Sandia National Laboratories is a multiprogram engineering laboratory that serves the nation through the Department of Energy (DOE), both in its programs and those of other agencies. Major research and development responsibilities cover nuclear weapons, arms control, energy, environment and other areas of strategic importance to national security. The principal mission is to support national defense policies by ensuring that the nuclear weapon stockpile meets the highest standards of safety, security, control and military performance. In May of 1968, the Albuquerque Office of DOE (then AEC) assigned the Quality Assurance function to Sandia Laboratories on all products for which Sandia has design responsibility. The Sandia Quality Improvement Plan presents a Quality Management System that integrates the Sandia quality policies and several independent improvement processes into a cohesive structure. This structure guides day-to-day operations toward strategic objectives. The Sandia Quality Policy provides the underlying principles for the management of our research and engineering efforts and establishes our customers as the central focus of our Sandia quality improvement efforts. Operationally, these efforts are centered around quality improvement processes based on good management practices developed by AT T, and progress is measured against the Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award criteria. Developing a comprehensive plan based on these processes requires that we determine where we are, where we want to be, and how we measure our progress. 1 fig. (JF)
A review of the objectives and accomplishments of the Computational Benchmark Problem Committee (CBPC) of the American Nuclear Society Mathematics and Computation Division is presented. A list of the benchmark problems compiled by the CBPC and published by the Argonne Code Center is included, along with a list of the problems currently under review. A brief discussion of the challenge of benchmarking in the current environment of rapidly evolving computing technology is given. 20 refs., 3 tabs.
The Distant Light Program sponsored by the Defense Nuclear Agency (RAEE) is directed toward understanding the response of electronic systems to Source Region EMP (SREMP) and will result in the development of proven system hardening and validation techniques for SREMP. This program relies very strongly on testing in above ground test (AGT) simulators such as the HERMES III gamma ray simulator at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico. This paper describes theoretical and experimental efforts aimed at understanding the gamma ray flux produced by HERMES III in terms of its time dependence, spatial variation and spectrum. As part of this characterization, the calibration of various measuring devices must be considered. This paper describes the progress made in characterizing the HERMES III radiation output through December of 1990.
Lithium batteries have been used in a variety of applications for a number of years. As their use continues to grow, particularly in the consumer market, a greater emphasis needs to be placed on safety and reliability. There is a useful technique which can help to design cells and batteries having a greater degree of safety and higher reliability. This technique, known as fault tree analysis, can also be useful in determining the cause of unsafe behavior and poor reliability in existing designs.
During 1990, Sandia National Laboratories initiated an advanced lead-acid battery development program supported by the US Department of Energy's Office of Energy Management. The goal is to develop a low maintenance, cost effective battery by the mid- to late 1990's that is tailored to a variety of electric utility applications. Several parallel activities are being pursued to achieve this goal. One activity seeks to quantify the economic benefits of battery storage for specific cases in candidate utility systems and identify opportunities for field demonstration of battery systems at electric utility and utility customer sites. Such demonstrations will not only generate valuable operating experience data, but will also help in building user confidence in battery storage systems. Other activities concentrate on cell- and battery-level research and development aimed at overcoming shortcomings in existing technologies, such as Valve-Regulated Lead-Acid (VRLA), or, sealed lead-acid batteries.
This study was undertaken in order to document and analyze the unique set of data on subsurface fracture characteristics, especially spacing, provided by the US Department of Energy's Slant Hole Completion Test well (SHCT-1) in the Piceance Basin, Colorado. Two hundred thirty-six (236) ft (71.9 m) of slant core and 115 ft (35.1 m) of horizontal core show irregular, but remarkably close, spacings for 72 natural fractures cored in sandstone reservoirs of the Mesaverde Group. Over 4200 ft (1280 m) of vertical core (containing 275 fractures) from the vertical Multiwell Experiment wells at the same location provide valuable information on fracture orientation, termination, and height, but only data from the SHCT-1 core allow calculations of relative fracture spacing. Within the 162-ft (49-m) thick zone of overlapping core from the vertical and deviated wellbores, only one fracture is present in vertical core whereas 52 fractures occur in the equivalent SHCT-1 core. The irregular distribution of regional-type fractures in these heterogeneous reservoirs suggests that measurements of average fracture spacing'' are of questionable value as direct input parameters into reservoir engineering models. Rather, deviated core provides data on the relative degree of fracturing, and confirms that cross fractures can be rare in the subsurface. 13 refs., 11 figs.
Current computer network protocols are very robust and capable of being used in a variety of different environments. Typically, the implementations of these protocols come to the user with preset parameters that provide reasonable performance for low delay- bandwidth product environments with low error rates, but these defaults do not necessarily provide optimal performance for high delay-bandwidth, high error rate environments. To provide optimal performance from the user's perspective, which is application to application, all equivalent layers of the protocol must be tuned. The key to tuning protocols is reducing idle time on the links caused by various protocol layers waiting for acknowledgments. The circuit bandwidth, propagation delay, error rate, number of outstanding packets, buffer length, number of buffers, and buffer size can all affect the observed idle time. Experiments have been conducted on test bed systems, and on live satellite and terrestrial circuits. Observations from these experiments led the authors to draw conclusions about the locations of common bottlenecks. Various aspects of network tuning and certain specific issues relating to the tuning of three protocols (DECnet, TCP/IP, NETEX) over various media types (point-to-point and broadcast) under several different conditions (terrestrial and satellite) are examined in this paper. Also described are the lessons learned about protocol and network tuning. 3 refs., 2 tabs.
A comparison of the short-transverse SCC behavior of 2090 in pH 5.5 Cl{sup {minus}} and alkaline CO{sub 3}{sup 2 {minus}}/Cl{sup {minus}} solutions using a static load smooth bar SCC technique was made. In the alkaline CO{sub 3}{sup 2 {minus}}/Cl{sup {minus}} solutions, E{sub br} for the {alpha}-Al matrix phase was 0.130 V more positive than the E{sub br} of the subgrain boundary T{sub 1} phase. In this environment, stress corrosion cracking test specimens subjected to potentials in the window defined by the two breakaway potentials failed along an intersubgranular path in less than an hour. In the Cl{sup {minus}} environment, the E{sub br} values for the two phases were nearly equal and this rapid SCC condition could not be satisfied; accordingly SCC failures were not observed. Rapid SCC failure of 2090 in CO{sub 3}{sup 2 {minus}}/Cl{sup {minus}} in our static load, constant immersion experiments appear to be related to recently reported pre-exposure embrittlement'' failures induced by immersing stressed specimens removed into ambient laboratory air after immersion in aerated NaCl solution for 7 days. In those experiments, specimens failed in less than 24 hours after removal from solution. Our polarization experiments have shown that the corrosion behavior of T{sub 1}, CO{sub 3}{sup 2 {minus}}/Cl{sup {minus}} environments, but the {alpha}-Al phase crack walls, is rapidly passivated. X-ray diffraction of the films which formed in simulated crevices suggests that this passivating film belongs to a class of compounds known as hydrotalcites.
Vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT) technology in the United States started in the early 1970s directly from the original work in Canada. The close, and very productive relationships among laboratories, universities and industry have continued since that time. This paper briefly discusses the significant technical progress and rather dramatic programmatic changes that have occurred in the past 18 to 24 months on the US side of the border. 20 refs., 14 figs.
Numerous small-scale in situ seal experiments have been emplaced in boreholes up to 38 in. in diameter at the WIPP. Seal materials include expansive salt concrete, bentonite, and crushed salt. Emplacement techniques stressed conventional technology and the use of available site personnel. Preliminary evaluation of the performance of these seals has been completed by using structural data from embedded instrumentation and fluid flow data from gas and brine flow measurements. Preliminary results suggest that submicrodarcy permeabilities can be obtained using these materials and that structural performance is satisfactory. 17 refs., 3 figs., 1 tab.
This paper describes a formal process for selecting, from a diverse set of proposed waste minimization activities, those activities that provide the greatest benefit to DOE. A methodology for evaluating and prioritizing proposals was developed to illustrate how the selection process works and what types of data are required to characterize waste minimization activities. It is clearly impossible to remove all aspects of subjective judgment from the proposal selection process. With this important consideration in mind, the methodology presented is put forth to enhance, not replace, the traditional DOE decision-making process. With relatively minor refinements, this methodology can be immediately useful to DOE Environmental Restoration and Waste Management and Defense Program organizations in preparing, evaluating, and prioritizing waste minimization proposals. 7 refs., 1 tab., 2 figs.
Our primary purpose in this test is to provide a brief general description of a few applications of various electrophoretic systems which have been investigated and have found use in various coating applications at Sandia National Laboratories. Both organic and inorganic suspensions in aqueous and non-aqueous media have been considered in these studies. Applications include high voltage insulating dielectrics, thermally conductive/electrically insulating films, adherent lubricating films, uniform photoresist films, glass coatings, and fissile uranium oxide/carbon composite films for studies of nuclear powered lasers. More recently, we have become interested in the beneficial environmental aspects of being able to provide protective polymer coatings which reduce or minimize the use of organic solvents required by traditional spray coat processes. Important practical factors which relate to film uniformity, adhesion, and composition are related to unique coating or plating capabilities and applications. 6 refs., 2 figs., 1 tab.
System dynamicists frequently encounter signals they interpret as realizations of normal random processes. To simulate these analytically and in the laboratory they use methods that yield approximately normal random signals. The traditional digital methods for generating such signals have been developed during the past 25 years. During the same period of time much development has been done in the theory of chaotic processes. The conditions under which chaos occurs have been studied, and several measures of the nature of chaotic processes have been developed. Some of the measures used to characterize the nature of dynamic system motions are common to the study of both random vibrations and chaotic processes. This paper considers chaotic processes and random vibrations. It shows contrasts between the two and situations where they are indistinguishable. The applicability of the Central Limit Theorem to chaotic processes is demonstrated. 12 refs., 8 figs.
A knowledge of the short term creep rupture behavior of Tantalum alloy T-111 is necessary to predict device integrity in the heat source section of Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators (RTG's) at the end of service life, in the event of a fuel fire. High pressures exist in RTG's near the end of service life, these are caused by gas generation resulting from radioactive decay of the nuclear fuel. The internal pressure exerts a significant hoop stress on the T-111 alloy structural containment member. This paper analyses the short term creep behavior (rupture times up to {approximately}2 {times} 10{sup 3} hrs.) of cold worked (CW) T-111 alloy, using the existing data of Stephenson (1967). Corellations for the time to rupture, time to 1% strain and minimum creep rate have been obtained from this data using multivariable linear regression analysis. These results are compared to other short term rupture data for T-111 alloy. Finally, at the stress/temperature levels relevant to the RTG fuel fire scenario near the end of service life, the rupture time correlation for T-111 alloy predicts a rupture time of approximately 100 hrs. 10 refs., 3 figs., 1 tab.
Before the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) may begin service as the United States' first repository for the permanent disposal of transuranic (TRU) radioactive waste, the Department of Energy (DOE) must establish compliance with applicable environmental and safety regulations. This paper addresses one major regulation, the United States Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Environmental Radiation Protection Standards for Management and Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel, High-Level and Transuranic Radioactive Wastes, hereafter referred to as the Standard. The paper does not address compliance with other regulations. This paper summarizes Sandia National Laboratories' (SNL) early-1990 understanding of the WIPP Project's ability to comply with the long-term performance requirements set by Subpart B of the Standard, the Environmental Standards for Disposal. It also reviews the current understanding of questions critically affecting compliance and outlines the options available to assure that radionuclide releases will remain within regulatory limits. 10 refs., 3 figs.
An advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar Motion Compensation System has been developed by Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). The system includes a miniaturized high accuracy ring laser gyro inertial measurement unit, a three axis gimbal pointing and stabilization assembly, a differential Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation aiding system, and a pilot guidance system. The system provides several improvements over previous SNL motion compensation systems and is capable of antenna stabilization to less than 0.01 degrees RMS and absolute position measurement to less than 5.0 meters RMS. These accuracies have been demonstrated in recent flight testing aboard a DHC-6-300 Twin Otter'' aircraft.
We are studying the kinetics of singlet oxygen ({sup 1}{Delta}{sub g}O{sub 2}) in solid polymers by monitoring its phosphorescence in time-resolved experiments. In macromolecular matrices where {sup 1}{Delta}{sub g}O{sub 2} is produced by energy transfer from a photosensitizer, {sup 1}{Delta}{sub g}O{sub 2} lifetimes can be obtained by deconvoluting the {sup 1}{Delta}{sub g}O{sub 2} sensitizer kinetics from the {sup 1}{Delta}{sub g}O{sub 2} phosphorescence signal. The sensitizer kinetics can be obtained in a flash absorption experiment. These time-resolved techniques have been utilized to examine the interaction of {sup 1}{Delta}{sub g}O{sub 2} in polymers with two types of additives: (1) molecules capable of undergoing chemical reactions with {sup 1}{Delta}{sub g}O{sub 2} (reactive quenchers) and (2) molecules capable of quenching {sup 1}{Delta}{sub g}O{sub 2} to its ground triplet state (physical quenchers). From this study we have determined directly that significant reactive and physical quenching of {sup 1}{Delta}{sub g}O{sub 2} are possible in a solid polymer. The polymer matrix greatly reduces the quenching rate of a very efficient quencher and slightly elevates the quenching rate of inefficient quenchers, as compared with rates determined in analogous liquids. This compressed range of quenching efficiencies has implications for understanding photodegradation and stabilization of polymers. 12 refs., 3 figs., 1 tab.
Neutron spin-echo spectroscopy is used to study the topology of aerogels. Topology or connectivity is varied through precursor chemistry and thermal annealing. Topology is characterized using the concept of fractons (the vibrational excitations of a fractal network). A qualitative difference is observed in the spectrum of polymeric vs colloidal aerogels, the latter showing a peak in the density of vibrational states. For colloidal aerogels whose structure appears to arise from phase separation in the solution precursor, low-energy excitations were only observed in the lowest density material studied. Finally, a transition from fractal to colloidal microstructure was observed during the sintering of polymeric aerogels. This transformation revealed itself as a transition from a fracton-like to a peaked density of states function. 23 refs., 7 figs.
Detailed geometric models have been used within a graphical simulation environment to study transportation cask facility design and to perform design and analyses of robotic systems for handling of nuclear waste. The models form the basis for a robot control environment which provides safety, flexibility, and reliability for operations which span the spectrum from autonomous control to tasks requiring direct human intervention.
This paper provides a summary and status report for two ongoing experimental programs. The purpose of each program is to determine the behavior of certain components of the containment pressure boundary when subjected to severe accident conditions. The first program is investigating the effect of various parameters on tearing of the steel liner in reinforced concrete containments. The second will attempt to determine if worst-case containment loading conditions are capable of causing leakage through piping penetration bellows. The liner test program is almost complete; however, the bellows tests have not yet begun. Therefore, the emphasis of the paper is on the liner experiments. The research activities described herein are a part of the Containment Integrity Programs, which are managed by Sandia National Laboratories for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
A Science Advisor Program has been established at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) for the long term augmentation of math and science instruction in New Mexico schools. Volunteer SNL engineers and scientists team with the faculty of participating schools to enhance the teachers' abilities to capture and hold the student's scientific imagination and develop their scientific skills. This is done primarily through providing laboratory resources, training the teachers how to use those resources, and advising how to obtain them in the future. In its first year, over 140 advisors teamed with 132 schools, for average weekly contact with 500 teachers and 10,000 students. Surveys indicate a general rise in frequency and quality of hands-on science instruction, as well as teacher and student attitudes. An expanded evaluation is planned for subsequent years.
The mechanical strength of silicon, in combination with the sophisticated silicon wafer processing techniques developed to produce silicon integrated circuits, makes it an ideal candidate for the development of a microelectromechanical device technology. We describe a new electrochemical processing technique based on porous silicon that can produce surface and buried insulators, conductors, and sacrificial layers required for sensor, micromotor, and membrane fabrication. 4 refs., 2 figs.
This paper discusses the development of the software for Source Term Analyses for Containment Evaluations (STACE). This software is being developed for the Source Term Technical Issue Resolution Program at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) in support of the Cask Systems Development Program (CSDP) that is sponsored by the US Department of Energy's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM). STACE is a system of computer codes operating under a graphics-based controller that performs source term analysis of spent fuel transport casks. Output from STACE includes the cladding breach probability, the releasable radionuclide concentrations, and maximum permissible gas flow rates past the closure seals. STACE is anticipated being used for on- and off-site situations related to the handling and transport of spent fuel casks.
A methodology for determining the probability spent-fuel cladding breach due to normal and accident class B cask transport conditions is introduced. This technique uses deterministic stress analysis results as well as probabilistic cladding material properties, initial flaws, and breach criteria. Best estimates are presented for the probability distributions of irradiated Zircaloy properties such as ductility and fracture toughness, and for fuel rod initial conditions such as manufacturing flaws and PCI part-wall cracks. Example analyses are used to illustrate the implementation of this methodology for a BWR (GE 7 {times} 7) and a PWR (B W 15 {times} 15) assembly. The cladding breach probabilities for each assembly are tabulated for regulatory normal and accident transport conditions including fire.
Residual stress states that are a direct result of fabrication and processing are known to exist inside wound capacitors. Considerable insights into the nature of these mechanical and thermomechanical stress states have been gained through the application of analytical prediction capabilities that have been developed for that purpose. For example, analysis shows where roll slip may occur in the capacitor due to steep wound tension gradients or low radial pressures, and how the tension loss of individual plies is distributed throughout the capacitor. Significant tension loss differences between dielectric and conducting plies has also been predicted, with conducting plies not only losing their initial winding tension, but actually experiencing a net compressive value of wound tension. While the results of these predictions are both quantitative and qualitative, only qualitative verification has been obtained thus far, such as visual observation of wrinkled conducting plies discovered in unwrapped capacitors. The purpose of this paper is to describe two experimental activities that were undertaken to support the analytical modeling effort and provide quantitative, experimental verification of some of the analysis predictions.
Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) was used to investigate the adsorption and thermally-induced decomposition of copper (I) {beta}-diketonate precursors of the type (hfac)CuL, where hfac is the hexafluoroacetylacetonate bidentate ligand and L is trimethylphosphine or 1,5-cyclooctadiene. The (hfac)CuPMe{sub 3} precursor desorbs from the surface at very low temperatures whereas the (hfac)Cu(1,5-COD) dissociates on adsorption, liberating 1,5-COD and leaving a surface(hfac)Cu complex which can subsequently disproportionate. Evidence is provided for hydrogen-bonding between the hfac ligand and the surface silanols for (hfac)CuPMe{sub 3}, but not for (hfac)Cu(1,5-COD). These results are consistent with the selective behavior of these precursors for copper deposition and suggest that the selectivity of the (hfac)CuPMe{sub 3} and (hfac)Cu(1, 5-COD) precursors may be due to the ability of the hfac ligand to hydrogen bond to the surface silanol groups.
The concept of allowing reactivity credit for the transmuted state of spent fuel offers both economic and risk incentives. This paper presents a general overview of the technical work being performed in support of the US Department of Energy (DOE) program to resolve issues related to the implementation of burnup credit. An analysis methodology is presented along with information representing the validation of the method against available experimental data. The experimental data that are applicable to burnup credit include chemical assay data for the validation of the isotopic prediction models, fresh fuel critical experiments for the validation of criticality calculations for various casks geometries, and reactor restart critical data to validate criticality calculations with spent fuel. The methodology has been specifically developed to be simple and generally applicable, therefore giving rise to uncertainties or sensitivities which are identified and quantified in terms of a percent bias in k{sub eff}. Implementation issues affecting licensing requirements and operational procedures are discussed briefly.
The US Department of Energy is sponsoring a research effort through Sandia National Laboratories and the University of Missour-Rolla to test a correlation for the upper shelf energy (USE) values obtained from the impact testing of subsize Charpy V-notch specimens to those obtained from the testing of full size samples. The program involves the impact testing of unirradiated and irradiated full, half, and third size Charpy V-notch specimens. To verify the applicability of the correlation on LWR materials unirradiated and irradiated full, half, and third size Charpy V-notch specimens of a commercial pressure vessel steel (ASTM A533 Grade B) will be tested. This paper will provide details of the program and present results obtained from the application of the developed correlation methodology to the impact testing of the unirradiated full, half, and third size A533 Grade B Charpy V-notch specimens.
Two controllers are developed to provide attitude control of a spinning rocket that has a thrust vectoring capability. The first controller has a single-input/single-output design that ignores the gyroscopic coupling between the control channels. The second controller has a multi-input/multi-output structure that is specifically intended to account for the gyroscopic coupling effects. A performance comparison between the two approached is conducted for a range of roll rates. Each controller is tested for the ability to track step commands, and for the amount of coupling impurity. Both controllers are developed via a linear-quadratic-regulator synthesis procedure, which is motivated by the multi-input/multi-output nature of second controller. Time responses and a singular value analysis are used to evaluate controller performance. This paper describes the development and comparison of two controllers that are designed to provide attitude control of a spinning rocket that is equipped with thrust vector control. 12 refs., 13 figs., 2 tabs.
The theoretical basis for the relationship between moisture content and light transmission (FFM) is developed, and shown to correspond well to the observed behavior. A calibration procedure for FFM based on the relationship between moisture content and matric potential is presented and tested. Means of expanding the range of sensitivity of the FFM are discussed.
Vawter, G.A.; Myers, D.R.; Brennan, T.M.; Hammons, B.E.
We report dramatic improvements to the implanted-planar buried-heterostructure graded-index separate confinement heterostructure (IPBH-GRINSCH) laser in (AlGa)As/GaAs which produces low threshold current, continuous-wave operation. Our process features significantly reduced fabrication complexity of high quality, index-guided laser diodes compared to regrowth techniques and, in contrast to diffusion-induced disordering, allows creation of self-aligned, buried, blocking junctions by ion implantation. The improved single-stripe IPBH-GRINSCH lasers exhibit 39 mA threshold current, cw operation.
Proceedings - Electronic Components and Technology Conference
Frear, D.R.
Thermomechanical fatigue tests were performed on two near-eutectic Sn-Pb solder alloys, 60Sn-40Pb and 62Sn-36Pb-2Ag, to examine the effect silver additions have on solder joints. The cyclic load was found to have consistent trends between the two silver alloys (for given amounts of total strain and strain rates). It was found that a decreasing strain rate increased the life of both alloys equally in thermomechanical fatigue. At slower strain rates, the dislocation substructure recovers faster than it work-hardens, which tends to minimize subsequent recrystallization and heterogeneous coarsening of the solder joint. The microstructure of 62Sn-36Pb-2Ag contained large whisker-like Ag3Sn precipitates that nucleate and grow out from the Cu6Sn5 interfacial intermetallics. At this size, the Ag3Sn precipitates have little effect on the deformation behavior of the solder. The intermetallics are not detrimental in that they do not prematurely crack, nor are they beneficial because they are too large to stabilize the microstructure. It does not appear, from a microstructural viewpoint, that adding silver to near-eutectic Sn-Pb has any significant effect on improving the thermomechanical fatigue behavior.
Shock and unloading experiments on quartz and silicate rocks indicate that the release adiabats lie below the Hugoniot. The hysteresis and energy dissipation inherent in this situation have important wave propagation implications. On loading, there is a pressure-induced transition to the stishovite phase which does not occur under conditions of thermodynamic equilibrium, in that the Hugoniot passes through a metastable mixed-phase region for several tens of GPa. One interpretation of the unloading data is that the transition is not reversible, and the phase mixture remains frozen on unloading. However, material strength may also play a role. A complete thermodynamically consistent equation of state which includes phase transitions and strength effects has been developed and used to examine shock and release data on quartz and silicate rocks in order to quantify the kinetics of the reverse transition and to separate the hysteretic effects due to reverse phase transition kinetics from those due to material strength. The model allows quantitative determination of the effect of reverse transition kinetics on ground shock propagation in silicate materials.
Severe nuclear reactor accidents - accidents involving the melting of the reactor core - dominate the residual risk associated with the use of nuclear power. The uninterrupted progression of a severe reactor accident is expected to lead to the expulsion of core debris into the reactor containment. Many safety-significant phenomena may be hypothesized to occur when core debris is expelled from the reactor coolant system. The exact nature of these events depends on whether or not the coolant system is pressurized at the time of melt expulsion and whether or not expulsion is into water. Regardless of what transient events are associated with the initial expulsion of core debris from the reactor coolant system, a protracted period of core debris interactions with the structural concrete of the reactor is expected in most analyses of severe reactor accidents.
Results for Cr/Fe/Ni films are reported, showing that the simulation of electron scattering in solids by Monte Carlo techniques is well suited to parallel computation. Significant gains in computation time are realized and make explicit calculation of convoluted composition profiles possible. Computation time is sufficiently shortened to enable such simulations to be used in a real-time experimental environment. Because such simulations break naturally into independent computational pieces that require little intercommunication, they are ideal candidates for fast parallel implementation on a MIMD machine such as the NCUBE 2. Similar performance gains should be possible for other kinds of Monte Carlo transport simulations.
The history and current status of dish-Stirling receiver development are presented and discussed. The technical challenges to be addressed by the dish-Stirling community and the future plans at Sandia National Laboratories are outlined. Stirling tube and reflux solar receiver technologies are discussed. Pool-boiler receiver technology has been successfully tested and a number of promising heat-pipe receiver designs are very close to hardware demonstrations. The high-efficiency potential of reflux receivers has been demonstrated. However, many of the technical challenges that led to the change from tube to reflux receivers-especially life and reliability, systems integration, and hybridization-are just beginning to be addressed by the dish-Stirling community.
Superconducting crystals of La2CuO4+x prepared by high-pressure oxygenation have been analyzed by Raman spectroscopy. A direct comparison of the role of excess oxygen was made by examining the same crystals with and without excess oxygen. La2CuO4+x, like non-superconducting La2CuO4.0, is found to have a soft phonon that derives an orthorhombic to tetragonal phase transition. In both its tetragonal and orthorhombic forms, La2CuO4+x has a phonon peak at 630 cm-1 that is absent in La2CuO4.0. The frequency of this peak is suggestive of a peroxide-like species in La2CuO4+x. Surprisingly, the Ag phonons of La2CuO4.0 and La2CuO4+x occur at essentially the same frequency. While La2CuO4.0 has a well-defined peak from double-magnon scattering, no well-defined double-magnon scattering is observed in La2CuO4+x, even in its phase-separated form.
A procedure for updating estimates of an object's pose using information from one or more monocular images is presented. Features in monocular images are assigned correspondence with modeled three-dimensional (3-D) features based on estimated object position. An improved position estimate is computed based on the feature correspondence. The method accommodates partial occlusion or contact among objects. Features need not appear in multiple views to be used for estimation. Results from this system are presented which demonstrate the location of multiple objects within approximately 0.1 in. in translation and 2° in rotation.
A general-purpose robotic grasping system for use in unstructured environments is described. Using computer vision and a compact set of heuristics, the system automatically generates the robot arm and hand motions required for grasping an unmodeled object. The utility of such a system is most evident in environments where the robot will have to grasp and manipulate a variety of unknown objects, but where many of the manipulation tasks may be relatively simple. Examples of such domains are planetary exploration and astronaut assistance, undersea salvage and rescue, and nuclear waste site clean-up. A two-stage model of grasping is described. Stage one is an orientation of the hand and wrist and a ballistic reach toward the object; stage two is hand preshaping and adjustment. Visual features are first extracted from the unmodeled object. These features and their relations are used by an expert system to generate a set of valid reaches/grasps for the object. These grasps are then used in driving the robot hand and arm to bring the fingers into contact with the object in the desired configuration.
A method is described for obtaining the boundary equations of configuration obstacles for stick-figure manipulators in three-dimensional environments. Polyhedral obstacles are represented as a collection of planar triangular patches, and the intersection conditions between a line segment and a triangular patch are used to derive boundary equations. It is shown that the boundary equation for the nth joint variable can be solved explicitly in terms of the 0th, 1st, ..., (n-1)th joint variables. The expressions can be used to compute configuration obstacles or to analyze the geometry of contacts between manipulators and obstacles.
The experimental results of model-based and sensor-based control strategies for a two-link, flexible, planar robot arm are analyzed. Off-line optimization determines a minimum-time, straight-line tip trajectory which stays within the torque constraints of the motors and ends in a quiescent state, i.e., no vibrational transients. An efficient finite-element model is used in the optimization to approximate the flexible arm dynamics. Control schemes tested include an open-loop torque profile, a closed-loop proportional-derivative (PD) joint controller, and a feedforward controller. This last scheme uses the torque profile created from the optimization, along with PD feedback of the joint angles and proportional feedback of the strain gages, to correct for errors in the model. The results show that the best performance is achieved with this feedforward approach.
The use of one or more monocular images to estimate the three-dimensional position of objects is investigated. The identities of the objects are known, and geometric models are assumed to be available. Linear features extracted from sensor data are interpreted as corresponding with model features by search of an interpretation tree built using prior position estimates. Object positions are updated by maximum-likelihood estimation. Position estimation results from an implemented system are presented, demonstrating the location of partially occluded objects in a cluttered scene.
On-line chemical monitoring systems can help ensure safe, environmentally sound operation of industrial processes using hazardous chemicals. Using polymer-coated surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensors, we have demonstrated monitors that are capable of detecting dilute concentrations of volatile organic species. Using changes in both wave velocity and wave attenuation, the identity and concentration of an isolated chemical species can be determined. A polysiloxane coating has been found to provide unique properties for monitoring chlorinated hydrocarbons (CHCs) such as trichloroethylene: good discrimination of CHCs from most other organic species, rapid and reversible sensor response, and low detection limits. Using this technology, a portable acoustic wave sensor (PAWS) system has been constructed.
Quantitative analysis routines based on the Bence-Albee, the ZAF, and the {Phi}({rho}Z) techniques are available for the TASK8 microprobe operating system. All of the routines are able to be run from within TASK8 or as stand alone programs. For quick analyses, energy dispersive x-ray data can be collected and processed by running the Tracor standardless quantitative (SQ) routine from within TASK8. For normal analyses, data are collected via the wavelength spectrometers. The procedures and routines described in this document permit the interactive collection and processing of data via joystick control or the automatic collection and processing of data from up to seven line traces or an essentially unlimited number of preselected points. 7 refs., 5 figs., 1 tab.
Sandia National Laboratories operates the Primary Standards Laboratory (PSL) for the Department of Energy, Albuquerque Operations Office (DOE/AL). This report summarizes metrology activities that received emphasis in the first half of 1990 and provides information pertinent to the operation of the DOE/AL system-wide Standards and Calibration Program.
Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, has been designated as Lead Center for the Exploratory Battery Technology Development and Testing Project, which is sponsored by the US Department of Energy's Office of Energy Storage and Distribution. In this capacity, Sandia is responsible for the engineering development of advanced rechargeable batteries for both mobile and stationary energy storage applications. This report details the technical achievements realized in pursuit of the Lead Center's goals during calendar year 1989. 4 refs., 84 figs., 18 tabs.
This report describes some field tests of the CUBIC CR-100 distance measuring equipment. The distance measurements depend on the refractivity of the atmospheric. The CR-100 uses 320 for the refractivity. For the Albuquerque area on a clear spring day, 220 is a more realistic value for refractivity. This difference of 100 between the actual and assumed refractivities causes the range error to accumulate at the rate of 1 meter per 10,000 meters of range. For example, a difference of 100 in refractivity forces the measured range to contain an error of 5 meters for a 50,000 meter baseline. 12 figs.
The Explosive Components Facility (ECF) is to be a new major facility in the Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) Weapons Program. The ECF is a self-contained, secure site on SNL property and is surrounded by Kirtland Air Force Base which is located 6-1/2 miles east of downtown Albuquerque, New Mexico. The ECF will be dedicated to research, development, and testing of detonators, neutron generators, batteries, explosives, and other weapon components. It will have capabilities for conducting explosive test fires, gas gun testing, physical analyses, chemical analyses, electrical testing and ancillary explosive storage in magazines. The ECF complex is composed of a building covering an area of approximately 91,000 square feet, six exterior explosive service magazines and a remote test cell. Approximately 50% of the building space will be devoted to highly specialized laboratory and test areas, the other 50% of the building is considered nonhazardous. Critical to the laboratory and test areas are the blast-structural design consideration and operational considerations, particularly those concerning personnel access control, safety and environmental protection. This area will be decoupled from the rest of the building to the extent that routine tests will not be heard or felt in the administrative area of the building. While the ECF is designed in accordance with the DOE Explosives Safety Manual to mitigate any off-site blast effects, potential injuries or death to the ECF staff may result from an accidental detonation of explosive material within the facility. Therefore, reducing the risk of exposing operation personnel to hazardous and energetic material is paramount in the design of the ECF.
This report describes the Phase 1 drilling operations for the Magma Energy Exploratory Well near Mammoth Lakes, California. An important part of the Department of Energy's Magma Energy Program, this well is designed to reach an ultimate depth of 20,000 feet or a bottomhole temperature of 500{degree}C, whichever comes first. There will be four drilling phases, at least a year apart, with scientific investigations in the borehole between the drilling intervals. Phase 1 of this project resulted in a 20 inch cased hole to 2558 feet, with 185 feet of coring beyond that. This document comprises a narrative of the daily activities, copies of the daily mud and lithologic reports, time breakdowns of rig activities, inventories of lost circulation materials, temperature logs of the cored hole, and a strip chart mud log. 2 figs.