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Review of state-of-the-art of solar collector corrosion processes. Task 1 of solar collector studies for solar heating and cooling applications. Final technical progress report
The state-of-the-art of solar collector corrosion processes is reviewed, and Task 1 of a current research program on use of aqueous heat transfer fluids for solar heating and cooling is summarized. The review of available published literature has indicated that lack of quantitative information exists relative to collector corrosion at the present time, particularly for the higher temperature applications of solar heating and cooling compared to domestic water heating. Solar collector systems are reviewed from the corrosion/service life viewpoint, with emphasis on various applications, collector design, heat transfer fluids, and freeze protection methods. Available information (mostly qualitative) on collector corrosion technology is reviewed to indicate potential corrosion problem areas and corrosion prevention practices. Sources of limited quantitative data that are reviewed are current solar applications, research programs on collector corrosion, and pertinent experience in related applications of automotive cooling and non-solar heating and cooling. A data bank was developed to catalog corrosion information. Appendix A of this report is a bibliography of the data bank, with abstracts reproduced from presently available literature accessions (about 220). This report is presented as a descriptive summary of information that is contained in the data bank.
Date:
April 11, 1980
Creator:
Clifford, J E & Diegle, R B
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Heating by the Raman instability
Computer simulations are presented of the reflection and heating due to stimulated Raman backscatter of intense laser light in large regions of underdense plasma. The heated electron distribution is found to be approximately a Maxwellian of temperature (m/sub e//2)v/sub p//sup 2/, where v/sub p/ is the phase velocity of the electron plasma wave. A simple model of the reflection is presented. Raman may cause a pre-heat problem with large laser fusion reactor targets.
Date:
April 11, 1980
Creator:
Estabrook, K.G. & Kruer, W.L.
Object Type:
Article
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Study of corrosion in multimetallic systems. Task 2 of solar collector studies for solar heating and cooling applications. Final technical progress report
Corrosion measurements were made on candidate alloys of construction for non-concentrating solar collectors under simulated conditions of collector operation. Materials evaluated were aluminum alloys 1100, 3003, and 6061, copper alloy 122, Type 444 stainless steel, and 1018 plain carbon steel. The solutions used were equivolume mixtures of ethylene glycol and water, and propylene glycol and water. They were used without corrosion inhibitors but with addition of chloride, sulfate, and bicarbonate ions. The influences of dissolved oxygen, solution flow velocity, and heat transfer were evaluated. Corrosion morphologies investigated were general attack, pitting, crevice corrosion, and galvanic corrosion. Experimental results indicated that aluminum alloys can experience severe pitting and crevice corrosion at chloride concentrations approaching 50 ppM. The corrosion rate of copper exceeded about 100 ..mu..m/yr in ethylene glycol solutions and about 80 ..mu..m/yr in propylene glycol solutions. Crevice corrosion was not observed for copper, but severe galvanic corrosion occurred when it was coupled to T444 stainless steel. T444 steel corroded at rates of less than 1 ..mu..m/yr under all exposure conditions. During circulation at 100 C in the presence of air, ethylene glycol solutions acidified because of degradation of the glycol. The initial pH of propylene glycol solutions was already low, …
Date:
April 11, 1980
Creator:
Diegle, R B
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
DIRECTIONS FOR THE FABRICATION OF A PROBE FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF PLATE SPACING IN PLATE-TYPE FUEL ELEMENTS
A probe for measurement of the space between fuel plates in high-burnup MTR-type fuel elements by eddycurrent techniques is described/su The sensing section is supported near the end of a flattened stainless steel tube into which a rectangular hole was cut to receive it/su The sensing section consists essentially of two slightly bowed springs, the midsections of which protrude slightly above the upper and lower surfaces of the flattened tube. Each spring- carries a section of a ball bearing as the contact point/su It is these two slightly bowed springs that serve as expanding calipers sensing variations in the spacing between adjacent plates. Essentially the rest of the probe is a long handle to permit probing and a conduit for the electrical leads. A two-wire shielded cable is firmly attached to the unflattened end of the probe and then attached to a modified Wheatstone bridge, from which the output is fed into a chart recorder. (M.C.G.)
Date:
April 11, 1962
Creator:
Dismuke, S.E.
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
The Federal Government's Long-Term Fiscal Outlook: Spring 2013 Update
Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Since 1992, GAO has published long-term fiscal simulations showing federal deficits and debt under different sets of policy assumptions."
Date:
April 11, 2013
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Text
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Automated Teller Machines: Some Consumer Fees Have Increased
A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Automated teller machine (ATM) operators include financial institutions--banks and credit unions--as well as independent firms. Industry representatives GAO spoke with estimate there are approximately 420,000 ATMs in the United States. They estimate that financial institutions operate and set the fees for about half of the market, and independent operators work together with merchants to operate the remainder and to determine the fees incurred by consumers. ATM operators have differing business models that affect the way they set ATM fees for consumers. Financial institutions operate ATMs as a convenience to their own account holders, who generally do not pay fees to use these ATMs, while non-account-holding customers do. At independent ATMs, most consumers incur a surcharge fee, although there are some exceptions, such as when the ATM is part of a surcharge-free ATM network."
Date:
April 11, 2013
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Defense Acquisitions: Missile Defense Needs a Better Balance between Flexibility and Accountability
Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Over the next 5 years the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) expects to invest $49 billion in the Ballistic Missile Defense System's (BMDS) development and fielding. MDA's strategy is to field new capabilities in 2-year blocks. In January 2006, MDA initiated its second block--Block 2006--to protect against attacks from North Korea and the Middle East. Congress requires GAO to assess MDA's progress annually. GAO's March 2007 report addressed MDA's progress during fiscal year 2006 and followed up on program oversight issues and the current status of MDA's quality assurance program. GAO assessed the progress of each element being developed by MDA, examined acquisition laws applicable to major acquisition programs, and reviewed the impact of implemented quality initiatives."
Date:
April 11, 2007
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Text
System:
The UNT Digital Library
IRS Budget 2012: Extending Systematic Reviews of Spending Could Identify More Savings Over Time
A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The financing of the federal government depends largely on the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) efforts to collect taxes. These efforts focus on providing taxpayer services, such as electronic filing and telephone assistance, to make voluntary compliance easier and enforcing tax laws to ensure everyone meets their obligations to pay taxes. To fund IRS's 2012 operations, the President requested $13.3 billion spread over five appropriations, including $6 billion for enforcement, $4.6 billion for operations support, and $2.3 billion for taxpayer services. Because of the size of IRS's budget and the importance of its service and compliance programs for all taxpayers, Congress asked us to review the fiscal year 2012 budget justification for IRS. Special areas of interest included any new tax law enforcement and taxpayer service initiatives, the cost of implementing IRS's responsibilities under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), and any opportunities for savings. Based on your request our objectives were to: (1) describe IRS's budget and staffing trends for fiscal years 2008 through 2012; (2) assess IRS's process for identifying potential savings and how it used savings that were greater than projected; (3) …
Date:
April 11, 2011
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Tax Administration: Telephone Excise Tax Refund Requests Are Fewer Than Projected and Have Had Minimal Impact on IRS Services
A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is implementing three tax system changes during the 2007 filing season that potentially could impact compliance by taxpayers as well as IRS's service to taxpayers. These changes are (1) the telephone excise tax refund (TETR), which can be requested by all individuals and entities that paid the excise tax regardless of whether they have an obligation to file a tax return, (2) the option to deposit refunds into up to three accounts, hereafter referred to as the split refund option, and (3) the extension of some tax provisions that had expired, hereafter referred to as the extender provisions. Because the 2007 filing season may be complicated by these changes, the Senate Committee on Finance asked GAO to determine the effects of these changes on compliance and taxpayer service including (1) the number of individuals or entities affected by these changes, (2) how the changes were expected to affect compliance and the results of compliance activities to date, and (3) the impact of the changes on returns processing and taxpayer service. GAO analyzed IRS documents and data from IRS databases and interviewed …
Date:
April 11, 2007
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Hospital Emergency Departments: Health Center Strategies That May Help Reduce Their Use
Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Hospital emergency departments are a major component of the nation's health care safety net as they are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and generally are required to medically screen all people regardless of ability to pay. From 1997 through 2007, U.S. emergency department per capita use increased 11 percent. In 2007, there were approximately 117 million visits to emergency departments; of these visits, approximately 8 percent were classified as nonurgent. The use of emergency departments, including use for nonurgent conditions, may increase as more people obtain health insurance coverage as the provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) are implemented. Some nonurgent visits are for conditions that likely could be treated in other, more cost-effective settings, such as health centers--facilities that provide primary care and other services to individuals in communities they serve regardless of ability to pay. Care provided in an emergency department may be substantially more costly than care provided in a health center. The average amount paid for a nonemergency visit to the emergency department was seven times more than that for a health center visit, according to …
Date:
April 11, 2011
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Text
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Follow-up Report on Matters Relating to Securities Arbitration
Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Our June 2000 report Securities Arbitration: Actions Needed to Address Problem of Unpaid Awards revealed that, although investors had won a majority of awards against brokers, a high proportion of those awards had not been paid. Nearly all of the unpaid awards involved cases decided in the National Association of Securities Dealer's (NASD) arbitration program and most involved brokers that had left the securities industry. A year later we reported on limited data suggesting that the rate of unpaid awards had declined. However, we noted that given the short time period that the data covered, regulators needed to continue monitoring the payment of the awards to determine whether additional steps need to be taken. Arbitration attorneys and claimants have also expressed concern about the timeliness of NASD's updating of arbitrator disclosure information, which can be used by the parties in arbitration to judge the competence and objectivity of arbitrators, and with NASD's ability to remove arbitrators from cases if conflicts arise. In addition, arbitration attorneys also expressed concern about the use of motions to dismiss and motions for summary judgment to terminate NASD-administered arbitration cases. This report responds …
Date:
April 11, 2003
Creator:
United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type:
Text
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Federal Courthouses: Recommended Construction Projects Should Be Evaluated under New Capital- Planning Process
A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Asset Management Planning (AMP) process represents progress by the federal judiciary (judiciary) in better aligning its capital-planning process with leading capitalplanning practices, but its 5-year plan for fiscal years 2014 to 2018--the document the judiciary uses to request courthouse construction projects--lacks transparency and key information on how projects qualify for new construction, alternatives the judiciary considered, and their cost. For example, the plan lists costs for the next phase of the 12 recommended courthouse projects, which have several phases, but does not list previous funding or ongoing annual costs for the projects. As a result, the plan lists about $1 billion in costs for the 12 projects, but the projects would actually cost the federal government an estimated $3.2 billion over the next 20 years. Congress has appropriated a small share of the money needed for the projects, and most will need design changes before construction can begin. As a result, there is a risk that congressional funding decisions could be made without complete and accurate information. However, with this information, decision makers could weigh current-year budget decisions within the context of projects' expected future …
Date:
April 11, 2013
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Millennium Challenge Corporation: Analysis of Compact Development and Future Obligations and Current Disbursements of Compact Assistance
Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), now in its fourth year of operations, provides aid to developing countries that have demonstrated a commitment to ruling justly, encouraging economic freedom, and investing in people. MCC provides monetary assistance to eligible countries through multiyear compact agreements to fund specific programs targeted at reducing poverty and stimulating economic growth. MCC has received appropriations for fiscal years 2004 to 2008 totaling more than $7.5 billion, and has set aside about $6.4 billion of this amount for compact assistance. The President has requested an additional $2.225 billion for MCC for 2009, of which MCC plans to use $1.88 billion for compact assistance with countries currently eligible for compacts. MCC compact development is a four-phase process: (1) an eligible country submits a compact proposal; (2) MCC conducts a due diligence review of the proposed projects; (3) MCC and the country negotiate and sign the compact; (4) MCC and the country complete preparations, including developing disbursement plans, for the compact to enter into force. After the compact enters into force, compact implementation begins, and funds are obligated and disbursed. As of March 2008, MCC had selected …
Date:
April 11, 2008
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Text
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Commercial Spent Nuclear Fuel: Observations on the Key Attributes and Challenges of Storage and Disposal Options
Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In November 2009, GAO reported on the attributes and challenges of a Yucca Mountain repository. A key attribute identified was that the Department of Energy (DOE) had spent significant resources to carry out design, engineering, and testing activities on the Yucca Mountain site and had completed a license application and submitted it to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which has regulatory authority over the construction, operation, and closure of a repository. If the repository had been built as planned, GAO concluded that it would have provided a permanent solution for the nation's commercial nuclear fuel and other nuclear waste and minimized the uncertainty of future waste safety. Constructing the repository also could have helped address issues including federal liabilities resulting from industry lawsuits against DOE related to continued storage of spent nuclear fuel at reactor sites. However, not having the support of the administration and the state of Nevada proved a key challenge. As GAO reported in April 2011, DOE officials did not cite technical or safety issues with the Yucca Mountain repository project when the project's termination was announced but instead stated that other solutions could achieve broader …
Date:
April 11, 2013
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Text
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Income Ranges of Taxpayers Who May Have Overpaid Federal Taxes by Not Itemizing
Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report provides information on the income ranges of taxpayers who may have overpaid federal taxes by not itemizing. GAO found that of the returns filed for tax year 1998, 53 percent of taxpayers who may have overpaid federal taxes by not itemizing, had adjusted gross incomes of $50,000 or less. Eleven percent showed adjusted gross incomes of more than $75,000. The median adjusted gross income for these returns was about $47,000. The median adjusted gross income for all returns filed in tax year 1998 was about $27,000."
Date:
April 11, 2002
Creator:
United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type:
Text
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Federal Reserve Banks: Areas for Improvement in Information Systems Controls
Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins ""
Date:
April 11, 2012
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Text
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Older Driver Safety: Knowledge Sharing Should Help States Prepare for Increase in Older Driver Population
A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "As people age, their physical, visual, and cognitive abilities may decline, making it more difficult for them to drive safely. Older drivers are also more likely to suffer injuries or die in crashes than drivers in other age groups. These safety issues will increase in significance because older adults represent the fastest-growing U.S. population segment. GAO examined (1) what the federal government has done to promote practices to make roads safer for older drivers and the extent to which states have implemented those practices, (2) the extent to which states assess the fitness of older drivers and what support the federal government has provided, and (3) what initiatives selected states have implemented to improve the safety of older drivers. To conduct this study, GAO surveyed 51 state departments of transportation (DOT), visited six states, and interviewed federal transportation officials."
Date:
April 11, 2007
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
International Space Station (ISS) - Ongoing Assessments for Life Extension Appear to be Supported
Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This document is in response to the mandate contained in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Authorization Act of 2010, Pub. L. No. 111-267, Section 503(c)(2), for GAO to provide an evaluation of the accuracy and level of confidence in the findings contained in NASA's assessment of the essential modules, operational systems and components, structural elements, and permanent scientific equipment required to ensure complete, effective, and safe functioning and full scientific utilization of the International Space Station through 2020. We provided to Congress a draft copy of this briefing in meetings with them on April 6 and 7, 2011. We also provided a draft to NASA for comment. NASA agreed with our findings and provided technical comments that we incorporated as appropriate."
Date:
April 11, 2011
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Text
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Tobacco Settlement: States' Allocations of Fiscal Year 2005 and Expected Fiscal Year 2006 Payments
A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In the 1990's, states sued major tobacco companies to obtain reimbursement for health impairments caused by the public's use of tobacco. In 1998, four of the nation's largest tobacco companies signed a Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) to make annual payments to 46 states in perpetuity as reimbursement for past tobacco-related health care costs. Some states have arranged to receive advance proceeds based on the amounts that tobacco companies owe by issuing bonds backed by future payments. The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 requires GAO to report annually, through fiscal year 2006, on how states use MSA payments made by tobacco companies. To conduct this study, GAO surveys the 46 states. This is the fifth and final of a series of reports that provides information on the payments the 46 states received in fiscal year 2005 and expect to receive in fiscal year 2006 and states' allocations of these funds to various program categories and changes from prior years."
Date:
April 11, 2006
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Ballistic Missile Defense: Actions Needed to Address Implementation Issues and Estimate Long-Term Costs for European Capabilities
A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense (DOD) met the presidentially announced time frame to deploy initial ballistic missile defense (BMD) capabilities in Europe under the European Phased Adaptive Approach (EPAA) but did not fully identify and plan to resolve implementation issues before deployment. As a result, DOD experienced implementation issues, such as incomplete construction of housing facilities for soldiers arriving at the EPAA radar site in Turkey and incomplete implementing arrangements defining how to operate with allies when certain BMD elements arrived in the host country. U.S. Strategic Command, in coordination with other combatant commands, developed criteria to assess whether a BMD capability is ready for operational use to ensure that BMD capabilities can be used as intended when they are delivered. However, the assessment criteria used during this process focused on effectiveness, suitability, and interoperability areas—such as whether BMD elements can work together to track ballistic missile threats—and did not explicitly require DOD to comprehensively identify and plan to resolve implementation issues prior to deploying these capabilities. DOD plans to continue to use its existing process to accept BMD capabilities planned for Europe in the future. Without …
Date:
April 11, 2014
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Security Assistance: State and DOD Need to Assess How the Foreign Military Financing Program for Egypt Achieves U.S. Foreign Policy and Security Goals
A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Since 1979, Egypt has received about $60 billion in military and economic assistance with about $34 billion in the form of foreign military financing (FMF) grants that enable Egypt to purchase U.S.-manufactured military goods and services. In this report, GAO (1) describes the types and amounts of FMF assistance provided to Egypt; (2) assesses the financing arrangements used to provide FMF assistance to Egypt; and (3) evaluates how the U.S. assesses the program's contribution to U.S. foreign policy and security goals."
Date:
April 11, 2006
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Indian Health Service: Capping Payment Rates for Nonhospital Services Could Save Millions of Dollars for Contract Health Services
A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Indian Health Service's (IHS) federal contract health services (CHS) programs primarily paid physicians at their billed charges, which were significantly higher than what Medicare and private insurers would have paid for the same services. IHS's policy states that federal CHS programs should purchase services from contracted providers at negotiated, reduced rates. However, of the almost $63 million that the federal CHS programs paid for physician services provided in 2010, they paid about $51 million (81 percent) to physicians at billed charges and about $12 million (19 percent) to physicians at negotiated, reduced rates. Payments for other types of nonhospital services followed similar trends, with about $40 million out of $52 million (77 percent) paid at billed charges. GAO estimated that IHS's federal CHS programs paid two times as much as what Medicare would have paid and about one and a quarter times as much as what private insurers would have paid for the same physician services provided in 2010. If federal CHS programs had paid Medicare rates for these services, they could have used an estimated $32 million in savings to pay for many of …
Date:
April 11, 2013
Creator:
United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
HUD Purchase Cards: Poor Internal Controls Resulted in Improper and Questionable Purchases
A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Due to the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) increasing use of purchase cards and the inherent risk associated with their use, Congress asked GAO to audit the purchase card program concentrating on assessing internal controls and determining whether purchases being made are a valid use of government funds."
Date:
April 11, 2003
Creator:
United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type:
Report
System:
The UNT Digital Library
Intercity Passenger Rail: Congress Faces Critical Decisions in Developing a National Policy
Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Because of Amtrak's worsening financial condition, there is growing agreement that the current mission, funding, and structure for providing intercity passenger rail needs to be changed. Intercity passenger rail has the potential to complement other more heavily used modes of transportation in markets where rail transport can be competitive. The potential benefits include reduced air and highway congestion, reduced pollution caused by automobiles, reduced fuel consumption and energy dependency, and greater safety. Intercity passenger rail systems, like other intercity transportation systems, are expensive. Amtrak has called for $30 billion in federal capital support over 20 years to upgrade its operations and to invest in high-speed rail corridors. Amtrak also estimates that the cost to fully develop the 10 federally designated high-speed rail corridors and Amtrak's Northeast Corridor could exceed $50 billion over 20 years. Congress must determine if and how intercity passenger rail fits into the nation's transportation system. and what level of federal investment should be made in light of other competing national priorities. Key initial steps in this framework could include (1) establishing clear, non-conflicting goals for federal support of intercity passenger rail systems; (2) establishing …
Date:
April 11, 2002
Creator:
United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type:
Text
System:
The UNT Digital Library