Silica membranes were prepared using a novel technique of catalyzed-atomic layer deposition of silica within a mesoporous matrix. Pyridine was used to catalyze the silicon chloride attachment to the hydroxylated silica surface at room temperature. This half-reaction was followed by the hydration of the surface with water regenerating surface hydroxyls and completing one reaction cycle. The technique resulted in the self-limited pore size reduction of the mesoporous matrix to pore sizes near 1 nm. The self-limited reaction was presumed to be the exclusion of the large catalyst molecule from the pore entrance. In addition to pore size reduction, viscous flow defects were repaired without significantly reducing overall porosity of the membrane. In addition, we investigated the ability of amine-functionalization to enhance the CO{sub 2} transport in silica membranes. Specifically, we examined three synthesis techniques for functionalizing silica membranes with amino groups that resulted in different surface chemistries of the silica membranes. These differences were correlated with changes in the CO{sub 2} facilitation characteristics. It was found that high loadings of amino groups where interaction with the silica surface was minimized promoted the highest CO{sub 2} transport.

The objective of the research was to perform a comprehensive computational analysis of the effects of material and process modeling approaches on performance of UltraLight Steel Auto Body (ULSAB) vehicle models. The research addressed numerous material related effects, impact conditions as well as analyzed the performance of the ULSAB vehicles in crashes against designs representing the current US vehicle fleet. This report is organized into three main sections. The first section describes the results of the computational analysis of ULSAB crash simulations that were performed using advanced material modeling techniques. The effects of strain-rate sensitivity on a high strength steel (HSS) intensive vehicle were analyzed. Frontal and frontal offset crash scenarios were used in a finite element parametric study of the ULSAB body structure. Comparisons are made between the crash results using the piece-wise-linear isotropic plasticity strain-rate dependent material model, and the isotropic plasticity material model based on quasi-static properties. The simulation results show the importance of advanced material modeling techniques for vehicle crash simulations due to strain-rate sensitivity and rapid hardening characteristics of advanced high strength steels. Material substitution was investigated for the main frontal crush structure using the material of similar yield stress a significantly different strain-rate and …

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These proceedings contain papers prepared for the 25th Seismic Research Review -- Nuclear Explosion Monitoring: Building the Knowledge Base, held 23-25 September, 2003 in Tucson, Arizona. These papers represent the combined research related to ground-based nuclear explosion monitoring funded by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), US Army Space and Missile Defense Command, and other invited sponsors. The scientific objectives of the research are to improve the United States capability to detect, locate, and identify nuclear explosions. The purpose of the meeting is to provide the sponsoring agencies, as well as potential users, an opportunity to review research accomplished during the preceding year and to discuss areas of investigation for the coming year. For the researchers, it provides a forum for the exchange of scientific information toward achieving program goals, and an opportunity to discuss results and future plans. Paper topics include: seismic regionalization and calibration; detection and location of sources; wave propagation from source to receiver; the nature of seismic sources, including mining practices; hydroacoustic, infrasound, and radionuclide methods; on-site inspection; and data processing.

This comprehensive topical report discusses the key findings in the development of an advanced blower for HVAC applications. The benefits of rearward inclined blades over that of traditional forward inclined blades is well documented, and several prototype wheels are demonstrated in various housings. A comparison of retrofitted blowers to that of three typical units from the industry is presented. The design and modification of the blower housing is addressed and the impact of size limitations on static efficiency is discussed. The roadmap to rearward-inclined wheel technology insertion is presented and typical static efficiency gains are documented.

Over the past decade, liquefaction assessments have been performed for many existing and planned critical facilities at the Department of Energy's Savannah River Site (SRS). The assessments incorporated site-specific Cyclic Resistance Ratio (CRR) and K with the use of the cone penetration test (CPT). The SRS-specific CRR and K were developed from laboratory testing of carefully collected samples. Test results show SRS soils have increased liquefaction resistance of two to three times when compared to standard literature for Holocene-age deposits. This increase in strength can be attributed to many factors such as aging and overconsolidation. The purpose of this paper is to discuss liquefaction methodologies used at the SRS. Specifically, (1) use of the CPT and correlations of CPT-derived results with that of high-quality undisturbed samples; (2) aging; and (3) K vertical confining stress factor.

Zero-valent iron is cheap, environmentally innocuous, and effective at reducing chlorinated organics. It has, as a result, become a popular candidate for remediating aquifers contaminated with trichloroethylene and other halogenated pollutants. In this paper, we discuss one such system, where iron nanoparticles are synthesized and incorporated into polyvinyl alcohol membranes, forming water-permeable barriers to these pollutants. These barriers are tested against a variety of contaminants, including carbon tetrachloride, copper, and chromate.

The mechanisms by which transparent dielectrics damage when exposed to high power laser radiation has been of scientific and technological interest since the invention of the laser. In this work, a set of three experiments are presented which provide insight into the damage initiation mechanisms and the processes involved in laser-induced damage. Using an OPO (optical parametric oscillator) laser, we have measured the damage thresholds of deuterated potassium dihydrogen phosphate (DKDP) from the near ultraviolet into the visible. Distinct steps, whose width is of order K{sub b}T, are observed in the damage threshold at photon energies associated with the number of photons (3{yields}2 or 4{yields}3) needed to promote a ground state electron across the energy gap. The wavelength dependence of the damage threshold suggests that a primary mechanism for damage initiation in DKDP is a multi-photon process in which the order is reduced through excited defect state absorption. In-situ fluorescence microscopy, in conjunction with theoretical calculations by Liu et al., has been used to establish that hydrogen displacement defects are potentially responsible for the reduction in the multi-photon cross-section. During the damage process, the material absorbs energy from the laser pulse and produces an ionized region that gives rise to …

High-resolution computer simulations produce large volumes of data. As a first step in the analysis of these data, supervised machine learning techniques can be used to retrieve objects similar to a query that the user finds interesting. These objects may be characterized by a large number of features, some of which may be redundant or irrelevant to the similarity retrieval problem. This paper presents a comparison of six dimensionality reduction algorithms on data from a fluid mixing simulation. The objective is to identify methods that efficiently find feature subsets that result in high accuracy rates. Our experimental results with single- and multi-resolution data suggest that standard forward feature selection produces the smallest feature subsets in the shortest time.

This project was designed to characterize the available multidentate ligand species and metal ion complexes of iron, strontium and manganese formed with the parent chelators, complexing agents and their fragment products. Complex identification was applied to AN-102 and AN-107 filtrate simulants for Hanford waste after an oxidation reaction with sodium permanganate to create a freshly precipitated manganese dioxide solid for adsorption of transuranic elements. Separation efficiency of different ligands was investigated based on the exchange capability of different ion exchange and ion exclusion analytical columns including Dionex IonPac AS-5A, AS-10, AS-11 and AS-6. The elution programs developed with different mobile phase concentrations were based on the change in the effective charge of the anionic species and therefore the retention on the stationary phase. In the present work, qualitative and quantitative assessments of multidentate ligands were investigated. Identification methods for the metal ion complexes responsible for solubilizing Fe, Mn and Sr were applied to aged and fresh simulant waste filtrates. Although concentration measurements of both fresh and 3-week aged filtrates showed that the degradation process occurs mainly due to the harsh chemical environment, it was found that the concentration of iron and manganese did not increase, within the error of the …

The central activity of the PDB continues to be the collection, archiving and distribution of high quality structural data to the scientific community on a timely basis. In support of these activities NIST has continued its roles in developing the physical archive, in developing data uniformity, in dealing with NMR issues and in the distribution of PDB data through CD-ROMs. The physical archive holdings have been organized, inventoried, and a database has been created to facilitate their use. Data from individual PDB entries have been annotated to produce uniform values improving tremendously the accuracy of results of queries. Working with the NMR community we have established data items specific for NMR that will be included in new entries and facilitate data deposition. The PDB CD-ROM production has continued on a quarterly basis, and new products are being distributed.