This report reviews the research activities of the Applied Mathematical Sciences Section for the period October 1, 1978, through March 31, 1980. The body of the report discusses various projects carried out in four major areas of research: applied analysis, computational mathematics, software engineering, and software clinics. Information on section staff, visitors, workshops, and seminars is found in the appendices.

Large-scale efforts are in progress to develop advanced batteries for utility energy storage systems. Realization of the full benefits available from those systems requires development, not only of the batteries themselves, but also the ac/dc power converter, the bulk power interconnecting equipment, and the peripheral electric balance of plant equipment that integrate the battery/converter into a properly controlled and protected energy system. This study addresses these overall system aspects; although tailored to a 20-MW, 100-MWh lithium/sulfide battery system, the technology and concepts are applicable to any battery energy storage system.

The corrosion behavior of aluminum, copper, and iron in inhibited ethylene glycol-ASTM corrosive water solutions was evaluated in a laboratory loop under isothermal and heat-flux conditions for 1000 h at temperatures between 378 and 413 degrees K, in static autoclave tests at 450 degrees K for 500 h, and by potentiodynamic polarization measurements at temperatures between 298 and 348 degrees K. The effect of time, temperature, and ethylene glycol concentration of the heat-transfer fluid on the extent of inhibitor depletion was determined from analyses of the reserve alkalinity, pH, and inhibitor content of the solutions. The performance of an electrochemical sensor as a monitor of fluid quality was also evaluated. A heat flux of 0.4 to 1.0 kW/m sq. did not have a significant effect on the corrosion behavior of the various materials at temperatures between 378 and 413 degrees K. The corrosion rates of aluminum, copper, and iron in the 50 volume percent inhibited ethylene glycol-corrosive water solution decreased as a function of time during the 1000-h test. At 413 degrees K, the corrosion rate of copper was considerably higher than that of iron or aluminum at low flow velocity. Significant degradation of the fluid quality, as indicated by …

The second addition is a substantial revision of the original work. A new chapter on latent heat storage, an appendix on units and conversions, and an index have been added. The purpose for this manual is to provide information on the design and installation of thermal energy storage in solar heating systems. It is intended for contractors, installers, solar system designers, engineers, architects, and manufacturers who intend to enter the solar energy business. The reader should have general knowledge of how solar heating systems operate and knowledge of construction methods and building codes. Knowledge of solar analysis methods such as f-chart, SOLCOST, DOE-1, or TRNSYS would be helpful. The information contained in the manual includes sizing storage, choosing a location for the storage device, and insulation requirements. Both air-based and liquid-based systems are covered with topics on designing rock beds, tank types, pump and fan selection, installation, costs, and operation and maintenance. Topics relevant to latent heat storage include properties of phase-change materials, sizing the storage unit, insulating the storage unit, available systems, and cost. Topics relevant to heating domestic water include safety, single- and dual-tank systems, domestic water heating with air- and liquid-based space heating systems, and stand alone …

The goals of the present program are not only to develop hardware and procedures for efficiently inspecting ceramic heat-exchanger components in conventional ways, but also to develop advanced NDE techniques that will allow effective failure prediction. The main objectives in FY 1980 have been to (a) develop a computer-interfaced ultrasonic bore-side probe for pre-service and in-service inspection, (b) develop and assess techniques for inspection of SiC tubing by acoustic microscopy, and (c) carry out preliminary tests to compare ultrasonic, holographic, and infrared techniques with more conventional dye-penetrant and radiographic methods for inspection of butt joints in ceramic tubes. Circumferential notches, 125 microns deep x 250 microns long, on the inner and outer surfaces of sintered and siliconized SiC tubes were successfully detected with an ultrasonic bore-side probe. The acoustic microscope was modified to handle 30- as well as 100-MHz sound waves, since the lower-frequency waves give better penetration of Sic tube walls. The modification decreased the acoustic noise. The ability to detect a notch only 250 x 125 x 75 microns in size was demonstrated. Efforts to examine a butt joint with dye-penetrant, radiographic, ultrasonic, and holographic-interferometry techniques revealed that while holography seemed to identify more clearly the presence of …

Quarterly report of the Argonne National Laboratory Chemical Engineering Division regarding activities related to properties and handling of radioactive materials, operation of nuclear reactors, and other relevant research.

Quarterly report of the Argonne National Laboratory Chemical Engineering Division regarding activities related to properties and handling of radioactive materials, operation of nuclear reactors, and other relevant research. Fuel cycle work reported for this period includes testing of hydraulic performance and extraction efficiency of eight-stage centrifugal contactors, testing of a flowsheet for the Aralex process, evaluation of ruthenium and zirconium extraction in a miniature centrifugal contactor, study of zirconium aging in the organic phase and its effect on zirconium extraction and hydraulic testing of the 9-cm-ID contactor.

Quarterly report of the Argonne National Laboratory Chemical Engineering Division regarding activities related to properties and handling of radioactive materials, operation of nuclear reactors, and other relevant research.

Quarterly report of the Argonne National Laboratory Materials Science Division regarding the economical, reliable, and safe conversion of coal into clean and usable alternate fuels through the use of durable materials of construction.

Quarterly report on the activities of the Argonne National Laboratory Materials Science Division regarding studies on ceramic (refractory) and metallic materials presently being used or intended for use in coal-conversion processes. The program entails efforts in nondestructive testing and failure analysis, as well as studies of erosive wear, corrosion, and refractory degradation.

Quarterly report on the activities of the Argonne National Laboratory Materials Science Division regarding an examination of cores taken from the slag-refractory interface of seven refractories.

A preliminary estimate has been made of the manufacturing cost for lithium/iron sulfide cells for stationary energy-storage and electric-vehicle applications. This preliminary cost analysis indicated that the manufacturing cost (in 1979 dollars) is $24 to 41/kW-h for stationary energy-storage cells and $31 to 55/kW-h for electric-vehicle cells. The materials cost was found to contribute between 52 and 65% of this manufacturing cost. The most expensive materials and components were lithium (metal and compounds), $4.61 to $14.26/kW-h; BN felt, $4.00 to 8.50/kW-h; feed-through components, $2.40/kW-h; positive current collectors, $1.48 to 2.20/kW-h; and aluminum, $1.43 to 1.66/kW-h. The projected lithium requirements were determined for use in lithium/iron sulfide batteries and conventional uses to the year 2006. The results showed that the lithium requirements were about 275,000 short tons by 2006, which is equivalent to about 51% of presently known US resources. Of this amount, about 33% would be used in battery production and 67% consumed in conventional uses. It is expected that the lithium used in battery production would be recycled.

Annual report of the Argonne National Laboratory Radiological and Environmental Research Division regarding activities related to molecular physics and chemistry. This report discusses the Section's work on the physics and chemistry of atoms, ions, and molecules - especially their interactions with external agents such as photons and electrons.

Atomic, molecular, and plasma physics areas that are relevant to inertial confinement fusion by energetic heavy ions are identified. Discussions are confined to problems related to the design of heavy ion accelerators, accumulation of ions in storage rings, and the beam transport in a reactor vessel.

SACO is a fast-running computer code that simulates hypothetical accidents in liquid-metal fast breeder reactors to the point of permanent subcriticality or to the initiation of a prompt-critical excursion. In the tradition of the SAS codes each sub-assembly is modeled by a representative fuel pin with three distinct axial regions to simulate the blanket and core regions. However, analytic and integral models are used wherever possible to cut down the computing time and storage requirements. The physical models and basic equations are described in detail.

Quarterly report discussing fuel cell research and development work at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). This report describes efforts directed toward understanding and improving components of the molten carbonate fuel cells operated at temperatures near 925 K.

The branching fraction in the decay of the fission product ⁸⁵m-krypton⁸⁵m to the ground state ⁸⁵krypton (10.75 y) was measured relative to the total decay to both ⁸⁵krypton and ⁸⁵Rb. Samples of uranium-235 were highly irradiated in a high-flux reactor and dissolved. ⁸⁵Rb was measured by isotope-dilution mass spectrometry, and the ⁸⁵krypton was counted in GM tubes the counting efficiencies of which were calibrated with a standardized ⁸⁵krypton gas of known disintegration rate. The branching fraction measured with both a low-burnup sample and a high-burnup sample was 0.2160 +/- 0.0019, the largest error arising from the uncertainty in the caibration of the standardized gas.

The successful operation and economic viability of deuterium-tritium- (D-T-) fueled tokamak-type commercial power fusion reactors will depend to a large extent on the development of reliable tritium-containment and fuel-recycle systems. Of the many operating steps in the fuel recycle scheme, separation or enrichment of the isotropic species of hydrogen by cryogenic distillation is one of the most important. A parametric investigation was carried out to study the effects of the various operating conditions and the composition of the spent fuel on the degree of separation. A computer program was developed for the design and analysis of a system of interconnected distillation columns for isotopic separation such that the requirements of near-term D-T-fueled reactors are met. The analytical results show that a distillation cascade consisting of four columns is capable of reprocessing spent fuel varying over a wide range of compositions to yield reinjection-grade fuel with essentially unlimited D/T ratio.

The fraction of delayed neutrons beta in slow-neutron beams from a uranium-238 pulsed spallation neutron source is 0.0053 for 300 MeV protons. This measurement appears to be the first one of this quantity. The result indicates that, for most classes of measurements, the delayed-neutron background in time-of-flight instruments will be unimportant, and places constraints on the physics description of spallation targets. The measurement was performed at the prototype pulsed spallation neutron source, ZING-P', at Argonne National laboratory.

Experimental and analytical techniques have been developed for analysis and characterization of delayed-neutron (DN) signals that can provide diagnostic information to augment data from cover-gas analyses in the detection and identification of breached elements in an LMFBR. Eleven flow-reduction tests have been run in EBR-II to provide base data support for predicting DN signal characteristics during exposed-fuel operation. Results from the tests demonstrate the feasibility and practicability of response-analysis techniques for determining (a) the transit time, for DN emitters traveling from the core to the detector and (b) the isotropic holdup time, of DN precursors in the fuel element.

Nuclear material inventory verification techniques for large split-table type fast critical assemblies are being studied under this program. Emphasis has been given to techniques that minimize fuel handling in order to reduce facility down time and radiation exposure to the inventory team. The techniques studied include autoradiography, reactivity, and spectral index measurements.

This working note examines different Fortran implementations of the Basic Linear Algebra Subprograms (BLAS). Since the BLAS will be used to carry out the main computation in many applications, an efficient implementation is necessary. Tests are run on 24 different computers to determine which implementation gives the best performance.

An efficient technique is described for Monte Carlo simulation of neutron beam spectra from target-moderator-reflector assemblies typical of pulsed spallation neutron sources. The technique involves the scoring of the transport-theoretical probability that a neutron will emerge from the moderator surface in the direction of interest, at each collision. An angle-biasing probability is also introduced which further enhances efficiency in simple problems.

The accuracy of two integration algorithms is studied for the common engineering condition of a von Mises, isotropic hardening model under plane stress. Errors in stress predictions for given total strain increments are expressed with contour plots of two parameters: an angle in the pi plane and the difference between the exact and computed yield-surface radii.