As part of the program to demonstrate TRISO-coated fuel for the Next Generation Nuclear Plant, a series of irradiation tests of Advanced Gas Reactor (AGR) fuel are being performed in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) at the Idaho National Laboratory. In the first test, called “AGR-1,” graphite compacts containing approximately 300,000 coated particles were irradiated from December 2006 until November 2009. Development of AGR-1 fuel sought to replicate the properties of German TRISO-coated particles. No particle failures were seen in the nearly 3-year irradiation to a burn up of 19%. The AGR-1 particles were coated in a two-inch diameter coater. Following fabrication of AGR-1 fuel, process improvements and changes were made in each of the fabrication processes. Changes in the kernel fabrication process included replacing the carbon black powder feed with a surface-modified carbon slurry and shortening the sintering schedule. AGR-2 TRISO particles were produced in a six-inch diameter coater using a change size about twenty-one times that of the two-inch diameter coater used to coat AGR-1 particles. Changes were also made in the compacting process, including increasing the temperature and pressure of pressing and using a different type of press. Irradiation of AGR-2 fuel began in late spring 2010. …

RX J1713.7-3946 is one of the TeV {gamma}-ray supernova remnants (SNRs) emitting synchrotron X rays. The SNR is associated with molecular gas located at {approx}1 kpc. We made new molecular observations toward the dense cloud cores, peaks A, C and D, in the SNR in the {sup 12}CO(J=2-1) and {sup 13}CO(J=2-1) transitions at angular resolution of 90 degrees. The most intense core in {sup 13}CO, peak C, was also mapped in the {sup 12}CO(J=4-3) transition at angular resolution of 38 degrees. Peak C shows strong signs of active star formation including bipolar outflow and a far-infrared protostellar source and has a steep gradient with a r{sup -2.2 {+-} 0.4} variation in the average density within radius r. Peak C and the other dense cloud cores are rim-brightened in synchrotron X rays, suggesting that the dense cloud cores are embedded within or on the outer boundary of the SNR shell. This confirms the earlier suggestion that the X rays are physically associated with the molecular gas (Fukui et al. 2003). We present a scenario where the densest molecular core, peak C, survived against the blast wave and is now embedded within the SNR. Numerical simulations of the shock-cloud interaction indicate that …

Data taken during the final shallow-site run of the first tower of the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS II) detectors have been reanalyzed with improved sensitivity to small energy depositions. Four {approx}224 g germanium and two {approx}105 g silicon detectors were operated at the Stanford Underground Facility (SUF) between December 2001 and June 2002, yielding 118 live days of raw exposure. Three of the germanium and both silicon detectors were analyzed with a new low-threshold technique, making it possible to lower the germanium and silicon analysis thresholds down to the actual trigger thresholds of {approx}1 keV and {approx}2 keV, respectively. Limits on the spin-independent cross section for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) to elastically scatter from nuclei based on these data exclude interesting parameter space for WIMPs with masses below 9 GeV/c{sup 2}. Under standard halo assumptions, these data partially exclude parameter space favored by interpretations of the DAMA/LIBRA and CoGeNT experiments data as WIMP signals, and exclude new parameter space for WIMP masses between 3 GeV/c{sup 2} and 4 GeV/c{sup 2}.

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Observation is reported for a structure near the J/{psi}{phi} threshold in B{sup +} {yields} J/{psi}{phi}K{sup +} decays produced in {bar p}p collisions at {radical}s = 1.96 TeV with a statistical significance of beyond 5 standard deviations. There are 19 {+-} 6 events observed for this structure at a mass of 4143.4{sub -3.0}{sup +2.9}(stat) {+-} 0.6(syst) MeV/c{sup 2} and a width of 15.3{sub -6.1}{sup +10.4}(stat) {+-} 2.5(syst) MeV/c{sup 2}, which are consistent with the previous measurements reported as evidence of the Y(4140).

NREL's Solar Advisor Model (SAM) is employed to estimate the current and future costs for parabolic trough and molten salt power towers in the US market. Future troughs are assumed to achieve higher field temperatures via the successful deployment of low melting-point, molten-salt heat transfer fluids by 2015-2020. Similarly, it is assumed that molten salt power towers are successfully deployed at 100MW scale over the same time period, increasing to 200MW by 2025. The levelized cost of electricity for both technologies is predicted to drop below 11 cents/kWh (assuming a 10% investment tax credit and other financial inputs outlined in the paper), making the technologies competitive in the marketplace as benchmarked by the California MPR. Both technologies can be deployed with large amounts of thermal energy storage, yielding capacity factors as high as 65% while maintaining an optimum LCOE.

This paper explores the impact of cooling technology on revenue for hybrid-cooled plants with varying wet cooling penetration for four representative locations in the American Southwest. The impact of ACC design-point initial temperature difference (ITD - the difference between the condensing steam temperature and ambient dry-bulb) is also included in the analysis.

The concept of “margin” has a long history in nuclear licensing and in the codification of good engineering practices. However, some traditional applications of “margin” have been carried out for surrogate scenarios (such as design basis scenarios), without regard to the actual frequencies of those scenarios, and have been carried out with in a systematically conservative fashion. This means that the effectiveness of the application of the margin concept is determined in part by the original choice of surrogates, and is limited in any case by the degree of conservatism imposed on the evaluation. In the RISMC project, which is part of the Department of Energy’s “Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program” (LWRSP), we are developing a risk-informed characterization of safety margin. Beginning with the traditional discussion of “margin” in terms of a “load” (a physical challenge to system or component function) and a “capacity” (the capability of that system or component to accommodate the challenge), we are developing the capability to characterize probabilistic load and capacity spectra, reflecting both aleatory and epistemic uncertainty in system response. For example, the probabilistic load spectrum will reflect the frequency of challenges of a particular severity. Such a characterization is required if decision-making is …

This analysis indicates the extent to which pooled regional dispatch for matching generation to load mitigates the costs and improves associated reliability, particularly in scenarios with high penetration of variable output resources, such as wind

Solar Advisor Model (SAM) is a free software package made available by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Sandia National Laboratory, and the US Department of Energy. SAM contains hourly system performance and economic models for concentrating solar power (CSP) systems, photovoltaic, solar hot-water, and generic fuel-use technologies. Versions of SAM prior to 2010 included only the parabolic trough model based on Excelergy. This model uses top-level empirical performance curves to characterize plant behavior, and thus is limited in predictive capability for new technologies or component configurations. To address this and other functionality challenges, a new trough model; derived from physical first principles was commissioned to supplement the Excelergy-based empirical model. This new 'physical model' approaches the task of characterizing the performance of the whole parabolic trough plant by replacing empirical curve-fit relationships with more detailed calculations where practical. The resulting model matches the annual performance of the SAM empirical model (which has been previously verified with plant data) while maintaining run-times compatible with parametric analysis, adding additional flexibility in modeled system configurations, and providing more detailed performance calculations in the solar field, power block, piping, and storage subsystems.

This paper reports the development of a new optical instrument capable of characterizing the aging process of enhanced first surface aluminum reflectors for concentrating solar power (CSP) application. Samples were exposed outdoors at different sites and in accelerated exposure tests. All samples exposed outdoors showed localized corrosion spots. Degradation originated from points of damage in the protective coating, but propagated underneath the protective coating. The degraded samples were analyzed with a microscope and with a newly designed space-resolved specular reflectometer (SR)2 that is capable of optically detecting and characterizing the corrosion spots. The device measures the specular reflectance at three acceptance angles and the wavelengths with spatial resolution using a digital camera's CMOS sensor. It can be used to measure the corrosion growth rate during outdoor and accelerated exposure tests. These results will allow a correlation between the degraded mirror surface and its specular reflectance.

The Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP), the Deep Burn Pebble Bed Reactor (DB-PBR) and the Deep Burn Prismatic Block Reactor (DB-PMR) are all based on fuels that use TRISO particles as their fundamental constituent. The TRISO particle properties include very high durability in radiation environments, hence the designs reliance on the TRISO to form the principal barrier to radioactive materials release. This durability forms the basis for the selection of this fuel type for applications such as Deep Bun (DB), which require exposures up to four times those expected for light water reactors. It follows that the study and prediction of the durability of TRISO particles must be carried as part of the safety and overall performance characterization of all the designs mentioned above. Such evaluations have been carried out independently by the performers of the DB project using independently developed codes. These codes, PASTA, PISA and COPA, incorporate models for stress analysis on the various layers of the TRISO particle (and of the intervening matrix material for some of them), model for fission products release and migration then accumulation within the SiC layer of the TRISO particle, just next to the layer, models for free oxygen and CO formation …

Synchrotron-based X-ray microtomography (micro CT) at the Advanced Light Source (ALS) line 8.3.2 at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory produces three-dimensional micron-scale-resolution digital images of the pore space of the reservoir rock along with the spacial distribution of the fluids. Pore-scale visualization of carbon dioxide flooding experiments performed at a reservoir pressure demonstrates that the injected gas fills some pores and pore clusters, and entirely bypasses the others. Using 3D digital images of the pore space as input data, the method of maximal inscribed spheres (MIS) predicts two-phase fluid distribution in capillary equilibrium. Verification against the tomography images shows a good agreement between the computed fluid distribution in the pores and the experimental data. The model-predicted capillary pressure curves and tomography-based porosimetry distributions compared favorably with the mercury injection data. Thus, micro CT in combination with modeling based on the MIS is a viable approach to study the pore-scale mechanisms of CO{sub 2} injection into an aquifer, as well as more general multi-phase flows.

The Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is tasked with the development of reactor physics analysis capability of the Next Generation Nuclear Power (NGNP) project. In order to examine the INL’s current prismatic reactor analysis tools, the project is conducting a benchmark exercise based on modeling the High Temperature Test Reactor (HTTR). This exercise entails the development of a model for the initial criticality, a 19 fuel column thin annular core, and the fully loaded core critical condition with 30 fuel columns. Special emphasis is devoted to physical phenomena and artifacts in HTTR that are similar to phenomena and artifacts in the NGNP base design. The DRAGON code is used in this study since it offers significant ease and versatility in modeling prismatic designs. DRAGON can generate transport solutions via Collision Probability (CP), Method of Characteristics (MOC) and Discrete Ordinates (Sn). A fine group cross-section library based on the SHEM 281 energy structure is used in the DRAGON calculations. The results from this study show reasonable agreement in the calculation of the core multiplication factor with the MC methods, but a consistent bias of 2–3% with the experimental values is obtained. This systematic error has also been observed in other HTTR benchmark …

This paper outlines a study undertaken for the U.S. Eastern Interconnection in which different advanced unit commitment strategies were simulated for three different years to evaluate the benefits that may occur from using these strategies as an operational tool.

This paper presents simulation results for SC current contribution for different types of WTGs obtained through transient and steady-state computer simulation software.

The National Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle Learning Demonstration is a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) project that started in 2004. The purpose of this project is to conduct an integrated field validation that simultaneously examines the performance of fuel cell vehicles and the supporting hydrogen infrastructure. The DOE's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has now analyzed data from over five years of the seven-year project. During this time, over 144 fuel cell electric vehicles have been deployed, and 23 project refueling stations were placed in use.

The Next Generation Nuclear Plant project is considering Alloy 800H and Alloy 617 for steam generator and intermediate heat exchangers. It is envisioned that a steam generator would operate with reactor outlet temperatures from 750 to 800°C, while an intermediate heat exchanger for primary to secondary helium would operate up to an outlet temperature of 950°C. Although both alloys are of interest due in part to their technical maturity, a number of specific properties require further characterization for design of nuclear components. Strain rate sensitivity of both alloys has been characterized and is found to be significant above 600°C. Both alloys also exhibit dynamic strain aging, characterized by serrated flow, over a wide range of temperatures and strain rates. In general dynamic strain aging is observed to begin at higher temperatures and serrated flow persists to higher temperatures in Alloy 617 compared to Alloy 800H. Dynamic strain aging is a concern for these materials since it is observed to result in reduced ductility for many solid solution alloys. The role of dynamic strain aging in the creep-fatigue behavior of Alloy 617 at temperatures of 800°C and above has also been examined in detail. Serrated flow is found to persist in …

A precision measurement of the top quark mass m{sub t} is obtained using a sample of t{bar t} events from p{bar p} collisions at the Fermilab Tevatron with the CDF II detector. Selected events require an electron or muon, large missing transverse energy, and exactly four high-energy jets, at least one of which is tagged as coming from a b quark. A likelihood is calculated using a matrix element method with quasi-Monte Carlo integration taking into account finite detector resolution and jet mass effects. The event likelihood is a function of m{sub t} and a parameter {Delta}{sub JES} used to calibrate the jet energy scale in situ. Using a total of 1087 events, a value of m{sub t} = 173.0 {+-} 1.2 GeV/c{sup 2} is measured.

In this paper, we extend the previous analysis using time series data from existing wind plants, system loads, and regulation and energy markets.

Nanoparticles are typically composed of 50--500 atoms and exhibit properties that are significantly different from the properties of larger, macroscale particles that have the same composition. The addition of these particles to traditional fluids may improve the fluids' thermophysical properties. As an example, the addition of a nanoparticle or set of nanoparticles to a storage fluid may double its heat capacity. This increase in heat capacity would allow a sensible thermal energy storage system to store the same amount of thermal energy in half the amount of storage fluid. The benefit is lower costs for the storage fluid and the storage tanks, resulting in lower-cost electricity. The goal of this long-term research is to create a new class of fluids that enable concentrating solar power plants to operate with greater efficiency and lower electricity costs. Initial research on this topic developed molecular dynamic models that predicted the energy states and transition temperatures for these particles. Recent research has extended the modeling work, along with initiating the synthesis and characterization of bare metal nanoparticles and metal nanoparticles that are encapsulated with inert silica coatings. These particles possess properties that make them excellent candidates for enhancing the heat capacity of storage fluids.

Borohydrides such as LiBH{sub 4} have been studied as candidates for hydrogen storage because of their high hydrogen contents (18.4 wt% for LiBH{sub 4}). Limited success has been made in reducing the dehydrogenation temperature by adding reactants such as metals, metal oxides and metal halides. However, full rehydrogenation has not been realized because of multi-step decomposition processes and the stable intermediate species produced. It is suggested that adding second cation in LiBH{sub 4} may reduce the binding energy of B-H. The second cation may also provide the pathway for full rehydrogenation. In this work, several bimetallic borohydrides were synthesized using wet chemistry, high pressure reactive ball milling and sintering processes. The investigation found that the thermodynamic stability was reduced, but the full rehydrogenation is still a challenge. Although our experiments show the partial reversibility of the bimetallic borohydrides, it was not sustainable during dehydriding-rehydriding cycles because of the accumulation of hydrogen inert species.

We derive compact analytical formulae for all tree-level color-ordered gauge theory amplitudes involving any number of external gluons and up to three massless quark-anti-quark pairs. A general formula is presented based on the combinatorics of paths along a rooted tree and associated determinants. Explicit expressions are displayed for the next-to-maximally helicity violating (NMHV) and next-to-next-to-maximally helicity violating (NNMHV) gauge theory amplitudes. Our results are obtained by projecting the previously-found expressions for the super-amplitudes of the maximally supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory (N = 4 SYM) onto the relevant components yielding all gluon-gluino tree amplitudes in N = 4 SYM. We show how these results carry over to the corresponding QCD amplitudes, including massless quarks of different flavors as well as a single electroweak vector boson. The public Mathematica package GGT is described, which encodes the results of this work and yields analytical formulae for all N = 4 SYM gluon-gluino trees. These in turn yield all QCD trees with up to four external arbitrary-flavored massless quark-anti-quark-pairs.

Exclusive diffractive Higgs boson production is an interesting process which could be studied at the Large Hadron Collider. While the cross section for the Higgs boson production at the Fermilab Tevatron Collider is too low for this channel, it is important to check if the class of exclusive diffraction events exists. We present the evidence for the high mass exclusive dijet production in the D0 experiment. Hard diffractive processes are usually described by the exchange of a colorless object called Pomeron. In diffractive hadron hadron collisions, the hadrons will exchange the Pomeron and either one or both hadrons will not dissolve. The events are identified by either a presence of a large forward region of the detector devoid of any activity (rapidity gap) or by a tagging of the intact beam hadron(s). A subset of diffractive events is called exclusive when the whole Pomeron energy is used to produce the diffractive state, i.e there are no Pomeron remnants. Exclusive diffractive production (EDP) of the Higgs boson or any other new final state X pp {yields} p + X + p has been recently proposed as a search channel at the LHC. The cross section for the Higgs boson production is …