A series of small scale explosive tests were performed during the spring of 1994 at a perlite mine located near Socorro, NM. The tests were designed to investigate the azimuthal or directional relationship between small scale geologic structures such as joints and the propagation of explosively induced ground motion. Three shots were initiated within a single borehole located at ground zero (gz) at depths varying from the deepest at 83 m (272 ft) to the shallowest at 10 m (32 ft). The intermediate shot was initiated at a depth of 63 m (208 ft). An array of three component velocity and acceleration transducers were placed in two concentric rings entirely surrounding the single shot hole at 150 and 300 azimuths as measured from ground zero. Data from the transducers was then used to determine the average propagation velocity of the blast vibration through the rock mass at the various azimuths. The rock mass was mapped to determine the prominent joint orientations (strike and dip) and the average propagation velocities were correlated with this geologic information. The data from these experiments shows that there is a correlation between the orientation of prominent joints and the average velocity of ground motion. It …

The fundamental and practical aspects are described for extracting ions from atmospheric pressure plasma sources into an analytical mass spectrometer. Methodologies and basic concepts of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) are emphasized in the discussion, including ion source, sampling interface, supersonic expansion, slumming process, ion optics and beam focusing, and vacuum considerations. Some new developments and innovative designs are introduced. The plasma extraction process in ICP-MS was investigated by Langmuir measurements in the region between the skimmer and first ion lens. Electron temperature (T{sub e}) is in the range 2000--11000 K and changes with probe position inside an aerosol gas flow. Electron density (n{sub e}) is in the range 10{sup 8}--10{sup 10} {sup {minus}cm }at the skimmer tip and drops abruptly to 10{sup 6}--10{sup 8} cm{sup {minus}3} near the skimmer tip and drops abruptly to 10{sup 6}--10{sup 8} cm{sup {minus}3} downstream further behind the skimmer. Electron density in the beam leaving the skimmer also depends on water loading and on the presence and mass of matrix elements. Axially resolved distributions of electron number-density and electron temperature were obtained to characterize the ion beam at a variety of plasma operating conditions. The electron density dropped by a factor of 101 …

Two reactions which are important to coal liquefaction include intermolecular transfer and the elimination of two hydrogen atoms. We have designed several model reactions to probe the viability of several hydrogen transfer and elimination pathways. This report described studies on these reactions using organic model compounds.

{sup 27}Al and {sup 61,65}Cu NMR measurements are reported for powder samples of stable AlCuFe and AlCuRu icosahedral quasicrystals and their crystalline approximants, and for a AlPdMn single grain quasicrystal. Furthermore, {sup 27}Al NQR spectra at 4.2 K have been observed in the AlCuFe and AlCuRu samples. From the quadrupole perturbed NMR spectra at different magnetic fields, and from the zero field NQR spectra, a wide distribution of local electric field gradient (EFG) tensor components and principal axis system orientations was found at the Al site. A model EFG calculation based on a 1/1 AlCuFe approximant was successful in explaining the observed NQR spectra. It is concluded that the average local gradient is largely determined by the p-electron wave function at the Al site, while the width of the distribution is due to the lattice contribution to the EFG. Comparison of {sup 63}Cu NMR with {sup 27}Al NMR shows that the EFG distribution at the two sites is similar, but that the electronic contribution to the EFG is considerably smaller at the Cu site, in agreement with a more s-type wave function of the conduction electrons.

A one-dimensional reactivity calculation code is developed using first order perturbation theory. The reactivity equation is based on the multi-group transport equation using the discrete ordinates method for angular dependence. In addition to the first order perturbation approximations, the reactivity code uses only the isotropic scattering data, but cross section libraries with higher order scattering data can still be used with this code. The reactivity code obtains all the flux, cross section, and geometry data from the standard interface files created by ONEDANT, a discrete ordinates transport code. Comparisons between calculated and experimental reactivities were done with the central reactivity worth data for Lady Godiva, a bare uranium metal assembly. Good agreement is found for isotopes that do not violate the assumptions in the first order approximation. In general for cases where there are large discrepancies, the discretized cross section data is not accurately representing certain resonance regions that coincide with dominant flux groups in the Godiva assembly. Comparing reactivities calculated with first order perturbation theory and a straight {Delta}k/k calculation shows agreement within 10% indicating the perturbation of the calculated fluxes is small enough for first order perturbation theory to be applicable in the modeled system. Computation time comparisons …

With the ever increasing awareness of the toxicity of Pb, significant pressure has been put on the electronics industry to get the Pb out of solder. This work pertains to the development and characterization of an alloy which is Pb-free, yet retains the proven positive qualities of current Sn-Pb solders while enhancing the shortcomings of Sn-Pb solder. The solder studied is the Sn-4.7Ag-1.7Cu wt% alloy. By utilizing a variety of experimental techniques the alloy was characterized. The alloy has a melting temperature of 217{degrees}C and exhibits eutectic melting behavior. The solder was examined by subjecting to different annealing schedules and examining the microstructural stability. The effect of cooling rate on the microstructure of the solder was also examined. Overall, this solder alloy shows great promise as a viable alternative to Pb-bearing solders and, as such, an application for a patent has been filed.

The equations of motion describing turbulent flows (in both the low and high Reynolds-number regimes) are well established. However, present day computers cannot meet the enormous computational requirement for numerically solving the governing equations for common engineering flows in the high Reynolds number turbulent regime. The characteristics that make turbulent, high Reynolds number flows difficult to simulate is the extreme range of time and space scales of motion. Most current engineering calculations are performed using semi-empirical equations, developed in terms of the flow mean (average) properties. These turbulence{open_quote} models{close_quote} (semi-empirical/analytical approximations) do not explicitly account for the eddy structures and thus, the temporal and spatial flow fluctuations are not resolved. In these averaging approaches, it is necessary to approximate all the turbulent structures using semi-empirical relations, and as a result, the turbulence models must be tailored for specific flow conditions and geometries with parameters obtained (usually) from physical experiments. The motivation for this research is the development of a finite element turbulence modeling approach which will ultimately be used to predict the wind flow around buildings. Accurate turbulence models of building flow are needed to predict the dispersion of airborne pollutants. The building flow turbulence models used today are not …

Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy was used to elucidate detailed structural information for peptide and protein molecules. A small peptide was designed and synthesized, and its three-dimensional structure was calculated using distance information derived from two-dimensional NMR measurements. The peptide was used to induce antibodies in mice, and the cross-reactivity of the antibodies with a related protein was analyzed with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Two proteins which are involved in regulation of transcription in bacteria were also studied. The ferric uptake regulation (Fur) protein is a metal-dependent repressor which controls iron uptake in bacteria. Two- and three-dimensional NMR techniques, coupled with uniform and selective isotope labeling allowed the nearly complete assignment of the resonances of the metal-binding domain of the Fur protein. NTRC is a transcriptional enhancer binding protein whose N-terminal domain is a {open_quote}receiver domain{close_quote} in the family of {open_quote}two-component{close_quote} regulatory systems. Phosphorylation of the N-terminal domain of NTRC activates the initiation of transcription of aeries encoding proteins involved in nitrogen regulation. Three- and four-dimensional NMR spectroscopy methods have been used to complete the resonance assignments and determine the solution structure of the N-terminal receiver domain of the NTRC protein. Comparison of the solution structure of the NTRC receiver domain with …

Over the past couple of decades, the Standard Model of high energy particle physics has clearly established itself as an invaluable tool in the analysis of high energy particle phenomenon. However, from a field theorists point of view, there are many dissatisfying aspects to the model. One of these, is the large number of free parameters in the theory arising from the Yukawa couplings of the Higgs doublet. In this thesis, we examine various issues relating to the Yukawa coupeng structure of high energy particle field theories. We begin by examining extensions to the Standard Model of particle physics which contain additional scalar fields. By appealing to the flavor structure observed in the fermion mass and Kobayashi-Maskawa matrices, we propose a reasonable phenomenological parameterization of the new Yukawa couplings based on the concept of approximate flavor symmetries. It is shown that such a parameterization eliminates the need for discrete symmetries which limit the allowed couplings of the new scalars. New scalar particles which can mediate exotic flavor changing reactions can have masses as low as the weak scale. Next, we turn to the issue of neutrino mass matrices, where we examine a particular texture which leads to matter independent neutrino …