We propose a new approach for deriving the string field equations from a general sigma model on the world-sheet. This approach leads to an equation which combines some of the attractive features of both the renormalization group method and the covariant beta function treatment of the massless excitations. It has the advantage of being covariant under a very general set of both local and non-local transformations in the field space. We apply it to the tachyon, massless and first massive level, and show that the resulting field equations reproduce the correct spectrum of a left-right symmetric closed bosonic string.

The data acquired in the Parkfield, California experiment are unique and they are producing results that force a new look at some conventional concepts and models for earthquake occurrence and fault-zone dynamics. No fault-zone drilling project can afford to neglect installation of such a network early enough in advance of the fault-zone penetration to have a well-defined picture of the seismicity details (probably at least 1000 microearthquakes--an easy 2-3 year goal for the M<0 detection of a borehole network). Analyses of nine years of Parkfield monitoring data have revealed significant and unambiguous departures from stationarity both in the seismicity characteristics and in wave propagation details within the S-wave coda for paths within the presumed M6 nucleation zone where we also have found a high Vp/Vs anomaly at depth, and where the three recent M4.7-5.0 sequences have occurred. Synchronous changes well above noise levels have also been seen among several independent parameters, including seismicity rate, average focal depth, S-wave coda velocities, characteristic sequence recurrence intervals, fault creep and water levels in monitoring wells. The significance of these findings lies in their apparent coupling and inter-relationships, from which models for fault-zone process can be fabricated and tested with time. The more general …

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The purpose of this work was to investigate the utility of electronic aroma detection technologies for the detection and identification of accelerant residues in suspected arson debris. Through the analysis of known accelerant residues, a trained neural network was developed for classifying suspected arson samples. Three unknown fire debris samples were classified using this neural network. The item corresponding to diesel fuel was correctly identified every time. For the other two items, wide variations in sample concentration and excessive water content, producing high sample humidities, were shown to influence the sensor response. Sorbent sampling prior to aroma detection was demonstrated to reduce these problems and to allow proper neural network classification of the remaining items corresponding to kerosene and gasoline.

A fatigue test of a wind turbine blade was conducted at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in the fall of 1994. Acoustic emission monitoring of the test was performed, starting with the second loading level. The acoustic emission data indicated that this load exceeded the strength of the blade. From the first cycle at the new load, an oil can type of deformation occurred in two areas of the upper skin of the blade. One of these was near the blade root and the other was about the middle of the tested portion of the blade. The emission monitoring indicated that no damage was taking place in the area near the root, but in the deforming area near the middle of the blade, damage occurred from the first cycles at the higher load. The test was stopped after approximately one day and the blade was declared destroyed, although no gross damage had occurred. Several weeks later the test was resumed, to be continued until gross damage occurred. The upper skin tore approximately one half hour after the cycling was restarted.

Boundary between two perfectly bonded single crystals plays an important role in determining the deformation of the bicrystals. This work addresses the role of the grain boundary by considering the elevated hardening of a slip system due to a slip gradient. The slip gradients are associated with geometrically necessary dislocations and their effects become pronounced when a representative length scale of the deformation field is comparable to the dominant microstructural length scale of a material. A new rate-dependent crystal plasticity theory is presented and has been implemented within the finite element method framework. A planar bicrystal under uniform in-plane loading is studied using the new crystal theory. The strain is found to be continuous but nonuniform within a boundary layer around the interface. The lattice rotation is also nonuniform within the boundary layer. The width of the layer is determined by the misorientation of the grains, the hardening of slip systems, and most importantly by the characteristic material length scales. The overall yield strength of the bicrystal is also obtained. A significant grain-size dependence of the yield strength, the Hall- Petch effect is predicted.

Batteries in hybrid power applications that include intermittent generators, such as wind turbines, experience a very irregular pattern of charge and discharge cycles. Because battery life is dependent on both depth and rate of discharge (and other factors such as temperature, charging strategy, etc.), estimating battery life and optimally sizing batteries for hybrid systems is difficult. Typically, manufacturers give battery life data, if at all, as cycles to failure versus depth of discharge, where all discharge cycles are assumed to be under conditions of constant temperature, current, and depth of discharge. Use of such information directly can lead to gross errors in battery lifetime estimation under actual operating conditions, which may result in either a higher system cost than necessary or an undersized battery bank prone to early failure. Even so, most current battery life estimation algorithms consider only the effect of depth of discharge on cycle life. This paper will discuss a new battery life prediction method, developed to investigate the effects of two primary determinants of battery life in hybrid power applications, varying depths of discharge and varying rates of discharge. A significant feature of the model is that it bases its analysis on battery performance and cycle …

Holography has been used successfully in combination with conventional optics for the first time in a large cryogenic bubble chamber, the 15-Foot Bubble Chamber at Fermilab, during a physics run. The innovative system combined the reference beam with the object beam, illuminating a conical volume of {approx} 1.4 m{sup 3}. Bubble tracks from neutrino interactions with a width of {approx} 120 {micro}m have been recorded with good contrast. The ratio of intensities of the object light to the reference light striking the film is called the Beam Branching Ratio. We obtained in our experiment an exceedingly small minimum-observable ratio of (0.54 {+-} 0.21) x 10{sup -7}. The technology has the potential for a wide range of applications.

Article on the solubility of anthracene in binary alcohol + 3-methoxy-1-butanol solvent mixtures.

Article discussing the simulation of plant species groups dynamics in a Venezuelan western plains forest.

In a laboratory study of cores from borehole SB-15-D in The Geysers geothermal area, we measured the electrical resistivity of metashale with and without pore-pressure control, with confining pressures up to 100 bars and temperatures between 20 and 150 C, to determine how the pore-size distribution and capillarity affected boiling. We observed a gradual increase in resistivity when the downstream pore pressure or confining pressure decreased below the phase boundary of free water. For the conditions of this experiment, boiling, as indicated by an increase in resistivity, is initiated at pore pressures of approximately 0.5 to 1 bar (0.05 to 0.1 MPa) below the free-water boiling curve, and it continues to increase gradually as pressure is lowered to atmospheric. A simple model of the effects of capillarity suggests that at 145 C, less than 15% of the pore water can boil in these rocks. If subsequent experiments bear out these preliminary observations, then boiling within a geothermal reservoir is controlled not just by pressure and temperature but also by pore-size distribution. Thus, it may be possible to determine reservoir characteristics by monitoring changes in electrical resistivity as reservoir conditions change.

The development of a new software package to control data acquisition and perform data analysis for a Passive/Active Neutron Assay system was reported at this conference in 1994. The software has undergone additional development including improvements to the user interface, additional data integrity checks and support for a shift register coincidence analyzer. An overview of this additional work is presented in this report.

Geothermal resources in the southwestern United States provide an opportunity for development of isolated spaceports with local energy self-sufficiency. Geothermal resources can provide both thermal energy and electrical energy for the spaceport facility infrastructure and production of hydrogen fuel for the space vehicles. In contrast to hydrothermal resources by which electric power is generated for sale to utilities, hot dry rock (HDR) geothermal resources are more wide-spread and can be more readily developed at desired spaceport locations. This paper reviews a dynamic model used to quantify the HDR resources requirements for a generic spaceport and estimate the necessary reservoir size and heat extraction rate. The paper reviews the distribution of HDR resources in southern California and southern New Mexico, two regions where a first developmental spaceport is likely to be located. Finally, the paper discusses the design of a HDR facility for the generic spaceport and estimates the cost of the locally produced power.

During peak operation, the National Ignition Facility (NIF) will conduct as many as 600 experiments per year and attain deuterium- tritium fusion yields as high as 1200 MJ/yr. The radiation effective dose equivalent (EDE) to workers is limited to an average of 03 mSv/yr (30 mrem/yr) in occupied areas of the facility. Laboratory personnel determined located outside the facility will receive EDEs <= 0.5 mSv/yr (<= 50 mrem/yr). The total annual occupational EDE for the facility will be maintained at <= 0.1 person-Sv/yr (<= 10 person- rem/yr). To ensure that prompt EDEs meet these limits, three- dimensional Monte Carlo calculations have been completed.

We combine molecular dynamics and Monte Carlo simulations to study damage accumulation and dose rate effects during irradiation of Silicon. We obtain the initial stage of the damage produced by heavy and light ions using classical molecular dynamics simulations. While heavy ions like As or Pt induce amorphization by single ion impact, light ions like B only produce point defects or small clusters of defects. The amorphous pockets generated by heavy ions are stable below room temperature and recrystallize at temperatures below the threshold for recrystallization of a planar amorphous-crystalline interface. The damage accumulation during light ion irradiation is simulated using a Monte Carlo model for defect diffusion. In this approach, we study the damage in the lattice as a function of dose and dose rate. A strong reduction in the total number of defects left in the lattice is observed for lower dose rates.

We have made further progress in developing a cleanable steel fiber HEPA filter. We fabricated a pleated cylindrical cartridge using commercially available steel fiber media that is made with 1 {mu}m stainless steel fibers and sintered into a sheet form. Test results at the Department of Energy (DOE) Filter Test Station at Oak Ridge show the prototype filter cartridge has 99.99% efficiency for 0.3 {mu}m dioctyl phthalate (DOP) aerosols and a pressure drop of 1.5 inches. Filter loading and cleaning tests using AC Fine dust showed the filter could be repeatedly cleaned using reverse air pulses. Our analysis of commercially optimized filters suggest that cleanable steel HEPA filters need to be made from steel fibers less than 1 {mu}m, and preferably 0.5 {mu}m, to meet the standard HEPA filter requirements in production units. We have demonstrated that 0.5 {mu}m steel fibers can be produced using the fiber bundling and drawing process. The 0.5 {mu}m steel fibers are then sintered into small filter samples and tested for efficiency and pressure drop. Test results on the sample showed a penetration of 0.0015% at 0.3 {mu}m and a pressure drop of 1.15 inches at 6.9 ft/min (3.5 cm/s) velocity. Based on these results, …

The BPI Model 2080 Pulsed Neutron Detector has been used for over seven years as an area radiation monitor and dose limiter at the LANSCE accelerator complex. Operating experience and changing environments over this time have revealed several vulnerabilities (susceptibility to electrical noise, paralysis in high dose rate fields, etc.). Identified vulnerabilities have been connected; these modifications include component replacement and circuit design changes. The data and experiments leading to these modifications will be presented and discussed. Calibration of the instrument is performed in mixed static gamma and neutron source fields. The statistical characteristics of the Geiger-Muller tubes coupled with significantly different sensitivity to gamma and neutron doses require that careful attention be paid to acceptable fluctuations in dose rate over time during calibration. The performance of the instrument has been modeled using simple Poisson statistics and the operating characteristics of the Geiger-Muller tubes. The results are in excellent agreement with measurements. The analysis and comparison with experimental data will be presented.

It is common practice in system analysis to develop mathematical models for system behavior. Frequently, the actual system being modeled is also available for testing and observation, and sometimes the test data are used to help identify the parameters of the mathematical model. However, no general-purpose technique exists for formally, statistically judging the quality of a model. This paper suggests a formal statistical procedure for the validation of mathematical models of systems when data taken during operation of the system are available. The statistical validation procedure is based on the bootstrap, and it seeks to build a framework where a statistical test of hypothesis can be run to determine whether or not a mathematical model is an acceptable model of a system with regard to user-specified measures of system behavior. The approach to model validation developed in this study uses experimental data to estimate the marginal and joint confidence intervals of statistics of interest of the system. These same measures of behavior are estimated for the mathematical model. The statistics of interest from the mathematical model are located relative to the confidence intervals for the statistics obtained from the experimental data. These relative locations are used to judge the accuracy …

The smoothing of the spatial illumination of an inertial confinement fusion target is examined by its spatial frequency content. It is found that the smoothing by spectral dispersion method, although efficient for glass lasers, can yield poor smoothing at low spatial frequency. The dependence of the smoothed spatial spectrum on the characteristics of phase modulation and dispersion is examined for both sinusoidal and more general phase modulation. It is shown that smoothing with non-sinusoidal phase modulation can result in spatial spectra which are substantially identical to that obtained with the induced spatial incoherence or similar method where random phase plates are present in both methods and identical beam divergence is assumed.

Relation between submilligram sample size and {sup 14}C activity for sample blanks (wood from Pliocene sediments) and a contemporary standard (oxalic acid) for catalytically reduced graphitic carbon was examined down to 20 micrograms. Mean age of the 1 mg wood sample blanks is now about 51.3 ka (0.168 pMC) while the mean for 20 microgram sample blanks is about 42.9 ka. So far, the lowest value for a 1-mg wood sample blank is about 60.5 ka (0.056 pMC). We have determined a mean {sup 14}C age of about 9.4 ka from a suite of 7 organic extracts from hair, bone, and matting from a mummified human skeleton from Spirit Cave, Nevada. These data indicate that the Spirit Cave human is the third, oldest directly-dated, human skeleton currently known from North America.

The Montreal Protocol phase-out of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) has required manufacturers to develop refrigeration and air-conditioning systems that use refrigerants that can not damage stratospheric ozone. Most refrigeration industries have adapted their designs to use hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) or hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants; new automobile air- conditioning systems use HFC-134a. These industries are now being affected by scientific investigations of greenhouse warming and questions about the effects of refrigerants on global warming. Automobile air-conditioning has three separate impacts on global warming; (1) the effects of refrigerant inadvertently released to the atmosphere from accidents, servicing, and leakage; (2) the efficiency of the cooling equipment (due to the emission of C0{sub 2} from burning fuel to power the system); and (3) the emission of C0{sub 2} from burning fuel to transport the system. The Total Equivalent Warming Impact (TEWI) is an index that should be used to compare the global warming effects of alternative air-conditioning systems because it includes these contributions from the refrigerant, cooling efficiency, and weight. This paper compares the TEWI of current air-conditioning systems using HFC-134a with that of transcritical vapor compression system using carbon dioxide and systems using flammable refrigerants with secondary heat transfer loops. Results are found to depend on …

The General-Purpose Heat Source (GPHS) provides power for space missions by transmitting the heat of [sup 238]Pu decay to an array of thermoelectric elements in a radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG). The modular GPHS design was developed to address both survivability during launch abort and return from orbit. The first two RTG Impact Tests were designed to provide information on the response of a fully loaded RTG to end-on impact against a concrete target. The results of these tests indicated that at impact velocities up to 57 m/s the converter shell and internal components protect the GPHS capsules from excessive deformation. At higher velocities, some of the internal components of the RTG interact with the GPHS capsules to cause excessive localized deformation and failure.

The 757/767 internal drive generator (IDG), which provides 400 Hz/120 volt ac power to the aircraft cabin experiences failures due to seizure of the scavenger drive pump and/or axial gears on the main drive shaft of the unit. These generators are an integral part of the aircraft`s engines sitting outboard, inside the engine cowling. The seizure of gears represents a significant loss with gear replacement estimated at $17,000 and unit replacement costs at $250,000. One of the U.S. commercial airline companies engaged Oak Ridge National Laboratory in a brief study to determine if a methodology could be developed to interrogate and diagnose gear wear with the ultimate goal of deploying an instrument for test stand and flight line use. Through a structured analysis it was determined that accelerometers mapped with higher order spectral analysis (HOSA) and/or wavelets could provide an analytic approach and basis for a diagnostic sensor/system capable of assessing IDG gear wear on the aircraft or the test stand.

Map labeling is of fundamental importance in cartography and geographical information systems and is one of the areas targeted for research by the ACM Computational Geometry Impact Task Force. Previous work on map labeling has focused on the problem of placing maximal uniform, axis-aligned, disjoint rectangles on the plane so that each point feature to be labeled lies at the corner of one rectangle. Here, we consider a number of variants of the map labeling problem. We obtain three general types of results. First, we devise constant-factor polynomial-time-approximation algorithms for labeling point features by rectangular labels, where the feature may lie anywhere on the boundary of its label region and where labeling rectangles may be placed in any orientation. These results generalize to the case of elliptical labels. Secondly, we consider the problem of labeling a map consisting of disjoint rectilinear fine segments. We obtain constant-factor polynomial-time approximation algorithms for the general problem and an optimal algorithm for the special case where all segments are horizontal. Finally, we formulate a bicriteria version of the map-labeling problem and provide bicriteria polynomial- time approximation schemes for a number of such problems.