Publications

Three concepts to measure incident flux (1) relative, real-time power measurement, (2) flux mapping and incident power measurement, and (3) real-time flux mapping) and two concepts to measure receiver surface temperatures low and high resolution temperature measurements) on an external central receiver are discussed along with the potential and shortcomings of these concepts to make the desired measurements and the uncertainties associated with the measurements caused by atmospheric and surface property variations. These concepts can aid in the operation and evaluation of the receiver and plant. Tests have shown that the incident flux distribution on a surface can be mapped out using a fixed, narrow white target and a CCD camera system by recording the images of the beam as it is passed over the target and by building a composite image. Tests with the infrared cameras have shown they are extremely valuable tools in determining temperature profiles during startup of the receiver and throughout operation. This paper describes each concept in detail along with the status of testing to determine the feasibility of these concepts.

The calculated valence charge density of the recently synthesized NaPd{sub 3}H{sub 2} compound is compared with that of palladium hydride, PdH, from which it can be derived.

Use of lead-indium solders in microelectronics packaging has increased over the last decade. Increased usage is due to improved properties, such as greater thermo-mechanical fatigue resistance, lower intermetallic formation rates with base metallizations, such as copper, and lower reflow temperatures. However, search of literature reveals no comprehensive studies on phase equilibrium relations between copper metal and lead-indium solder. Our effort involves a combination of experimental data acquisition and computer modeling to obtain the Cu-In-Pb ternary phase diagram. Isotherms and isopleths of interest at low temperatures are achieved by means of differential scanning calorimetry and electron probe microanalysis. Thermodynamic models of these sections served as a guide for efficient experimentation.

Nitrided gate oxides have been fabricated by furnace oxidation in N{sub 2}O with and without prior oxidation in O{sub 2}. SIMS nitrogen profiles show a sharp peak at the Si-insulator interface for both processes. Improved breakdown characteristics and reduced oxide damage after irradiation and charge injection are obtained.

The role of net positive oxide trapped charge and surface recombination velocity on excess base current in BJTs is identified. The effects of the two types of damage can be detected by plotting the excess base current versus base-emitter voltage. Differences and similarities between ionizing-radiation-induced and hot electron-induced degradation are discussed.

Short communication

The inertial confinement fusion (ICF) program at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) is directed toward validating light ions as an efficient driver for ICF defense and energy applications. The light ion laboratory microfusion facility (LMF) is envisioned as a facility in which high gain ICF targets could be developed and utilized in defense-related experiments. The relevance of LMF technology to eventual inertial fusion energy (IFE) applications is assessed via a comparison of LMF technologies with those projected in the Light Ion Beam Reactor Assessment (LIBRA) conceptual reactor design study.

This paper summarizes the results of a study performed by the US and Germany to assess the technical and economic potential of central receiver power plants and to identify the necessary research and development (R&D) activities required to reach demonstration and commercialization. Second generation power plant designs, employing molten-salt and volumetric-air receivers, were assessed at the size of 30 and 100 MWe. The study developed a common guideline and used data from previous system tests and studies. The levelized-energy costs for the second generation plants were estimated and found to be competitive with costs from fossil-fueled power plants. Potential for further cost reductions exists if technical improvements can be introduced successfully in the long term. Additionally, the study presents results of plant reliability and uncertainty analyses. Mid- and long-term technical potentials are described, as well as recommendations for the R&D activities needed to reach the goal of large-scale commercialization. The results of this study have already helped direct research in the US and Europe. For example, the favorable potential for these technologies has led to the Solar Two molten-salt project in the US and the TSA volumetric receiver test in Spain. In addition, early analysis conducted within this study indicated that an advanced thermal storage medium was necessary to achieve favorable economics for the air plant. This led to the design of the thermal storage system currently being tested in Spain. In summary, each of the investigated receiver technologies has mid- and long-term potential for improving plant performance and reducing capital and energy costs (resulting in less than 10 cts/kWh given excellent insolation conditions) in an environmentally safe way and largely independent of fossil-fuel prices.

We have developed a novel molecular beam mass spectrometry technique that can quantitatively analyze the gas-phase composition in a CVD reactor. The technique simultaneously monitors a wide variety of radical and stable species, and their concentrations can be determined with sensitivities approaching 1 ppM. Measurements performed in a diamond deposition system have given us keen insights into the important phenomena that affect the growth environment. This paper first discusses the primary gas sampling design issues. In the second part, the details of the experimental results and their implications will be described.

Hydrotalcite coatings on aluminum alloys are being developed for corrosion protection of aluminum in aggressive saline environments. Coating bath composition, surface pretreatment, and alloying elements in aluminum all influence the performance of these coatings during salt spray testing. The coating bath, comprised of lithium carbonate, requires aging by dissolution of aluminum into the bath in order to grow corrosion resistant coatings. Coatings formed in non- aged baths do not perform well in salt spray testing. The alloying elements in aluminum alloys, especially copper, influence the coating growth and formation leading to thin coatings. The effect of the alloy elements is to limit the supply of aluminum to the coating/electrolyte interface and hinder growth of hydrotalcite upon aluminum alloys.

Adsorption/desorption were studied using combined surface analytical techniques. An approximate initial sticking coefficient for Cs on sapphire was measured using reflection mass spectrometry and found to be 0.9. Thermal Desorption Mass Spectrometry (TDMS) and Auger Electron Spectroscopy (AES) were used to verify that a significant decrease in sticking coefficient occurs as the Cs coverage reaches a critical submonolayer value. TDMS analysis demonstrates that Cs is stabilized on a clean sapphire surface at temperatures (1200 K) in excess of the temperatures experienced by sapphire in a TOPAZ-2 thermionic fuel element (TFE). Surface contaminants on sapphire can enhance Cs adsorption relative to the clean surface. C contamination eliminates the high temperature state of Cs desorption found on clean sapphire but shifts the bulk of the C desorption from 400 to 620 K. Surface C is a difficult contaminant to remove from sapphire, requiring annealing above 1400 K. Whether Cs is stabilized on sapphire in a TFE environment will most likely depend on relation between surface contamination and surface structure.

Ortho-Chlorobenzylidene Malononitrile (CS) is one of a number of riot control agents referred to as tear gas, although it is in fact a particulate suspension. The toxicity of this material has been studied in various detail. The purpose of this study was to review and summarize the literature data available on the toxicity of CS.

Cold Smoke is a dense white smoke produced by the reaction of titanium tetrachloride and aqueous ammonia aerosols. Early studies on the toxicity of this nonpyrotechnically generated smoke indicated that the smoke itself is essentially non-toxic (i.e. exhibits to systemic toxicity or organ damage due to exposure) under normal deployment conditions. The purpose of this evaluation was to review and summarize the recent literature data available on the toxicity of Cold Smoke, its chemical constituents, and its starting materials.

The Microsoft (MS) Windows product is widely available for PC`s. There exists many thousands of them at Sandia. All of the MS applications in Windows have a Help file. This help file informs the user ``how to`` use and run that application. It is an ``on-line`` manual. The ``Help Compiler`` was obtained from Microsoft. Use of this compiler enables one to insert text in a form the MS ``Help Engine`` recognizes. This means all of the features of the Help file: Hypertext (hot links), browsing, searching, indexing, bookmarks, annotation, are available for your text. This turns a document into a ``Smart Document.`` The use of this Smart Document System (SDS) for Engineering Procedures (EPs) is described.

This item is a copy of the Dec., 1993 issue of Manufacturing Technology, a Sandia Technology Bulletin. It has information on a number of different projects being conducted by Sandia in the general area of manufacturing sciences. Topics addressed include the following: center for information-technology manufacturing gears up, luctrative flat-panel display market targeted; researchers make copper stick to teflon, patterned adhesion may provide ideal conductor/substrate combination for microcircuits; contact algorithm enhances simulation of manufacturing processes, algorithm efficiently handles previously difficult analyses of punching and cutting operations; national machine tool partnership rolls into action, national laboratories share technology to boost US machine-tool industry; closed-loop MAST system eyes robotic manufacturing, fast, accurate, low-cost sensor demonstrated on furnace brazing.

A brief history of lightning protection at Pantex nuclear explosive areas (NEAs) is given. An assessment of current Pantex lightning protection at NEAs is summarized. Recommendations for further improvements in lightning protection are described.

Supercomputing `93, a high-performance computing and communications conference, was held November 15th through 19th, 1993 in Portland, Oregon. For the past two years, Sandia National Laboratories has used this conference to showcase and focus its communications and networking endeavors. At the 1993 conference, the results of Sandia`s efforts in exploring and utilizing Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) and Synchronous Optical Network (SONET) technologies were vividly demonstrated by building and operating three distinct networks. The networks encompassed a Switched Multimegabit Data Service (SMDS) network running at 44.736 megabits per second, an ATM network running on a SONET circuit at the Optical Carrier (OC) rate of 155.52 megabits per second, and a High Performance Parallel Interface (HIPPI) network running over a 622.08 megabits per second SONET circuit. The SMDS and ATM networks extended from Albuquerque, New Mexico to the showroom floor, while the HIPPI/SONET network extended from Beaverton, Oregon to the showroom floor. This paper documents and describes these networks.

An analysis of the impact of the Minuteman III Payload Transporter Type III into a nonyielding target at 46 m.p.h. and 30 m.p.h., and into a yielding target at 46 m.p.h. is presented. The analysis considers the structural response of the tiedown system which secures the Minuteman III re-entry system to the floor of the payload transporter. A finite element model of the re-entry system, its tiedown system, which includes tie-rods and shear pins, and the pallet plate which is attached to the transporter floating plate, was constructed. Because accelerations of the payload transporter are not known, acceleration data from one-quarter scale testing of the Safe Secure Trailer was used to investigate the response of the tiedown system. These accelerations were applied to the pallet plate. The ABAQUS computer code was used to predict the forces in the members of the tiedown system.

SAFSIM (System Analysis Flow SIMulator) is a FORTRAN computer program for simulating the integrated performance of complex flow systems. SAFSIM provides sufficient versatility to allow the engineering simulation of almost any system, from a backyard sprinkler system to a clustered nuclear reactor propulsion system. In addition to versatility, speed and robustness are primary SAFSIM development goals. SAFSIM contains three basic physics modules: (1) a fluid mechanics module with flow network capability; (2) a structure heat transfer module with multiple convection and radiation exchange surface capability; and (3) a point reactor dynamics module with reactivity feedback and decay heat capability. Any or all of the physics modules can be implemented, as the problem dictates. SAFSIM can be used for compressible and incompressible, single-phase, multicomponent flow systems. Both the fluid mechanics and structure heat transfer modules employ a one-dimensional finite element modeling approach. This document contains a description of the theory incorporated in SAFSIM, including the governing equations, the numerical methods, and the overall system solution strategies.

Preliminary estimates of national benefits from electric utility applications of battery energy storage through the year 2010 are presented along with a discussion of the particular applications studied. The estimates in this report were based on planning information reported to DOE by electric utilities across the United States. Future studies are planned to refine these estimates as more application-specific information becomes available.

The integrity of the electrostatic bonding procedures used to equilibrate operating technicians and weapon components was questioned during the course of the quality evaluation assessments of the W70, W68, and B57 dismantlement programs. A multi-disciplined, interlaboratory team was convened on an ad hoc basis to resolve certain static bonding issues. The accomplishments of this team in upgrading the integrity of the bonding process include recommendations on the proper use of wrist straps, training of technicians in their use, and procedures to reduce accumulation of static charge on components during routine handling operations.

The On-Line Aerosol Monitor (OLAM) is a light attenuation device designed and built at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) by EG&G Idaho. Its purpose is to provide an on-line indication of aerosol concentration in the PHEBUS-FP tests. It does this by measuring the attenuation of a light beam across a tube through which an aerosol is flowing. The OLAM does not inherently give an absolute response and must be calibrated. A calibration has been performed at Sandia National Laboratories` (SNL) Sandia Aerosol Research Laboratory (SARL) and the results are described here. Ammonium chloride and sodium chloride calibration aerosols are used for the calibration and the data for the sodium chloride aerosol is well described by a model presented in this report. Detectable instrument response is seen over a range of 0.1 cm{sup 3} of particulate material per m{sup 3} of gas to 10 cm{sup 3} of particulate material per m{sup 3} of gas.

Pressure-pulse, constant-pressure flow, and pressure-buildup tests have been performed in bedded evaporites of the Salado Formation at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) site to evaluate the hydraulic properties controlling brine flow through the Salado. Transmissivities have been interpreted from six sequences of tests conducted on five stratigraphic intervals within 15 m of the WIPP underground excavations.

This report responds to the Department of Energy`s request that Sandia National Laboratories compare existing technologies against several advanced technologies as they apply to DOE needs to monitor the movement of material, weapons, or personnel for safety and security programs. The authors describe several material control systems, discuss their technologies, suggest possible applications, discuss assets and limitations, and project costs for each system. The following systems are described: WATCH system (Wireless Alarm Transmission of Container Handling); Tag system (an electrostatic proximity sensor); PANTRAK system (Personnel And Material Tracking); VRIS (Vault Remote Inventory System); VSIS (Vault Safety and Inventory System); AIMS (Authenticated Item Monitoring System); EIVS (Experimental Inventory Verification System); Metrox system (canister monitoring system); TCATS (Target Cueing And Tracking System); LGVSS (Light Grid Vault Surveillance System); CSS (Container Safeguards System); SAMMS (Security Alarm and Material Monitoring System); FOIDS (Fiber Optic Intelligence & Detection System); GRADS (Graded Radiation Detection System); and PINPAL (Physical Inventory Pallet).

An essential component of a horizontal, underground nuclear test setup at the Nevada Test Site is the auxiliary closure system. The massive gates that slam shut immediately after a device has been detonated allow the prompt radiation to pass, but block debris and hot gases from continuing down the tunnel. Thus, the gates protect experiments located in the horizontal line-of-sight steel pipe. Sandia National Laboratories has been the major designer and developer of these closure systems. This report records the history of SNL`s participation in and contributions to the technology of auxiliary closure systems used in horizontal tunnel tests in the underground test program.