska and Adjacent Arctic Ocean (NSA/AAO) Cloud and Radiation Testbed (CART) focuses on atmospheric radiative transport, especially in the presence of clouds. The NSA/AAO CART involves instrumenting a sizeable area on the North Slope of Alaska and adjacent waters in the vicinity of Barrow, and acquiring data over a period of about 10 years. FIRE (First ISCCP [International Satellite Cloud Climatology Program] Regional Experiment) Phase 3 is a program led by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) which focuses on Arctic clouds, and which is coordinated with SHEBA and ARM. FIRE has historically emphasized data from airborne and satellite platforms. All three program anticipate initiating Arctic data acquisition during spring, 1997. In light of his historic opportunity, the authors discuss a strawman atmospheric radiative transfer experimental plan that identifies which features of the radiative transport models they think should be tested, what experimental data are required for each type of test, the platforms and instrumentation necessary to acquire those data, and in general terms, how the experiments could be conducted. Aspects of the plan are applicable to all three programs.
This paper describes an application of Sandia`s non-contact capacitive sensing technology for collision avoidance during the manufacturing of rocket engine thrust chambers. The collision avoidance system consists of an octagon shaped collar with a capacitive proximity sensor mounted on each face. The sensors produced electric fields which extend several inches from the face of the collar and detect potential collisions between the robot and the workpiece. A signal conditioning system processes the sensor output and provides varying voltage signals to the robot controller for stopping the robot.
The introduction of alternative, non-lead bearing solders into electronic assemblies requires a thorough investigation of product manufacturability and reliability. Both of these attributes can be impacted by the excessive growth of intermetallic compound (IMC) layers at the solder/substrate interface. An extensive study has documented the stoichiometry and solid state growth kinetics of IMC layers formed between copper and the lead-free solders: 96.5Sn-3.5Ag (wt.%), 95Sn-5Sb, 100Sn, and 58Bi-42Sn. Aging temperatures were 70--205 C for the Sn-based solders and 55--120 C for the Bi-rich solder. Time periods were 1--400 days for all of the alloys. The Sn/Cu, Sn-Ag/Cu, and Sn-Sb/Cu IMC layers exhibited sub-layers of Cu{sub 6}Sn{sub 5} and Cu{sub 3}Sn; the latter composition was present only following prolonged aging times or higher temperatures. The total layer growth exhibited a time exponent of n = 0.5 at low temperatures and a value of n = 0.42 at higher temperatures in each of the solder/Cu systems. Similar growth kinetics were observed with the low temperature 58Bi-42Sn solder; however, a considerably more complex sub-layer structure was observed. The kinetic data will be discussed with respect to predicting IMC layer growth based upon solder composition.
Switchable polarization can be significantly suppressed in ferroelectric (FE) materials by optical, thermal, and electrical processes. The thermal process can occur by either annealing the FE in a reducing environment or by heating it in air to 100 C while impressing a bias near the switching threshold. The optical process occurs while biasing the FE near the switching threshold and illuminating with bandgap light. And the electrical suppression effect occurs by subjecting the FE to repeated polarization reversals. Using electron paramagnetic resonance, polarization-voltage measurements, and charge injection scenarios, the authors have been able to elucidate both electronic and ionic trapping effects that lead to a suppression in the amount of switchable polarization in FE materials. The relative roles of electronic and ionic effects in the same material can depend on the stress condition. For instance, in oxidized BaTiO3 crystals, optical and thermal suppressions occur by electronic domain pinning; electrical fatigue in the BaTiO{sub 3} crystals also appears to involve electronic charge trapping, however, it is suggested that these electronic traps are further stabilized by nearby ionic defects. In sol-gel PZT thin films with either Pt, RuO{sub 2}, or La-Sr-Co-O electrodes it appears that the polarization suppression induced by electrical fatigue, a temperature/bias combination, or a light/bias combination are all primarily due to the trapping of electronic charge carriers to first order.
Optoelectronic and photonic devices hold great promise for high data-rate communication and computing. Their wide implementation was limited first by the device technologies and now suffers due to the need for high-precision packaging that is mass-produced. The use of photons as a medium of communication and control implies a unique set of packaging constraints that are highly driven by the need for micron and even sub-micron alignments between photonic devices and their transmission media. Current trends in optoelectronic device packaging are reviewed and future directions are identified both for free-space (3-dimensional) and guided-wave (2-dimensional) photonics. Emphasis will be placed on the special needs generated by increasing levels of device integration.
Sandia Labs` mobile tracking systems have only one moving part. The double gimballed 18 inch diameter beryllium mirror is capable of constant tracking velocities up to 5 rads/sec in both axes, and accelerations to 150 rads/sec/sec in both axes. Orthogonality is <10 microradians. The mirror directs the 488 and 514 nm wavelength CW laser beams to adhesive-backed reflective material applied to the test unit. The mirror catches the return beam and visual image, directing the visual image to three camera bays, and the return beam to an image dissector behind an 80 inch gathering telescope. The image dissector or image position sensor is a photomultiplier with amplifying drift tube and electron aperture and its associated electronics. During the test, the image dissector scan senses the change in position of the reflective material and produces signals to operate the azimuth and elevation torque motors in the gimbal assembly. With the help of 1 1/8 inch diameter azimuth and elevation galvonometer steering mirrors in the optical path, the laser beam is kept on the target at extremely high velocities. To maintain a constant return signal strength, the outgoing beam is run through a microprocessor controlled beam focusing telescope.
Geologic Site Characterization should be a dynamic, continuing process, not an event. Its successes and failures are legion and can make or break an operator. A balanced approach must be sought to provide adequate information for safety of operations, neither slighting nor overdoing the effort. The evolving nature of study methods and geologic knowledge essentially mandates that characterization efforts be reviewed periodically. However, indifference, nonchallance, and even outright disdain describe attitudes witnessed in some circles regarding this subject. Unawareness may also be a factor. Unfortunately, several unanticipated events have led to severe economic consequences for the operators. The hard-learned lessons involving several unanticipated geotechnical occurrences at several Gulf Coast salt domes are discussed. The ultimate benefit of valuing site characterization efforts may be more than just enhanced safety and health--costs not expended in lost facilities and litigation can become profit.
In order to provide needed security assurances for traffic carried in Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) networks, methods of protecting the integrity and privacy of traffic must be employed. Cryptographic methods can be used to assure authenticity and privacy, but are hard to scale and the incorporation of these methods into computer networks can severely impact functionality, reliability, and performance. To study these trade-offs, a research prototype encryptor/decryptor is under development. This prototype is to demonstrate the viability of implementing certain encryption techniques in high speed networks by processing Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) cells in a SONET OC-3 payload. This paper describes the objectives and design trade-offs intended to be investigated with the prototype. User requirements for high performance computing and communication have driven Sandia to do work in the areas of functionality, reliability, security, and performance of high speed communication networks. Adherence to standards (including emerging standards) achieves greater functionality of high speed computer networks by providing wide interoperability of applications, network hardware, and network software.
Scannerless range imaging (SRI) is a unique approach to three dimensional imaging without scanners. SRI does, however, allow a more powerful light source to be used as compared to conventional Laser Radar (LADAR) systems due to the speed of operation associated with this staring system. As a result, a more efficient method of operation was investigated. As originally conceived, SRI transmits a continuous intensity modulated sinusoidal signal; however, a square wave driver is more energy efficient than a sinusoidal driver. In order to take advantage of this efficiency, a square wave operational methodology was investigated. As a result, four image frames are required for the extraction of range using a square wave to unambiguously resolve all time delays within one time period compared to a minimum of three frames for the sinusoidal wave.
Many advanced light water reactor (ALWR) concepts proposed for the next generation of nuclear power plants rely on passive systems to perform safety functions, rather than active systems as in current reactor designs. These passive systems depend to a great extent on physical processes such as natural circulation for their driving force, and not on active components, such as pumps. An NRC-sponsored study was begun at Sandia National Laboratories to develop and implement a methodology for evaluating ALWR passive system reliability in the context of probabilistic risk assessment (PRA). This report documents the first of three phases of this study, including methodology development, system-level qualitative analysis, and sequence-level component failure quantification. The methodology developed addresses both the component (e.g. valve) failure aspect of passive system failure, and uncertainties in system success criteria arising from uncertainties in the system`s underlying physical processes. Traditional PRA methods, such as fault and event tree modeling, are applied to the component failure aspect. Thermal-hydraulic calculations are incorporated into a formal expert judgment process to address uncertainties in selected natural processes and success criteria. The first phase of the program has emphasized the component failure element of passive system reliability, rather than the natural process uncertainties. Although cursory evaluation of the natural processes has been performed as part of Phase 1, detailed assessment of these processes will take place during Phases 2 and 3 of the program.
Full-scale fire characterization tests are becoming less frequent due to cost restrictions and environmental concerns. This trend, combined with significant advances in fire field modeling, has resulted in an increased effort to perform well-designed experiments which support the development and validation of numerical tools. In pursuit of improved fire characterization, large-fire measurement techniques in large-scale (D > 2m) fires are reviewed in this work. Primary attention is focused on the measurement of temperature and heat flux. Additional measurements of quantities such as soot volume fraction, soot emission temperature, and gas species are also addressed. Issues relating to the use of existing techniques, and methods for improving and interpreting the results from existing measurement techniques are presented. Alternate techniques for fire characterization and needs for development of advanced measurement technology are also briefly discussed.
A series of tests investigating dynamic pulse buckling of a cylindrical shell under axial impact is compared to several 2D and 3D finite element simulations of the event. The purpose of the work is to investigate the performance of various analysis codes and element types on a problem which is applicable to radioactive material transport packages, and ultimately to develop a benchmark problem to qualify finite element analysis codes for the transport package design industry. During the pulse buckling tests, a buckle formed at each end of the cylinder, and one of the two buckles became unstable and collapsed. Numerical simulations of the test were performed using PRONTO, a Sandia developed transient dynamics analysis code, and ABAQUS/Explicit with both shell and continuum elements. The calculations are compared to the tests with respect to deformed shape and impact load history.
This paper presents an analysis of the Chemical Vapor Deposition of diamond thin films in a direct-current (dc) arc-jet reactor. The analysis discussed here includes a model of the performance of the arc-jet hydrogen excitation source, chemistry in the free-stream region, diffusive transport and chemistry in the boundary layer and at the surface. The surface chemistry model includes pathways for deposition of diamond, as well as creation of defects in the diamond lattice.
An overview is presented of work on strained InAsSb heterostructures and infrared emitters. InAsSb/InGaAs strained-layer superlattices (SLS) and InAsSb quantum wells were grown by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition and characterized using magneto-photoluminescence. LEDs and lasers with InAsSb heterostructure active regions are described.
When a system is being designed, one of the system requirements will specify the intended life for the system, which is called the design life, the system life, the expected operational lifetime, or the service life. This specification is an important driver of the total life cycle cost. This paper suggests how specifying this design life affects the design and the cost of the system.
The most common tool used by aircraft inspectors is the personal flashlight. While it is compact and very portable, it is generally typified by poor beam quality which can interfere with the ability for an inspector to detect small defects and anomalies, such as cracks and corrosion sites, which may be indicators of major structural problems. A Light Shaping Diffuser{trademark} (LSD) installed in a stock flashlight as a replacement to the lens can improve the uniformity of an average flashlight and improve the quality of the inspection. Field trials at aircraft maintenance facilities have demonstrated general acceptance of the LSD by aircraft inspection and maintenance personnel.
Over the next decade, the US Department of Energy (DOE) must retire and dismantle many nuclear weapon systems. In support of this effort, Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) has developed the Hazard Separation System (HSS). The HSS combines abrasive waterjet cutting technology and real-time radiography. Using the HSS, operators determine the exact location of interior, hazardous sub-components and remove them through precision cutting. The system minimizes waste and maximizes the recovery of recyclable materials. During 1994, the HSS was completed and demonstrated. Weapon components processed during the demonstration period included arming, fusing, and firing units; preflight control units; neutron generator subassemblies; and x-units. Hazards removed included radioactive krytron tubes and gap tubes, thermal batteries, neutron generator tubes, and oil-filled capacitors. Currently, the HSS is being operated at SNL in a research and development mode to facilitate the transfer of the technology to other DOE facilities for support of their dismantlement operations.
We create mobile surface vacancies on vicinal Si(001) by bombarding the surface with 300 eV Xe ions at a substrate temperature of 465{degrees}C. The vacancies preferentially annihilate at the rough steps retracting them with respect to their smooth neighbors. This process leads to a bimodal terrace width distribution. The retraction of the rough steps due to the vacancy annihilation is in competition with the healing process by which the surface tries to maintain its equilibrium configuration of equally spaced steps. As the two competing processes balance, the surface reaches steady state and subsequent removal of surface atoms is manifest as simple step flow.
The purpose of publishing the minutes of this workshop is to document the content of the presentations and the direction of the discussions at the workshop as a means of fostering collaborative research and development on chromate replacements throughout the defense, automotive, aerospace, and packaging industries. The goal of the workshop was to bring together coating researchers, developers, and users from a variety of industries to discuss new coating ideas, testing methods, and coating preparation techniques from the perspective not only of end user, but also from the perspective of coating supplier, developer, and researcher. To this end, we succeeded because of the wide-ranging interests of attendees present in the more than 60 workshop registrants. It is our hope that future workshops, not only this one but others like it throughout government and industry, can benefit from the recorded minutes of our meeting and use them as a starting point for future discussions of the directions for chromate replacements in light metal finishing.
The multiphase, multicomponent, non-isothermal simulator M2NOTS was tested against several one-dimensional experiments. The experiments represented limiting conditions of soil venting processes: (1) a through-flow condition in which air flows through the contaminated region, and (2) a bypass-flow condition in which air is channeled around (rather than through) the contaminated region. Predictions using M2NOTS of changing in situ compositions and effluent concentrations for toluene and o-xylene mixtures were compared to the observed results for each condition. Results showed that M2NOTS was able to capture the salient trends and features of multicomponent through-flow and bypass-flow venting processes.
We identify a general framework for search called bootstrap search, which is defined as global search using only a local search procedure along with some memory for learning intermediate subgoals. We present a simple algorithm for bootstrap search, and provide some initial theory on their performance. In our theoretical analysis, we develop a random digraph problem model and use it to make some performance predictions and comparisons. We also use it to provide some techniques for approximating the optimal resource bound on the local search to achieve the best global search. We validate our theoretical results with empirical demonstration on the 15-puzzle. We show how to reduce the cost of a global search by 2 orders of magnitude using bootstrap search. We also demonstrate a natural but not widely recognized connection between search costs and the lognormal distribution. To further illustrate our algorithm`s generality and effectiveness, we also apply it to robot path planning, and demonstrate a phenomenon of over-learning.
The original DAMP (DAta Manipulation Program) was written by Mark Hedemann of Sandia National Laboratories and used the CA-DISSPLA{trademark} (available from Computer Associates International, Inc., Garden City, NY) graphics package as its engine. It was used to plot, modify, and otherwise manipulate the one-dimensional data waveforms (data vs time) from a wide variety of accelerators. With the waning of CA-DISSPLA and the increasing popularity of UNIX{reg_sign}-based workstations, a replacement was needed. This package uses the IDL{reg_sign} software, available from Research Systems Incorporated in Boulder, Colorado, as the engine, and creates a set of widgets to manipulate the data in a manner similar to the original DAMP. IDL is currently supported on a wide variety of UNIX platforms such as IBM{reg_sign} workstations, Hewlett Packard workstations, SUN{reg_sign} workstations, Microsoft{reg_sign} Windows{trademark} computers, Macintosh{reg_sign} computers and Digital Equipment Corporation VMS{reg_sign} systems. Thus, this program should be portable across many platforms. We have verified operation, albeit with some IDL bugs, on IBM UNIX platforms, DEC Alpha systems, HP 9000/7OO series workstations, and Macintosh computers, both regular and PowerPC{trademark} versions.
Wong, C.C.; Blottner, F.G.; Payne, J.L.; Soetrisno, M.; Imlay, S.T.
This report documents an exploratory research work, funded by the Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) office at Sandia National Laboratories, to develop an advanced, general purpose, robust compressible flow solver for handling large, complex, chemically reacting gas dynamics problems. The deliverable of this project, a computer program called PINCA (Parallel INtegrated Computer Analysis) will run on massively parallel computers such as the Intel/Gamma and Intel/Paragon. With the development of this parallel compressible flow solver, engineers will be better able to address large three-dimensional scientific arid engineering problems involving multi-component gas mixtures with finite rate chemistry. These problems occur in high temperature industrial processes, combustion, and hypersonic: reentry of space-crafts.
Utilizing unique properties of a recently developed set of attitude parameters, the modified Rodrigues parameters, we develop feedforward/feedback type control laws that globally control a spacecraft undergoing large nonlinear motions, using three or more reaction wheels. The method is suitable for tracking given smooth reference trajectories that spline smoothly into a target slate or pure spin motion; these reference trajectories may be exact or approximate solutions of the system equations of motion. In particular, we illustrate the ideas using both near-minimum-time and near-minimum fuel rotations about Euler`s principal rotation axis, with parameterization of the sharpness of the control switching for each class of reference maneuvers. Lyapunov stability theory is used to prove rigorous stability of closed loop motion in the end game, and qualified Lyapunov stability during the large nonlinear path tracking portion of the closed loop tracking error dynamics. The methodology is illustrated by designing example control laws for a prototype landmark tracking spacecraft; simulations are reported that show this approach to be attractive for practical applications. The inputs to the reference trajectory are designed with user-controlled sharpness of all control switches, to enhance the trackability of the reference maneuvers in the presence of structural flexibility.
With the recent completion of the documentation of the results from the Grand Gulf Nuclear Power Plant Low Power and Shutdown (LP and S) project funded by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), detailed probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) information from a boiling water reactor (BWR) for a specific time period in LP and S conditions became available for examination. This report contains observations and insights extracted from an examination of: (1) results in the LP and S documentation; (2) the specific models and assumptions used in the LP and S analyses; (3) selected results from the full-power analysis; (4) the experience of the analysts who performed the original LP and S study; and (5) results from sensitivity calculations performed as part of this project to help determine the impact that model assumptions and data values had on the results from the original LP and S analysis. Specifically, this study makes observations on and develops insights from the estimates of core damage frequency and aggregate risk (early fatalities and total latent cancer fatalities) associated with operations during plant operational state (POS) 5 (i.e., basically cold shutdown as defined by Technical Specifications) during a refueling outage for traditional internal events. A discussion of similarities and differences between full power accidents and accidents during LP and S conditions is provided. As part of this discussion, core damage frequency and risks results are presented on a per hour and per calendar year basis, allowing alternative perspectives on both the core damage frequency and risk associated with these two operational states.
Feasibility of ceramic joining using a high energy (10 MeV) electron beam. The experiments used refractory metals as bonding materials in buried interfaces between Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} pieces. Because the heat capacity of the metal bonding layer is much lower than the ceramic, the metal reaches much higher temperatures than the adjoining ceramic. Using the right combination of beam parameters allows the metal to be melted without causing the adjoining ceramics to melt or decompose. Beam energy deposition and thermal simulations were performed to guide the experiments. Joints were shear tested and interfaces between the metal and the ceramic were examined to identify the bonding mechanism. Specimens joined by electron beams were compared to specimens produced by hot-pressing. Similar reactions occurred using both processes. Reactions between the metal and ceramic produced silicides that bond the metal to the ceramic. The molybdenum silicide reaction products appeared to be more brittle than the platinum silicides. Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} was also joined to Si{sub 3} N{sub 4} directly. The bonding appears to have been produced by the flow of intergranular glass into the interface. Shear strength was similar to the metal bonded specimens. Bend specimens Of Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} were exposed to electron beams with similar parameters to those used in joining experiments to determine how beam exposure degrades the strength. Damage was macroscopic in nature with craters being tonned by material ablation, and cracking occurring due to excessive thermal stresses. Si was also observed on the surface indicating the Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} was decomposing. Bend strength after exposure was 62% of the asreceived strength. No obvious microstructural differences were observed in the material close to the damaged region compared to material in regions far away from the damage.
Design criteria for carbon-based Ultracapacitors have been determined for specified energy and power requirements, using the geometry of the components and such material properties as density, porosity and conductivity as parameters, while also considering chemical compatibility. This analysis shows that the weights of active and inactive components of the capacitor structure must be carefully balanced for maximum energy and power density. When applied to nonaqueous electrolytes, the design rules for a 5 Wh/kg device call for porous carbon with a specific capacitance of about 30 F/cm{sup 3}. This performance is not achievable with pure, electrostatic double layer capacitance. Double layer capacitance is only 5 to 30% of that observed in aqueous electrolyte. Tests also showed that nonaqeous elcctrolytes have a diminished capability to access micropores in activated carbon, in one case yielding a capacitance of less than 1 F/cm{sup 3} for carbon that had 100 F/cm{sup 3} in aqueous electrolyte. With negative results on nonaqueous electrolytes dominating the present study, the obvious conclusion is to concentrate on aqueous systems. Only aqueous double layer capacitors offer adequate electrostatic charging characteristics which is the basis for high power performance. There arc many opportunities for further advancing aqueous double layer capacitors, one being the use of highly activated carbon films, as opposed to powders, fibers and foams. While the manufacture of carbon films is still costly, and while the energy and power density of the resulting devices may not meet the optimistic goals that have been proposed, this technology could produce true double layer capacitors with significantly improved performance and large commercial potential.
In robotics, path planning refers to finding a short. collision-free path from an initial robot configuration to a desired configuratioin. It has to be fast to support real-time task-level robot programming. Unfortunately, current planning techniques are still too slow to be effective, as they often require several minutes, if not hours of computation. To remedy this situation, we present and analyze a learning algorithm that uses past experience to increase future performance. The algorithm relies on an existing path planner to provide solutions to difficult tasks. From these solutions, an evolving sparse network of useful robot configurations is learned to support faster planning. More generally, the algorithm provides a speedup-learning framework in which a slow but capable planner may be improved both cost-wise and capability-wise by a faster but less capable planner coupled with experience. The basic algorithm is suitable for stationary environments, and can be extended to accommodate changing environments with on-demand experience repair and object-attached experience abstraction. To analyze the algorithm, we characterize the situations in which the adaptive planner is useful, provide quantitative bounds to predict its behavior, and confirm our theoretical results with experiments in path planning of manipulators. Our algorithm and analysis are sufficiently, general that they may also be applied to other planning domains in which experience is useful.
System identification for the purpose of robust control design involves estimating a nominal model of a physical system and the uncertainty bounds of that nominal model via the use of experimentally measured input/output data. Although many algorithms have been developed to identify nominal models, little effort has been directed towards identifying uncertainty bounds. Therefore, in this document, a discussion of both nominal model identification and bounded output multiplicative uncertainty identification will be presented. This document is divided into several sections. Background information relevant to system identification and control design will be presented. A derivation of eigensystem realization type algorithms will be presented. An algorithm will be developed for calculating the maximum singular value of output multiplicative uncertainty from measured data. An application will be given involving the identification of a complex system with aliased dynamics, feedback control, and exogenous noise disturbances. And, finally, a short discussion of results will be presented.
Russian scientists and engineers have drilled the deepest holes in the world. It is recognized that this experience has given them an expertise in drilling superdeep holes, as well as other aspects of drilling, completions, and geophysics. More and more US oil and gas companies are vigorously expanding their exploration and development into Russia. It is important for them to identify and use Russian technology in drilling, completion, logging, and reservoir characterization to the extent possible, in order to both reduce drilling costs and help support the Russian economy. While these US companies are interested in becoming involved in and/or sponsoring research in Russia, they have been unsure as to which scientists and institutes are working on problems of interest. It was also important to determine in which areas Russian technology is farther advanced than in the West. Such technology could then be commercialized as part of the Industrial Partnering Program. In order to develop a clear understanding of these issues, two Sandia engineers with drilling and completions expertise and a geophysicist with expertise in reservoir analysis traveled to Russia to meet with Russian scientists and engineers to discuss their technologies and areas of interest. This report contains a summary of the information obtained during the visit.
Natural disasters cause billions of dollars of damage and thousands Of deaths globally each year. While the magnitude is clear, the exact costs (in damage and fatalities) are difficult to clearly identify. This document reports on the results of a survey of data on the costs associated with significant natural disasters. There is an impressive amount of work and effort going into natural disaster research, mitigation, and relief. However, despite this effort, there are surprisingly few consistent and reliable data available regarding the effects of natural disasters. Even lacking consistent and complete data, it is clear that the damage and fatalities from natural disasters are increasing, both in the United States, and globally. Projections using the available data suggest that, in the United States alone, the costs of natural disasters between 1995 and 2010 will be in the range of $90 billion (94$) and 5000 lives.
Open demonstrations of technologies developed by the Office of Technology Development`s (QTD`s) Mixed Waste Landfill Integrated Demonstration (MWLID) should facilitate regulatory acceptance and speed the transfer and commercialization of these technologies. The purpose of the present project is to identify the environmental restoration needs of hazardous waste and/or mixed waste landfill owners within a 25-mile radius of Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). Most municipal landfills that operated prior to the mid-1980s accepted household/commercial hazardous waste and medical waste that included low-level radioactive waste. The locations of hazardous and/or mixed waste landfills within the State of New Mexico were. identified using federal, state, municipal and Native American tribal environmental records. The records reviewed included the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Superfund Program CERCLIS Event/Site listing (which includes tribal records), the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED), Solid Waste Bureau mixed waste landfill database, and the City of Albuquerque Environmental Health Department landfill database. Tribal envirorunental records are controlled by each tribal government, so each tribal environmental officer and governor was contacted to obtain release of specific site data beyond what is available in the CERCLIS listings.
Radiation testing of photonic components is not new, however component level testing to date has not completely addressed quantities which are important to system behavior. One characteristic that is of particular importance for optical processing systems is the frequency response. In this report, we present the analysis of data from an experiment designed to provide a preliminary understanding of the effects of radiation on the frequency response of acousto-optic devices. The goal of the analysis is to describe possible physical mechanisms responsible for the radiation effects and to discuss the effects on signal processing functionality. The experiment discussed in this report was designed by Sandia National Laboratories and performed by Sandia and Phillips Laboratory personnel at White Sands Missile Range (WSMR). In the experiment, a TeO{sub 2} slow shear wave acousto-optic cell was exposed to radiation from the WSMR linear accelerator. The TeO{sub 2} cell was placed in an experimental configuration which allowed swept frequency diffracted power measurements to be taken during radiation exposure and recovery. A series of exposures was performed. Each exposure consisted of between 1 to 800, 1{mu}sec radiation pulses (yielding exposures of 2.25 kRad(Si) to 913 kRad(Si)), followed by recovery time. At low total and cumulative doses, the bandshape of the frequency response (i.e. diffracted power vs. frequency) remained almost identical during and after radiation. At the higher exposures, however, the amplitude and width of the frequency response changed as the radiation continued, but returned to the original shape slowly after the radiation stopped and recovery proceeded. It is interesting to note that the location of the Bragg degeneracy does not change significantly with radiation. In this report, we discuss these effects from the perspective of anisotropic Bragg diffraction and momentum mismatch, and we discuss the effect on the signal processing functionality.
The following annotated bibliography lists documents prepared by the Department of Energy (DOE), and predecessor agencies, to meet the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for activities and facilities at Sandia National Laboratories sites. For each NEPA document summary information and a brief discussion of content is provided. This information may be used to reduce the amount of time or cost associated with NEPA compliance for future Sandia National Laboratories projects. This summary may be used to identify model documents, documents to use as sources of information, or documents from which to tier additional NEPA documents.
An aqueous-based process that uses electrophoresis to attract powdered lubricant in suspension to a charged target was developed. The deposition process yields coatings with low friction, complies with environmental safety regulations, requires minimal equipment, and has several advantages over processes involving organic binders or vacuum techniques. This work focuses on development of the deposition process, includes an analysis of the friction coefficient of the material in sliding contact with stainless steel under a range of conditions, and a functional evaluation of coating performance in a precision mechanical device application. Results show that solid lubricant films with friction coefficients as low as 0.03 can be produced. A 0.03 friction coefficient is superior to solid lubricants with binder systems and is comparable to friction coefficients generated with more costly vacuum techniques.
The work involves research leading to an optically triggered switch for a high power laser pulse. The switch uses a semiconductor heterostructure whose optical properties are modified by a low power laser trigger such as a laser diode. Potential applications include optical control of pulsed power systems, control of medical lasers and implementation of security features in optical warhead architectures.
formulation to satisfy velocity boundary conditions for the vorticity form of the incompressible, viscous fluid momentum equations is presented. The tangential and normal components of the velocity boundary condition are satisfied simultaneously by creating vorticity adjacent to boundaries. The newly created vorticity is determined using a kinematical formulation which is a generalization of Helmholtz` decomposition of a vector field. Though it has not been generally recognized, these formulations resolve the over-specification issue associated with creating voracity to satisfy velocity boundary conditions. The generalized decomposition has not been widely used, apparently due to a lack of a useful physical interpretation. An analysis is presented which shows that the generalized decomposition has a relatively simple physical interpretation which facilitates its numerical implementation. The implementation of the generalized decomposition is discussed in detail. As an example the flow in a two-dimensional lid-driven cavity is simulated. The solution technique is based on a Lagrangian transport algorithm in the hydrocode ALEGRA. ALEGRA`s Lagrangian transport algorithm has been modified to solve the vorticity transport equation and the generalized decomposition, thus providing a new, accurate method to simulate incompressible flows. This numerical implementation and the new boundary condition formulation allow vorticity-based formulations to be used in a wider range of engineering problems.
A series of tests investigating dynamic pulse buckling of a cylindrical shell under axial impact is compared to several 2D and 3D finite element simulations of the event. The purpose of the work is to investigate the performance of various analysis codes and element types on a problem which is applicable to radioactive material transport packages, and ultimately to develop a benchmark problem to qualify finite element analysis codes for the transport package design industry. Four axial impact tests were performed on 4 in-diameter, 8 in-long, 304 L stainless steel cylinders with a 3/16 in wall thickness. The cylinders were struck by a 597 lb mass with an impact velocity ranging from 42.2 to 45.1 ft/sec. During the impact event, a buckle formed at each end of the cylinder, and one of the two buckles became unstable and collapsed. The instability occurred at the top of the cylinder in three tests and at the bottom in one test. Numerical simulations of the test were performed using the following codes and element types: PRONTO2D with axisymmetric four-node quadrilaterals; PRONTO3D with both four-node shells and eight-node hexahedrons; and ABAQUS/Explicit with axisymmetric two-node shells and four-node quadrilaterals, and 3D four-node shells and eight-node hexahedrons. All of the calculations are compared to the tests with respect to deformed shape and impact load history. As in the tests, the location of the instability is not consistent in all of the calculations. However, the calculations show good agreement with impact load measurements with the exception of an initial load spike which is proven to be the dynamic response of the load cell to the impact. Finally, the PRONIT02D calculation is compared to the tests with respect to strain and acceleration histories. Accelerometer data exhibited good qualitative agreement with the calculations. The strain comparisons show that measurements are very sensitive to gage placement.
EN-7, EN-8, and EN-9 are polyurethane systems that are used in numerous applications in the Department of Energy complex. These systems contain high levels of toluene diisocyanate (TDI). Currently, TDI is being treated as a suspect human carcinogen within the Department of Energy complex. This report documents the results of a material characterization study of three polyurethane systems that contain low levels of free (potentially airborne) TDI. The characterization has been accomplished by performing a set of statistically designed experiments. The purpose of these experiments is to explore the effects of formulation and cure schedule on various material properties. In general, the material properties (pot life, glass transition temperature, hardness, and tear strength) were relatively insensitive to variation in the cure schedule. On the other hand, variation in curative level had measurable effects on material properties for the polyurethane systems studied. Furthermore, the material properties of the three low-free-TDI polyurethane systems were found to be comparable or superior (for certain curative levels) to commonly-used polyurethane systems. Thus, these low-free-TDI systems appear to be viable candidates for applications where a polyurethane is needed.
A disposal planning process was established by the Department of Energy (DOE) Mixed Low-Level Waste (MLLW) Disposal Workgroup. The process, jointly developed with the States, includes three steps: site-screening, site-evaluation, and configuration study. As a result of the screening process, 28 sites have been eliminated from further consideration for MLLW disposal and 4 sites have been assigned a lower priority for evaluation. Currently 16 sites are being evaluated by the DOE for their potential strengths and weaknesses as MLLW disposal sites. The results of the evaluation will provide a general idea of the technical capability of the 16 disposal sites; the results can also be used to identify which treated MLLW streams can be disposed on-site and which should be disposed of off-site. The information will then serve as the basis for a disposal configuration study, which includes analysis of both technical as well as non-technical issues, that will lead to the ultimate decision on MLLW disposal site locations.
The authors present a comprehensive numerical model for vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers that includes all major processes effecting cw operation of axisymmetric devices. In particular, the model includes a description of the 2D transport of electrons and holes through the cladding layers to the quantum well(s), diffusion and recombination processes of these carriers within the wells, the 2D transport of heat throughout the device, and a multi-lateral-mode effective index optical model. The optical gain acquired by photons traversing the quantum wells is computed including the effects of strained band structure and quantum confinement. They employ the model to predict the behavior of higher-order lateral modes in proton-implanted devices, and to provide an understanding of index-guiding in devices fabricated using selective oxidation.
Infrared absorption spectra of borophosphosilicate glass (BPSG) thin films were collected to develop a rapid classification method for determining if the films are within the desired specifications. Classification of samples into good and bad categories was performed using principal component analysis applied to the spectra. Mahalanobis distances were used as the classification metric. The highest overall percentage of correct classification of samples based upon their spectra was 91.6%.
The interaction of cesium at the (0001) and (1{bar 1}02) surfaces of sapphire has been investigated using a variety of surface analytical techniques. Reflection mass spectrometric measurements yield initial Cs adsorption probabilities of 0.9 and 0.85 for the unreconstructed (0001) and (1{bar 1}02) surfaces, respectively. The adsorption probability decreases dramatically for these surfaces at critical Cs coverages of 2.O {times} 10{sup 14} and 3.4 {times} 10{sup 14} atoms/cm{sup 2}, respectively. Thermally induced reconstruction of the (0001) surface to form an oxygen deficient surface results in a decrease in the initial probability and capacity for Cs adsorption. Low energy electron diffraction (LEED) demonstrates that an intermediate, mixed domain surface yields an initial adsorption probability of 0.5 while a ({radical}31 {times} {radical}31) R {plus_minus} 9{degree} reconstructed surface yields a value of 0.27. Thermal desorption mass spectrometry (TDMS) shows that surface reconstruction eliminates the high binding energy states of Cs (2.7 eV/atom), consistent with the observed changes in adsorption probability. In contrast, reconstruction of the (1{bar 1}02) surface produces only minor changes in Cs adsorption. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) indicates that no formal reductive/oxidative chemistry takes place at the interface. We interpret the facile adsorption and strong binding of Cs on sapphire to result from Cs interacting with coordinatively unsaturated oxygen.
The goal of this work is to develop novel functionalized block copolymers to promote adhesion at inorganic substrate/polymer interfaces. We envision several potential advantages of functionalized block copolymers over small molecule coupling agents. Greater control over the structure of the interphase region should result through careful design of the backbone of the copolymer. The number of chains per area, the degree of entanglement between the copolymer and the polymer matrix, the number of sites per chain able to attach to the substrate, and the hydrophobicity of the interphase region can all be strongly affected by the choice of block lengths and the monomer sequence. In addition, entanglement between the copolymer and the polymer matrix, if achieved, should contribute significantly to adhesive strength. Our program involves four key elements: the synthesis of suitable functionalized block copolymers, characterization of the conformation of the copolymers at the interface by neutron reflectivity and atomic force microscopy, characterization of the degree of bonding by spectroscopy, and measurement of the mechanical properties of the interface. In this paper we discuss block copolymers designed as adhesion promoters for the copper/epoxy interface. We have synthesized a diblock with one block containing imidazole groups to bond to copper and a second block containing secondary amines to react with the epoxy matrix. We have also prepared a triblock copolymer containing a hydrophobic middle block. Below we describe the synthesis of the block copolymers by living, ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) and the first characterization data obtained by neutron reflectivity.
New insights into the development of microstructure in sol-gel films have recently been revealed by several diagnostic techniques, including imaging ellipsometry, {open_quotes}chemical imaging{close_quotes} by fluorescent tracers, light scattering from capillary waves, and finite-element modeling. The evolution of porosity during the continuous transition from dilute sol to porous solid in restricted geometries such as films and fibers is becoming clearer through fundamental understanding of evaporation dynamics and capillarity.
A microscopic theory, that is based on the coupled Maxwell-semiconductor-Bloch equations, is used to investigate the effects of many-body Coulomb interactions in semiconductor laser devices. This paper describes two examples where the many-body effects play important roles. Experimental data supporting the theoretical results are presented.
This report summarizes the purchasing and transportation activities of the Procurement Organization for FY 1994. Activities for both the New Mexico and California locations are included.
James, G.; Mayes, R.; Carne, T.; Simmermacher, T.; Goodding, J.
Two techniques for damage localization (Structural Translational and Rotational Error Checking -- STRECH and MAtriX COmpletioN -- MAXCON) are described and applied to operational structures. The structures include a Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine (HAWT) blade undergoing a fatigue test and a highway bridge undergoing an induced damage test. STRECH is seen to provide a global damage indicator to assess the global damage state of a structure. STRECH is also seen to provide damage localization for static flexibility shapes or the first mode of simple structures. MAXCON is a robust damage localization tool using the higher order dynamics of a structure. Several options arc available to allow the procedure to be tailored to a variety of structures.
At Sandia Labs` Coyote Canyon Test Complex, it became necessary to develop a precision single station solution to provide time space position information (tspi) when tracking airborne test vehicles. Sandia`s first laser tracker came on line in 1968, replacing the fixed camera technique for producing trajectory data. This system shortened data reduction time from weeks to minutes. Laser Tracker 11 began operations in 1982, replacing the original tracker. It incorporated improved optics and electronics, with the addition of a microprocessor-based real-time control (rtc) system within the main servo loop. The rtc added trajectory prediction with the loss of adequate tracking signal and automatic control of laser beam divergence according to target range. Laser Tracker III, an even more advanced version of the systems, came on line in 1990. Unlike LTII, which is mounted in a trailer and must by moved by a tractor, LTIII is mounted on its own four-wheel drive carrier. This allows the system to be used at even the most remote locations. It also incorporated improved optics and electronics with the addition of absolute ranging, acquisition on the fly, and automatic transition from manual Joystick tracking to laser tracking for aircraft tests. LTIII provides a unique state of the art tracking capability for missile, rocket sled, aircraft, submunition, and parachute testing. Used in conjunction with LTII, the systems together can provide either simultaneous or extended range tracking. Mobility, accuracy, reliability, and cost effectiveness enable these systems to support a variety of testing at Department of Energy and Department of Defense ranges.
The gain-dependent polarization properties of vertical-cavity surface emitting lasers and methods for polarization control and modulation are discussed. The partitioning of power between the two orthogonal eigen polarizations is shown to depend upon the relative spectral alignment of the nondegenerate polarization cavity resonances with the laser gain spectrum. A dominant polarization can thus be maintained by employing a blue-shifted offset of the peak laser gain relative to the cavity resonance wavelength. Alternatively, the polarization can be controlled through use of anisotropic transverse cavity geometries. The orthogonal eigen polarizations are also shown to enable polarization modulation. By exploiting polarization switching transitions in cruciform lasers, polarization modulation of the fundamental mode up to 50 MHz is demonstrated. At lower modulation frequencies, complementary digital polarized output or frequency doubling of the polarized output is obtained. Control and manipulation of vertical-cavity laser polarization may prove valuable for present and future applications.
In conjunction with crosswell seismic surveying being done at the Hanford Site in south-central Washington, four different downhole seismic sources have been tested between the same set of boreholes. The four sources evaluated were the Bolt airgun, the OYO-Conoco orbital vibrator, and two Sandia-developed vertical vibrators, one pneumatically-driven, and the other based on a magnetostrictive actuator. The sources generate seismic energy in the lower frequency range of less than 1000 Hz and have different frequency characteristics, radiation patterns, energy levels, and operational considerations. Collection of identical data sets with all four sources allows the direct comparison of these characteristics and an evaluation of the suitability of each source for a given site and target.
Magnetometers are frequently used to characterize hazardous waste sites. Due to cost and time considerations, data are typically collected on a coarse grid with nodes on 3 to 6 meter (m) centers. Hardware and software are now available which allow the rapid and cost effective collection of information on a much finer sampling grid. In this paper we present and compare total field magnetometery data collected on 3 m centers to total field magnetometery data collected on a grid with centers of 0.5 m or less. We also compare the magnetometery data to time-domain electromagnetic (EM) data collected on a 1 m by 0.2 m grid using the recently introduced Geonics Ltd. EM61 metal detector. All three data sets were collected at an abandoned landfill radioactive Burial Site No. 11 (RB-11) is located on Kirtland Air Force Base near Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Smith, R.E.; Warren, M.E.; Wendt, J.R.; Vawter, G.A.
We have fabricated sub-wavelength diffractive optical elements with binary phase profiles for operation at 975 nm. Blazed transmission gratings with minimum features 63 nm wide were designed by using rigorous coupled-wave analysis and fabricated by direct-write e-beam lithography and reactive ion beam etching in gallium arsenide. Transmission measurements show 85% diffraction efficiency into the first order. Anti-reflection surfaces, with features 42 nm wide were also designed and fabricated.
We propose an approach, which we call the Transport Processes Investigation or TPI, to identify and verify site-scale transport processes and their controls. The TPI aids in the formulation of an accurate conceptual model of flow and transport, an essential first step in the development of a cost effective site characterization strategy. The TPI is demonstrated in the highly complex vadose zone of glacial tills that underlie the Fernald Environmental Remediation Project (FEMP) in Fernald, Ohio. As a result of the TPI, we identify and verify the pertinent flow processes and their controls, such as extensive macropore and fracture flow through layered clays, which must be included in an accurate conceptual model of site-scale contaminant transport. We are able to conclude that the classical modeling and sampling methods employed in some site characterization programs will be insufficient to characterize contaminant concentrations or distributions at contaminated or hazardous waste facilities sited in such media.