This invention is comprised of a method of generating a high purity (at least 98%) N{sup +} ion beam using a multicusp ion source having a chamber formed by a cylindrical chamber wall surrounded by a plurality of magnets, a filament centrally disposed in said chamber, a plasma electrode having an extraction orifice at one end of the chamber, a magnetic filter having two parallel magnets spaced from said plasma electrode and dividing the chamber into arc discharge and extraction regions. The method includes ionizing nitrogen gas in the arc discharge region of the chamber, maintaining the chamber wall at a positive voltage relative to the filament and at a magnitude for an optimum percentage of N{sup +} ions in the extracted ion beam, disposing a hot liner within the chamber and near the chamber wall to limit recombination of N{sup +} ions into the N{sub 2}{sup +} ions, spacing the magnets of the magnetic filter from each other for optimum percentage of N{sup +} ions in the extracted ion beams, and maintaining a relatively low pressure downstream of the extraction orifice and of a magnitude (preferably within the range of 3--8 {times} 10{sup {minus}4} torr) for an optimum percentage …

An improved lockout assembly is provided for a circuit breaker to lock the switch handle into a selected switch position. The lockout assembly includes two main elements, each having a respective foot for engaging a portion of the upper housing wall of the circuit breaker. The first foot is inserted into a groove in the upper housing wall, and the second foot is inserted into an adjacent aperture (e.g., a slot) in the upper housing wall. The first foot is slid under and into engagement with a first portion, and the second foot is slid under and into engagement with a second portion of the upper housing wall. At the same time the respective two feet are placed in engagement with the respective portions of the upper housing wall, two holes, one on each of the respective two main elements of the assembly, are placed in registration; and a locking device, such as a special scissors equipped with a padlock, is installed through the registered holes to secure the lockout assembly on the circuit breaker. When the lockout assembly of the invention is secured on the circuit breaker, the switch handle of the circuit breaker is locked into the selected …

This invention is comprised of a logical memory latch and cell, using logic and circuit modifications, provides SEU immunity without loss of speed. A single logic state is hardened against SEU using technology methods and the information concerning valid states is then based to simplify hardened circuit design.

A thin, room-temperature-curing, ceramic composite for coating and patching metal substrates comprises a sol gel silica glass matrix filled with finely ground particles or fibers, preferably alumina. The sol gel glass is made by adding ethanol to water to form a first mixture, then separately adding ethanol to tetraethyl orthosilicate to form a second mixture, then slowly adding the first to the second mixture to make a third mixture, and making a slurry by adding the finely ground particles or fibers to the third mixture. The composite can be applied by spraying, brushing or trowelling. If applied to patch fine cracks, densification of the ceramic composite may be obtained to enhance sealing by applying heat during curing.

A process of separating transuranium actinide values from uranium values present in spent nuclear oxide fuels containing rare earth and noble metal fission products as well as other fission products is disclosed. The oxide fuel is reduced with Ca metal in the presence of Ca chloride and a U-Fe alloy which is liquid at about 800{degrees}C to dissolve uranium metal and the noble metal fission product metals and transuranium actinide metals and rare earth fission product metals leaving Ca chloride having CaO and fission products of alkali metals and the alkali earth metals and iodine dissolved therein. The Ca chloride and CaO and the fission products contained therein are separated from the U-Fe alloy and the metal values dissolved therein. The U-Fe alloy having dissolved therein reduced metals from the spent nuclear fuel is contacted with a mixture of one or more alkali metal or alkaline earth metal halides selected from the class consisting of alkali metal or alkaline earth metal and Fe or U halide or a combination thereof to transfer transuranium actinide metals and rare earth metals to the halide salt leaving the uranium and some noble metal fission products in the U-Fe alloy and thereafter separating the …

This invention is comprised of a tamper-sensing system for an electronic tag which is to be fixed to a surface of an article, the tamper-sensing system comprising a capacitor having two non- contacting, capacitively-coupled elements. Fixing of the body to the article will establish a precise location of the capacitor elements and relative to each other. When interrogated, the tag will generate a tamper-sensing signal having a value which is a function of the amount of capacity of the capacitor elements. The precise relative location of the capacitor elements cannot be duplicated if the tag is removed and affixed to a surrogate article having a fiducial capacitor element fixed thereto. A very small displacement, in the order of 2-10 microns, of the capacitor elements relative to each other if the tag body is removed and fixed to a surrogate article will result in the tamper-sensing signal having a different, and detectable, value when the tag is interrogated.

An oxide-based strengthening and toughening agent, such as tetragonal Zro{sub 2} particles, has been added to copper oxide superconductors, such as superconducting YBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub x} (123) to improve it fracture toughness (K{sub IC}). A sol-gel coating which is non-reactive with the superconductor, such as Y{sub 2}BaCuO{sub 5} (211) on the ZrO{sub 2} particles minimized the deleterious reactions between the superconductor and the toughening agent dispersed therethrough. Addition of 20 mole percent ZrO{sub 2} coated with 211 yielded a 123 composite with a K{sub IC} of 4.5 MPa(m){sup 0.5}.

A substrate-free, free-standing epitaxially oriented superconductive film including a layer of a template material and a layer of a ceramic superconducting material is provided together with a method of making such a substrate-free ceramic superconductive film by coating an etchable material with a template layer, coating the template layer with a layer of a ceramic superconductive material, coating the layer of ceramic superconductive material with a protective material, removing the etchable material by an appropriate means so that the etchable material is separated from a composite structure including the template layer, the ceramic superconductive material layer and the protective material layer, removing the protective material layer from the composite structure whereby a substrate-free, free-standing ceramic superconductive film remains.

This invention relates to the field of chemistry and, more particularly, to explosives. This invention is the result of a contract with the Department of Energy (Contract No. W-7405-ENG-36). It is desirable to use explosives in weapons and other applications which are less sensitive than the common explosives RDX, TNT, and HMX, since there have been catastrophic explosions of munitions which use these compounds. In preliminary characterization and sensitivity testing, it has been found that 3-amino-5-nitro-1,2,4-triazole (ANTA) is a promising insensitive high explosive. This report details the safety, production, and physical properties of ANTA.

An electron injection scheme for controlling transport in a tokamak plasma. Electrons with predominantly perpendicular energy are injected into a ripple field region created by a group of localized poloidal field bending magnets. The trapped electrons then grad-B drift vertically toward the plasma interior until they are detrapped, charging the plasma negative. Calculations indicate that the highly perpendicular velocity electrons can remain stable against kinetic instabilities in the regime of interest for tokamak experiments. The penetration distance can be controlled by controlling the ``ripple mirror ratio``, the energy of the injected electrons, and their v{sub {perpendicular}}/v{sub {parallel}}, ratio. In this scheme, the poloidal torque due to the injected radial current is taken by the magnets and not by the plasma. Injection is accomplished by the flat cathode containing an ECH cavity to pump electrons to high v{sub {perpendicular}}.

An article of manufacture including a substrate, a patterned interlayer of magnesium oxide, barium-titanium oxide or barium-zirconium oxide, the patterned interlayer material overcoated with a secondary interlayer material of yttria-stabilized zirconia or magnesium-aluminum oxide, upon the surface of the substrate whereby an intermediate article with an exposed surface of both the overcoated patterned interlayer and the substrate is formed, a coating of a buffer layer selected from the group consisting of oxides of Ce, Y, Cm, Dy, Er, Eu, Fe, Gd, Ho, In, La, Mn, Lu, Nd, Pr, Pu, Sm, Tb, Tl, Tm, Y, and Yb over the entire exposed surface of the intermediate article, and, a ceramic superconductive material layer as an overcoat upon the buffer layer whereby the ceramic superconductive material situated directly above the substrate has a crystal structure substantially different than the ceramic superconductive material situated above the overcoated patterned interlayer.

This report discusses a process of separating transuranium actinide values from uranium values present in spent nuclear oxide fuels which contain rare earth and noble metal fission products. The oxide fuel is reduced with Ca metal in the presence of CaCl{sub 2} and a U-Fe alloy containing not less than about 84% by weight uranium at a temperature in the range of from about 800{degrees}C to about 850{degrees}C to produce additional uranium metal which dissolves in the U-Fe alloy raising the uranium concentration and having transuranium actinide metals and rare earth fission product metals and the noble metal fission products dissolved therein. The CaCl{sub 2} having CaO and fission products of alkali metals and the alkali earth metals and iodine dissolved therein is separated and electrolytically treated with a carbon electrode to reduce the CaO to Ca metal while converting the carbon electrode to CO and CO{sub 2}. The Ca metal and CaCl{sub 2} is recycled to reduce additional oxide fuel. The U-Fe alloy having transuranium actinide metals and rare earth fission product metals and the noble metal fission products dissolved therein is contacted with Mg metal which takes up the actinide and rare earth fission product metals. The U-Fe …

This invention is comprised of an end effector for use in probing a surface with a robotic arm. The end effector has a first portion that carries a gamble with a probe, the gamble holding the probe normal to the surface, and a second portion with a set of three shafts within a housing for urging the gamble and probe against the surface. The second portion contains a potentiometer connected by another shaft to the first portion to measure the position of the first portion with respect to the second so that the second portion can be moved to place and maintain the shafts at the midpoint of their travel. Then, as irregularities in the surface are encountered, the first portion can respond by moving closer to or farther from the second portion.

An electrolytic process and apparatus for reducing calcium oxide in a molten electrolyte of CaCl{sub 2}-CaF{sub 2} with a graphite anode in which particles or other contamination from the anode is restricted by the use of a porous barrier in the form of a basket surrounding the anode which may be removed from the electrolyte to burn the graphite particles, and wherein the calcium oxide feed is introduced to the anode compartment to increase the oxygen ion concentration at the anode.

A robotic device for remotely inspecting pressurizer heater wells is provided which has the advantages of quickly, precisely, and reliably acquiring data at reasonable cost while also reducing radiation exposure of an operator. The device comprises a probe assembly including a probe which enters a heater well, gathers data regarding the condition of the heater well and transmits a signal carrying that data; a mounting device for mounting the probe assembly at the opening of the heater well so that the probe can enter the heater well; a first motor mounted on the mounting device for providing movement of the probe assembly in an axial direction; and a second motor mounted on the mounting device for providing rotation of the probe assembly. This arrangement enables full inspection of the heater well to be carried out.

Cold pressed UC{sup 2} fuel compacts are sintered at temperatures greater than about 1850 C while in contract with a sintering facilitator material, e.g., tantalum, niobium, tungsten or a metal carbide such as uranium carbide, thereby allowing for a reduction in the overall porosity and leaving the desired product, i.e., a highly dense, large-grained uranium dicarbide. The process of using the sintering facilitator materials can be applied in the preparation of other carbide materials.

This invention is comprised of a proximity sensor based on a closed field circuit. The circuit comprises a ring oscillator using a symmetrical array of plates that creates an oscillating displacement current. The displacement current varies as a function of the proximity of objects to the plate array. Preferably the plates are in the form of a group of three pair of symmetric plates having a common center, arranged in a hexagonal pattern with opposing plates linked as a pair. The sensor produces logic level pulses suitable for interfacing with a computer or process controller. The proximity sensor can be incorporated into a load cell, a differential pressure gauge, or a device for measuring, the consistency of a characteristic of a material where a variation in the consistency causes the dielectric constant of the material to change.

This invention is comprised of an apparatus and method that combines a signal generator and a passive signal receiver to detect and record the path of partially or completely concealed electrical wiring without disturbing the concealing surface. The signal generator applies a series of electrical pulses to the selected wiring of interest. The applied pulses create a magnetic field about the wiring that can be detected by a coil contained within the signal receiver. An audible output connected to the receiver and driven by the coil reflects the receiver`s position with respect to the wiring. The receiver`s audible signal is strongest when the receiver is directly above the wiring and the long axis of the receiver`s coil is parallel to the wiring. A marking means is mounted on the receiver to mark the location of the wiring as the receiver is directed over the wiring`s concealing surface. Numerous marks made on various locations of the concealing surface will trace the path of the wiring of interest.

A method, using a quartz crystal microbalance, to obtain simultaneous measurement of solid mass accumulation and changes in liquid density-viscosity product. The simultaneous real-time measurements of electrical parameters yields that changes in surface mass can be differentiated from changes in solution properties. Two methods to obtain the admittance/frequency data are employed.

This invention relates to high frequency (HF) radio signal propagation through fading channels and, more particularly, to simulation of fading channels in order to characterize HF radio system performance in transmitting and receiving signals through such fading channels. Fading channel effects on a transmitted communication signal are simulated with both frequency and time variations using a channel scattering function to affect the transmitted signal. A conventional channel scattering function is converted to a series of channel realizations by multiplying the square root of the channel scattering function by a complex number of which the real and imaginary parts are each independent variables. The two-dimensional inverse-FFT of this complex-valued channel realization yields a matrix of channel coefficients that provide a complete frequency-time description of the channel. The transmitted radio signal is segmented to provide a series of transmitted signal and each segment is subject to FFT to generate a series of signal coefficient matrices. The channel coefficient matrices and signal coefficient matrices are then multiplied and subjected to inverse-FFT to output a signal representing the received affected radio signal. A variety of channel scattering functions can be used to characterize the response of a transmitter-receiver system to such atmospheric effects.