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THIS PROJECT INVOLVES DEVELOPMENT AND VERIFICATION OF THE PERFORMANCE OF A NOVEL HEAT EXCHANGER OPERATING IN THE 98 TO 99 PERCENT THERMAL EFFECTIVENESS RANGE. HEAT EXCHANGERS FOR CRYOCOOLER APPLICATIONS USED IN HIGH ENERGY PHYSICS, REMOTE SENSING, ETC., FREQUENTLY REQUIRE THERMAL EFFECTIVENESS OF OVER 98%. THIS IS DIFFICULT TO ACCOMPLISH,PRIMARILY BECAUSE OF THE EFFECT OF THE LONGITUDINAL THERMAL ...

THE SAFE, RELIABLE, AND EFFICIENT OPERATION OF NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS REQUIRES ADVANCED OPERATOR DECISION AIDS AS WELL AS CONTROL AND PROTECTION SYSTEMS. A PREDICTIVE EXPERT SYSTEM FOR PLANNING POWER MANEUVERS WILL BE INVESTIGATED AS ONE SUCH OPERATOR AID. IN THE PHASE I WORK THE FEASIBILITY OF THE SYSTEM WILL BE DEMONSTRATED VIA A ROBUST NEUTRONICS MODEL, USING THE TRANSIENT FEW-GROUP NEUTRON DIFFU ...

A NOVEL, DOUBLE-WALLED, VACUUM-INSULATED TUBE IS PLANNED FOREFFICIENT TRANSMISSION OF HOT WATER OR STEAM FOR ENHANCED THERMAL RECOVERY OF HEAVY OIL FROM DEEP OIL RESERVOIRS. THIS DESIGN IMPROVES THE STRUCTURAL RELIABILITY WHILE P PROVIDING IMPROVED THERMAL INSULATION HAVING A LOW MANUFACTURING COST. PHASE I OF THIS PROGRAM INVOLVES THE DETAILED ANALYSIS, DESIGN, AND OPTIMIZATION OF THE TUBING. A P ...

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THE USE OF METAL-CONTAINING POLYMERS AS PRECURSORS TO HIGH CRITICAL TEMPERATURE (T(C)) SUPERCONDUCTING FILAMENTS WILL BE EXPLORED THROUGH A PROPRIETARY LOW-TEMPERATURE SOLUTION SYNTHESIS. CAREFUL EVALUATION OF THE PERTINENT CHEMICAL LITERATURE WILL BE DONE TO OPTIMIZE THE STARTING MATERIAL COMBINATION AND TO HELP DETERMINE ADEQUATE EXPERIMENTAL CONDITIONS THAT WILL YIELD A HOMOGENEOUS, POLYMERIC P ...

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THE HARDEST MATERIALS AVAILABLE TODAY ARE DIAMOND AND CUBIC BORON NITRIDE. BOTH OF THESE MATERIALS EXIST AS METASTABLE PHASES THAT CAN BE SYNTHETICALLY PRODUCED FROM MUCH SOFTER AND CHEAPER STARTING MATERIALS SUCH AS GRAPHITE. ONE OF THETECHNIQUES FOR PRODUCING SYNTHETIC DIAMOND OR CUBIC BORON NITRIDE IS SHOCK-WAVE PROCESSING AT PRESSURES IN THE 10-200 GPA RANGE. THEORETICAL ARGUMENTS SUGGEST THAT ...

AN INSTRUMENT IS UNDER DEVELOPMENT THAT WILL QUANTITATIVELY MEASURE ISOTOPIC RATIOS ON A SOLID OR LIQUID SURFACE OF URANIUM (OR OTHER ELEMENTS). THE INSTRUMENT USES A PULSED ION BEAM AT GRAZING INCIDENCE TO KNOCK SURFACE ATOMS OFF IN BILLIARD BALL TYPE COLLISIONS. SOME OF THESE ATOMS ARE IONIZED AND CAN BE FOCUSED THROUGH A HIGH RESOLUTION TIME-OF-FLIGHT MASS SPECTROMETER. A HIGH DUTY CYCLE ALLOWS ...

POLYMER MATERIALS AND COATINGS ARE USED IN TRITIUM SECONDARY AND TERTIARY CONFINEMENT GAS HANDING FACILITIES, IN GLOVE BOXES, WINDOW GASKETS, EPOXY PAINTS, AND PERSONAL PROTECTIVE CLOTHING ITEMS SUCH AS BUBBLESUITS, GLOVES, AND BOOTIES. THESE MATERIALS LACK HYDROGEN BARRIER PROPERTIES. THE FEW HYDROGEN BARRIER POLYMERS THAT EXIST ARE PRONE TO BETA AND GAMMA RADIATION DAMAGE AND LOSE THEIR BARRIER ...

EVALUATION OF DAMAGED DNA COMPONENTS IS NORMALLY PERFORMED VIA AGAROSE GEL ELECTROPHORESIS OF DNA SAMPLES STAINED WITH FLUORESCING DYE. ALTHOUGH THIS METHOD PROVIDES ADEQUATE SENSITIVITY AND RESOLUTION IN THE IDENTIFICATION OF DNA COMPONENTS, THE LACK OF AVAILABLE INSTRUMENTATION TO CONVERT THE FLUORESCING IMAGE INTO A DIGITIZED RECORD FOR COMPUTER ENTRY AND THE LACK OF ANY TECHNIQUE FOR STANDARDI ...