Photovoltaic (PV) modules that provide only ac power give new dimensions to the use of, and utility interface of, PV systems because all of the dc issues are virtually eliminated. These AC PV modules offer the important advantage that customers may now purchase a PV system without hiring a design engineer. A qualified electrician will be able to install a complete PV system that performs as expected and meets local electrical codes. Simple installations of additional AC PV modules will be possible once the proper branch circuit wiring and protection have been installed. Codes and standards are currently being written to address the utility-interconnect issues for AC PV modules and other interactive inverters. An industry-supported Task Group has recently written and submitted proposals for changes to bring Article 690 of the 1999 National Electrical Code{reg_sign} (NEC{reg_sign}) up to the state-of-the-art for PV devices such as AC PV modules. This paper summarizes the proposed code changes and standards related to the evolving AC PV module technology in the United States. Topics such as the need for dedicated branch circuits for AC PV modules in residential applications are discussed and analyzed. Requirements for limiting the number of AC modules on a branch circuit and the listing requirements that make safe installations are discussed. Coordination of all standards activities for AC module installations, the building-integrated perspectives, and utility-interface issues is discussed.
The U.S. National Photovoltaic Program began in 1975 by supporting the development of terrestrial PV modules and hardware associated with grid-connected PV systems. Early PV-system demonstration programs were also supported and cost shared by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). A wide variety of PV systems were deployed, usually with utility participation. The early demonstration projects provided, and continue to provide, valuable PV system experience to utilities, designers and suppliers. As a result of experience gained, several important milestones in codes and standards pertaining to the design, installation and operation of photovoltaic (PV) systems have been completed. These code and standard activities were conducted through collaboration of participants from all sectors of the PV industry, utilities and the US DOE National Photovoltaic Program. Codes and standards that have been proposed, written, or modified include changes and additions for the 1999 National Electric Code{reg_sign} (NEC{reg_sign}), standards for fire and personnel safety, system testing, field acceptance, component qualification, and utility interconnection. Project authorization requests with the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) have resulted in standards for component qualification and were further adapted for standards used to list PV modules and balance-of-system components. Industry collaboration with Underwriter Laboratories, Inc., with the American Society for Testing and Materials, and through critical input and review for international standards with the International Electrotechnical Commission have resulted in new and revised domestic and international standards for PV applications. Activities related to work on codes and standards through the International Energy Agency are also being supported by the PV industry and the US DOE. The paper shows relationships between activities in standards writing.
A new method to analyze human errors has been demonstrated at a pressurized water reactor (PWR) nuclear power plant. This was the first application of the new method referred to as A Technique for Human Error Analysis (ATHEANA). The main goals of the demonstration were to test the ATHEANA process as described in the frame-of-reference manual and the implementation guideline, test a training package developed for the method, test the hypothesis that plant operators and trainers have significant insight into the error-forcing-contexts (EFCs) that can make unsafe actions (UAs) more likely, and to identify ways to improve the method and its documentation. A set of criteria to evaluate the {open_quotes}success{close_quotes} of the ATHEANA method as used in the demonstration was identified. A human reliability analysis (HRA) team was formed that consisted of an expert in probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) with some background in HRA (not ATHEANA) and four personnel from the nuclear power plant. Personnel from the plant included two individuals from their PRA staff and two individuals from their training staff. Both individuals from training are currently licensed operators and one of them was a senior reactor operator {open_quotes}on shift{close_quotes} until a few months before the demonstration. The demonstration was conducted over a 5 month period and was observed by members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission`s ATHEANA development team, who also served as consultants to the HRA team when necessary. Example results of the demonstration to date, including identified human failure events (HFEs), UAs, and EFCs are discussed. Also addressed is how simulator exercises are used in the ATHEANA demonstration project.
Sandia National Laboratories has developed a computer based model called IVSEM (Integrated Verification System Evaluation Model) to estimate the performance of a nuclear detonation monitoring system. The IVSEM project was initiated in June 1994, by Sandia`s Monitoring Systems and Technology Center and has been funded by the US Department of Energy`s Office of Nonproliferation and National Security (DOE/NN). IVSEM is a simple, top-level, modeling tool which estimates the performance of a Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) monitoring system and can help explore the impact of various sensor system concepts and technology advancements on CTBT monitoring. One of IVSEM`s unique features is that it integrates results from the various CTBT sensor technologies (seismic, infrasound, radionuclide, and hydroacoustic) and allows the user to investigate synergy among the technologies. Specifically, IVSEM estimates the detection effectiveness (probability of detection) and location accuracy of the integrated system and of each technology subsystem individually. The model attempts to accurately estimate the monitoring system`s performance at medium interfaces (air-land, air-water) and for some evasive testing methods such as seismic decoupling. This report describes version 1.2 of IVSEM.
The use of computational modeling to improve equipment and process designs for chemical vapor deposition (CVD) reactors is becoming increasingly common. Commercial codes are available that facilitate the modeling of chemically-reacting flows, but chemical reaction mechanisms must be separately developed for each system of interest. One f the products of the Watkins-Johnson Company (WJ) is a reactor marketed to semiconductor manufacturers for the atmospheric-pressure chemical vapor deposition (APCVD) of silicon oxide films. In this process, TEOS (tetraethoxysilane, Si(OC{sub 2}H{sub 5}){sub 4}) and ozone (O{sub 3}) are injected (in nitrogen and oxygen carrier gases) over hot silicon wafers that are being carried through the system on a moving belt. As part of their equipment improvement process, WJ is developing computational models of this tool. In this effort, they are collaborating with Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) to draw on Sandia`s experience base in understanding and modeling the chemistry of CVD processes.
Self Assembled (SA) thin films and Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) thin films are emerging technologies for the development of chemical and bio-chemical sensors, electrooptic films, second harmonic generators (frequency doublers), templates for biomimetic growth etc. One of the goals of this project was to extend Sandia`s characterization techniques and molecular modeling capabilities for these complex two-dimensional geometries with the objective of improving the control of the fabrication of these structures for specific applications. Achieving this requires understanding both the structure throughout the thickness of the films and the in-plane lattice of the amphiphilic molecules. To meet these objectives they used atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray reflectivity, and molecular modeling. While developing these capabilities, three different materials systems were fabricated and characterized: (1) Self Assembled Monolayers (SAMs) of octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) and LB films of arachidic acid on silicon wafers; (2) SAMs on PZT substrates; and (3) electrochemical deposition of CdS on LB film templates.
This report addresses the need for government sponsored R and D to address real public problems. The motivation is that a public benefit of the money spent must be demonstrated. The areas identified as not having appropriate attention resulting in unmet public needs include healthcare cost, cost and benefits of regulations, infrastructure problems, defense spending misaligned with foreign policy objectives, the crime problem, energy impact on the environment, the education problem, low productivity growth industry sectors, the income distribution problem, the aging problem, the propagation of disease and policy changes needed to address the solution of these problems.
Cesarano III, J.; Sasaki, D.Y.; Singh, S.; Brinker, C.J.
The goal of this project was to develop a novel technology that may be used to eventually manufacture a new generation of inorganic membranes and sensors with oriented, unidirectional monosized pores. The premise is that very thin membranes with oriented channels as pores will have a high flux in addition to being highly selective. Applications include: (1) gas separation membranes for oxygen enrichment, partial oxidation, dehydrogenation, and purification of natural gas; (2) refractory catalytic membrane reactors; and (3) molecular recognition sensors. The methodology for making such membranes was to combine Langmuir - Blodgett (LB) technology with sol-gel chemistry to engineer pore channels within the range 3 to 20 K The channel structure was fabricated of amorphous SiO{sub 2} because of its good thermal, chemical, and mechanical stability. Our approach was to use LB techniques to uniformly place organic molecular spacers throughout a thin silica precursor matrix and apply this film to a substrate. LB films of solid solutions of commercially available silane amphiphiles and organic amphiphiles were fabricated. The siloxane groups were then hydrolyzed to form silica and the organic portions of the amphiphiles removed by thermal decomposition. With the completely fugitive organic spacer amphiphiles removed, a thin silica film with micropores resulted. The pore size was in the range of 6 - 8 {angstrom} and in an ultra-thin configuration. With further development this technique may be useful for fabrication of inorganic membranes which satisfy all the criteria of the ideal membrane.
Nuclear power plants are converting to digital instrumentation and control systems; however, the effects of abnormal environments such as fire and smoke on such systems are not known. There are no standard tests for smoke, but previous smoke exposure tests at Sandia National Laboratories have shown that digital communications can be temporarily interrupted during a smoke exposure. Another concern is the long-term corrosion of metals exposed to the acidic gases produced by a cable fire. This report documents measurements of basic functional circuits during and up to 1 day after exposure to smoke created by burning cable insulation. Printed wiring boards were exposed to the smoke in an enclosed chamber for 1 hour. For high-resistance circuits, the smoke lowered the resistance of the surface of the board and caused the circuits to short during the exposure. These circuits recovered after the smoke was vented. For low-resistance circuits, the smoke caused their resistance to increase slightly. A polyurethane conformal coating substantially reduced the effects of smoke. A high-speed digital circuit was unaffected. A second experiment on different logic chip technologies showed that the critical shunt resistance that would cause failure was dependent on the chip technology and that the components used in the smoke exposures were some of the most smoke tolerant. The smoke densities in these tests were high enough to cause changes in high impedance (resistance) circuits during exposure, but did not affect most of the other circuits. Conformal coatings and the characteristics of chip technologies should be considered when designing circuitry for nuclear power plant safety systems, which must be highly reliable under a variety of operating and accident conditions. 10 refs., 34 figs., 18 tabs.
A message-passing version of the PAGOSA shock-wave physics code has been developed at Sandia National Laboratories for multiple-instruction, multiple-data stream (MIMD) computers. PAGOSA is an explicit, Eulerian code for modeling the three-dimensional, high-speed hydrodynamic flow of fluids and the dynamic deformation of solids under high rates of strain. It was originally developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory for the single-instruction, multiple-data (SIMD) Connection Machine parallel computers. The performance of Sandia`s message-passing version of PAGOSA has been measured on two MIMD machines, the nCUBE 2 and the Intel Paragon XP/S. No special efforts were made to optimize the code for either machine. The measured scaled speedup (computational time for a single computational node divided by the computational time per node for fixed computational load) and grind time (computational time per cell per time step) show that the MIMD PAGOSA code scales linearly with the number of computational nodes used on a variety of problems, including the simulation of shaped-charge jets perforating an oil well casing. Scaled parallel efficiencies for MIMD PAGOSA are greater than 0.70 when the available memory per node is filled (or nearly filled) on hundreds to a thousand or more computational nodes on these two machines, indicating that the code scales very well. Thus good parallel performance can be achieved for complex and realistic applications when they are first implemented on MIMD parallel computers.
A contact enforcement algorithm has been developed for matrix-free quasistatic finite element techniques. Matrix-free (iterative) solution algorithms such as nonlinear Conjugate Gradients (CG) and Dynamic Relaxation (DR) are distinctive in that the number of iterations required for convergence is typically of the same order as the number of degrees of freedom of the model. From iteration to iteration the contact normal and tangential forces vary significantly making contact constraint satisfaction tenuous. Furthermore, global determination and enforcement of the contact constraints every iteration could be questioned on the grounds of efficiency. This work addresses this situation by introducing an intermediate iteration for treating the active gap constraint and at the same time exactly (kinematically) enforcing the linearized gap rate constraint for both frictionless and frictional response.
The aim of this project was to develop the capabilities for Sandia to fabricate self assembled Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films of various materials and to exploit their two-dimensional crystalline structure to promote the growth of oriented thin films of inorganic materials at room temperature. This includes the design and synthesis of Langmuir-active (amphiphilic) organic molecules with end groups offering high nucleation potential for various ceramics. A longer range goal is that of understanding the underlying principles, making it feasible to use the techniques presented in this report to fabricate unique oriented films of various materials for electronic, sensor, and membrane applications. Therefore, whenever possible, work completed in this report was completed with the intention of addressing the fundamental phenomena underlying the growth of crystalline, inorganic films on template layers of highly organized organic molecules. This problem was inspired by biological processes, which often produce exquisitely engineered structures via templated growth on polymeric layers. Seashells, for example, exhibit great toughness owing to their fine brick-and-mortar structure that results from templated growth of calcium carbonate on top of layers of ordered organic proteins. A key goal in this work, therefore, is to demonstrate a positive correlation between the order and orientation of the template layer and that of the crystalline ceramic material grown upon it. The work completed was comprised of several parallel efforts that encompassed the entire spectrum of biomimetic growth from solution. Studies were completed on seashells and the mechanisms of growth for calcium carbonate. Studies were completed on the characterization of LB films and the capability developed for the in-house fabrication of these films. Standard films of fatty acids were studied as well as novel polypeptides and porphyrins that were synthesized.
Three relatively simple mathematical models have been developed to estimate minimum reactor and radiation shield masses for liquid-metal-cooled reactors (LMRs), in-core thermionic fuel element (TFE) reactors, and out-of-core thermionic reactors (OTRs). The approach was based on much of the methodology developed for the Reactor/Shield Mass (RSMASS) model. Like the original RSMASS models, the new RSMASS-derivative (RSMASS-D) models use a combination of simple equations derived from reactor physics and other fundamental considerations, along with tabulations of data from more detailed neutron and gamma transport theory computations. All three models vary basic design parameters within a range specified by the user to achieve a parameter choice that yields a minimum mass for the power level and operational time of interest. The impact of critical mass, fuel damage, and thermal limitations are accounted for to determine the required fuel mass. The effect of thermionic limitations are also taken into account for the thermionic reactor models. All major reactor component masses are estimated, as well as instrumentation and control (I&C), boom, and safety system masses. A new shield model was developed and incorporated into all three reactor concept models. The new shield model is more accurate and simpler to use than the approach used in the original RSMASS model. The estimated reactor and shield masses agree with the mass predictions from separate detailed calculations within 15 percent for all three models.
In 1967, Sandia National Laboratories published empirical equations to predict penetration into natural earth materials and concrete. Since that time there have been several small changes to the basic equations, and several more additions to the overall technique for predicting penetration into soil, rock, concrete, ice, and frozen soil. The most recent update to the equations was published in 1988, and since that time there have been changes in the equations to better match the expanding data base, especially in concrete penetration. This is a standalone report documenting the latest version of the Young/Sandia penetration equations and related analytical techniques to predict penetration into natural earth materials and concrete. 11 refs., 6 tabs.
This technical report describes some lessons learned from implementing the Message Passing Interface (MPI) standard, and some proposed extentions to MPI, at Sandia. The implementations were developed using Sandia-developed lightweight kernels running on the Intel Paragon and Intel TeraFLOPS platforms. The motivations for this research are discussed, and a detailed analysis of several implementation issues is presented.
The initial National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP - 40 CFR 61, Subpart H) Program at Sandia National Laboratories, New Mexico (SNL/NM) required: (1) continuous air monitoring of sources if the calculated effective dose equivalent (EDE) to the maximum exposed individual (MEI) was > 0.1 mrem/yr; (2) the determination of emissions based on measurements or measured parameters if the EDE to the MEI was < 0.1 mrem/yr; and (3) the calculation of worst case releases when the expected air concentrations were below detection limits using standard monitoring equipment. This conservative interpretation of the regulation guided SNL/NM to model, track, and trend virtually all emission sources with the potential to include any radionuclides. The level of effort required to implement these activities was independent of the EDE contributing from individual sources. A recent programmatic review found the NESHAP program to be in excess of the legal requirements. A further review found that, in summation, 13 of 16 radionuclide sources had a negligible impact on the final calculated EDE to the MEI used to demonstrate compliance at 20 separate on-site receptor locations. A reevaluation was performed to meet the legal requirements of 40 CFR 61, Subpart H, and still be reasonable and appropriate under the existing circumstances.
Questions have arisen regarding the applicability of seismic sensors to detect mining (re-entry) with a tunnel boring machine (TBM). Unlike cut and blast techniques of mining which produce impulsive seismic signals, the TBM produces seismic signals which are of long duration. (There are well established techniques available for detecting and locating the sources of the impulsive signals.) The Yucca Mountain repository offered an opportunity to perform field evaluations of the capabilities of seismic sensors because during much of 1996, mining there was progressing with the use of a TBM. During the mining of the repository`s southern branch, an effort was designed to evaluate whether the TBM could be detected, identified and located using seismic sensors. Three data acquisition stations were established in the Yucca Mountain area to monitor the TBM activity. A ratio of short term average to long term average algorithm was developed for use in detection based on the characteristics shown in the time series. For location of the source of detected signals, FK analysis was used on the array data to estimate back azimuths. The back azimuth from the 3 component system was estimated from the horizontal components. Unique features in the timing of the seismic signal were used to identify the source as the TBM.
In this paper, the major elements of the site selection and characterization processes used in the US high level waste program are discussed. While much of the evolution of the site selection and characterization processes have been driven by the unique nature of the US program, these processes, which are well defined and documented, could be used as an initial basis for developing site screening, selection, and characterization programs in other countries. Thus, this paper focuses more on the process elements than the specific details of the US program.
In this paper the authors report on the direct bonding of compound semiconductors and silicon annealed at low temperatures (400 C) using hydrogen and nitrogen. Pressure and temperature relationships on interface characteristics were investigated with high resolution transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy. It was found that no morphology differences existed between hydrogen and nitrogen annealed samples. applying the N{sub 2} bonding process, 850nm bottom emitting vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs), were bonded to a transparent AlGaAs substrate. Finally, high anneal temperatures (up to 450 C) and shear stress values (> 1.6 MPa) were obtained for GaAs bonded to Si using a dry (plasma) activation technique.
CONTAIN is a reactor accident simulation code developed by Sandia National Laboratories under US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC) sponsorship to provide integrated analysis of containment phenomena, including those related to nuclear reactor containment loads and radiological source terms. The recently released CONTAIN 2.0 code version represents a significant advance in CONTAIN modeling capabilities over the last major code release (CONTAIN 1.12V). The new modeling capabilities are discussed here. The principal motivation for many of the recent model improvements has been to allow CONTAIN to model the special features in advanced light water reactor (ALWR) designs. The work done in this area is also summarized. In addition to the ALWR work, the USNRC is currently engaged in an effort to qualify CONTAIN for more general use in licensing, with the intent of supplementing or possibly replacing traditional licensing codes. To qualify the CONTAIN code for licensing applications, studies utilizing CONTAIN 2.0 are in progress. A number of results from this effort are presented in this paper to illustrate the code capabilities. In particular, CONTAIN calculations of the NUPEC M-8-1 and ISP-23 experiments and CVTR test {number_sign}3 are presented to illustrate (1) the ability of CONTAIN to model non-uniform gas density and/or temperature distributions, and (2) the relationship between such gas distributions and containment loads. CONTAIN and CONTEMPT predictions for a large break loss of coolant accident scenario in the San Onofre plant are also compared.
Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK), Helsinki, Finland and Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), working under the Finnish Support Program to IAEA Safeguards and the United States Department of Energy (DOE) funded International Remote Monitoring Program (Task FIN E 935), have undertaken a joint effort to demonstrate the use of remote monitoring for environmental air sampling and safeguards applications. The results of the task will be used by the IAEA to identify the feasibility, cost-effectiveness, reliability, advantages, and problems associated with remote environmental monitoring. An essential prerequisite for a reliable remote air sampling system is the protection of samples against tampering. Means must be developed to guarantee that the sampling itself has been performed as designed and the original samples are not substituted with samples produced with other equipment at another site. One such method is to label the samples with an unequivocal tag. In addition, the inspection personnel must have the capability to remotely monitor and access the automated environmental air sampling system through the use of various sensors and video imagery equipment. A unique aspect to this project is the network integration of remote monitoring equipment with a STUK radiation monitoring system. This integration will allow inspectors to remotely view air sampler radiation data and sensor/image data through separate software applications on the same review station. A sensor network and video system will be integrated with the SNL developed Modular Integrated Monitoring System (MIMS) to provide a comprehensive remote monitoring approach for safeguards purposes. This field trial system is being implemented through a multiphase approach for use by STUK, SNL, and for possible future use by the IAEA.
The present paper addresses the question: ``What are the general classes of uncertainty and error sources in complex, computational simulations?`` This is the first step of a two step process to develop a general methodology for quantitatively estimating the global modeling and simulation uncertainty in computational modeling and simulation. The second step is to develop a general mathematical procedure for representing, combining and propagating all of the individual sources through the simulation. The authors develop a comprehensive view of the general phases of modeling and simulation. The phases proposed are: conceptual modeling of the physical system, mathematical modeling of the system, discretization of the mathematical model, computer programming of the discrete model, numerical solution of the model, and interpretation of the results. This new view is built upon combining phases recognized in the disciplines of operations research and numerical solution methods for partial differential equations. The characteristics and activities of each of these phases is discussed in general, but examples are given for the fields of computational fluid dynamics and heat transfer. They argue that a clear distinction should be made between uncertainty and error that can arise in each of these phases. The present definitions for uncertainty and error are inadequate and. therefore, they propose comprehensive definitions for these terms. Specific classes of uncertainty and error sources are then defined that can occur in each phase of modeling and simulation. The numerical sources of error considered apply regardless of whether the discretization procedure is based on finite elements, finite volumes, or finite differences. To better explain the broad types of sources of uncertainty and error, and the utility of their categorization, they discuss a coupled-physics example simulation.
Tritium retention and removal are critical issues for the success of ITER or any DT fusion reactor. The Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor, TFTR, is the first fusion facility to afford the opportunity to study the tritium retention and removal over an extended period. In TFTR, tritium accumulates on all surfaces with line of sight to the plasma by codeposition of tritium with carbon. Measurements of both deuterium and tritium retention fractions have yielded retention between 0.2 and 0.6 of the injected fuel in the torus. Tritium has been successfully removed from TFTR by glow discharge cleaning and by air purges. The in-vessel inventory was reduced by a factor of 2, facilitating machine maintenance. In TFTR, the amount of dust recovered from the TFTR vacuum vessel has varied from several grams to a few kilograms.
The primary purpose of this LDRD was to identify and optimize materials as solid acid catalysts for the replacement of environmentally hazardous liquid acids such as H{sub 2}SO{sub 4} and HF which are used as catalysts in both the petroleum and chemical industries. Liquid acids have significant safety, environmental and engineering difficulties associated with their use in process chemistry. Special equipment/materials need to be used with liquid acids. Hydrofluoric acid poses unique safety problems due to it insipid attack on skin and tissue as well as its tendency to plume and travel long distances as a plume when it is released in the atmosphere. Therefore, any time a solid acid catalyst can be used to replace a liquid acid in a processes step, significant environmental, safety, and financial gains can be realized. The majority of work in this LDRD was performed on novel mixed metal phosphates which are a new solid acid catalyst material. Primarily the model reaction, 2-methyl-2-pentene isomerization, was used to determine acidity. These materials were tested for their activity, their deactivation and their stability. In addition, some of the phosphate materials were synthesized using templates in order to try to form a three dimensional network material from these phosphates. The amorphous sulfated zirconium-titanium phosphates were more acidic, as measured by olefin isomerization, than sulfated zirconia. However, they showed some of the same failings as sulfated zirconia in that they deactivated quickly and lost sulfur in a reducing atmosphere. Certain of the mixed metal phosphates, particularly tantalum-containing phosphates, showed strong acidity compared to sulfated zirconia as measured by olefin isomerization reaction.
