Analytic calculations of the magnetic fields available to magnetic diagnostics are performed for tokamaks with circular and elliptical cross sections. The explicit dependence of the magnetic fields on the poloidal beta and internal inductances is sought. For tokamaks with circular cross sections, Shafranov`s results are reproduced and extended. To first order in the inverse aspect ratio expansion of the magnetic fields, only a specific combination of beta poloidal and internal inductance is found to be measurable. To second order in the expansion, the measurements of beta poloidal and the internal inductance are demonstrated to be separable but excessively sensitive to experimental error. For tokamaks with elliptical cross sections, magnetic measurements are found to determine beta poloidal and the internal inductance separately. A second harmonic component of the zeroth order field in combination with the dc harmonic of the zeroth order field specifies the internal inductance. The internal inductance in hand, measurement of the first order, first harmonic component of the magnetic field then determined beta poloidal. The degeneracy implicit in Shafranov`s result (i.e. that only a combination of beta poloidal and internal inductance is measurable for a circular plasma cross section) reasserts itself as the elliptic results are collapsed to …

Calculations of radiation flux and dose distributions for Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) of brain tumors are typically performed using sophisticated three-dimensional analytical models based on either a homogeneous approximation or a simplified few-region approximation to the actual highly-heterogeneous geometry of the irradiation volume. Such models should be validated by comparison with calculations using detailed models in which all significant macroscopic tissue heterogeneities and geometric structures are explicitly represented as faithfully as possible. This work describes a validation exercise for BNCT of canine brain tumors. Geometric measurements of the canine anatomical structures of interest for this work were performed by dissecting and examining two essentially identical Labrador Retriever heads. Chemical analyses of various tissue samples taken during the dissections were conducted to obtain measurements of elemental compositions for tissues of interest. The resulting geometry and tissue composition data were then used to construct a detailed heterogeneous calculational model of the Labrador Retriever head. Calculations of three-dimensional radiation flux distributions pertinent to BNCT were performed for the model using the TORT discrete-ordinates radiation transport code. The calculations were repeated for a corresponding volume-weighted homogeneous tissue model. Comparison of the results showed that the peak neutron and photon flux magnitudes were quite …

The ultrafast dynamics of vibrationally hot ground state azulene molecules have been time resolved by picosecond transient absorption spectroscopy in a variety of solvents including hexane, chloromethanes, methanol, CClF{sub 3}, Xe and Kr. A high pressure optical cell was used to liquify gases for use as solvents and change their density and temperature, independently, over the entire liquid density range. Experimental results indicate the vibrational cooling rate is strongly solvent dependent, with cooling rates of approximately 20 psec in molecular solvents and approximately 150 psec in atomic solvents. Comparison of the rates in Xe and Kr at constant density demonstrates the strong effect of solvent mass on energy transfer. The effect of solvent temperature on vibrational cooling is minimal, as is the effect of solvent density. This latter result is quite surprising in light of earlier experiments on simpler molecular systems, such as I{sub 2} in Xe. This anomalous density effect is examined in light of Isolated Binary Collision (IBC) theory and bulk thermal transport models. Both theories accurately model all experimental results obtained with the exception of the density effort. Possible explanations for the breakdown of the IBC theory in this case are offered along with methods to improve …

The neutron flux across the nuclear reactor core is of interest to reactor designers and others. The diffusion equation, an integro-differential equation in space and energy, is commonly used to determine the flux level. However, the solution of a simplified version of this equation when automated is very time consuming. Since the flux level changes with time, in general, this calculation must be made repeatedly. Therefore solution techniques that speed the calculation while maintaining accuracy are desirable. One factor that contributes to the solution time is the spatial flux shape approximation used. It is common practice to use the same order flux shape approximation in each energy group even though this method may not be the most efficient. The one-dimensional, two-energy group diffusion equation was solved, for the node average flux and core k-effective, using two sets of spatial shape approximations for each of three reactor types. A fourth-order approximation in both energy groups forms the first set of approximations used. The second set used combines a second-order approximation with a fourth-order approximation in energy group two. Comparison of the results from the two approximation sets show that the use of a different order spatial flux shape approximation results in …