Measurements of pion/minus/ proton elastic scattering from 1.71 to 5.53 GeV/c

Negative pion proton elastic scattering differential cross sections from 1.71 to 5.53 GeV/

High energy pion-deuteron elastic scattering

High energy pion-deuteron elastic scatterin

MEASUREMENT AND PREDICTION OF RADIOLYTIC HYDROGEN PRODUCTION IN DEFENSE WASTE PROCESSING SLURRIES AT SAVANNAH RIVER SITE

This paper presents results of measurements and predictions of radiolytic hydrogen production rates from two actual process slurries in the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) at Savannah River Site (SRS). Hydrogen is a flammable gas and its production in nuclear facilities can be a safety hazard if not mitigated. Measurements were made in the Shielded Cells of Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) using a sample of Sludge Batch 3 (SB3) currently being processed by the DWPF. Predictions were made using published values for rates of radiolytic reactions producing H{sub 2} in aqueous solutions and the measured radionuclide and chemical compositions of the two slurries. The agreement between measured and predicted results for nine experiments ranged from complete agreement to 24% difference. This agreement indicates that if the composition of the slurry being processed is known, the rate of radiolytic hydrogen production can be reasonably estimated

Force-matched embedded-atom method potential for niobium

Large-scale simulations of plastic deformation and phase transformations in alloys require reliable classical interatomic potentials. We construct an embedded-atom method potential for niobium as the first step in alloy potential development. Optimization of the potential parameters to a well-converged set of density-functional theory (DFT) forces, energies, and stresses produces a reliable and transferable potential for molecular dynamics simulations. The potential accurately describes properties related to the fitting data, and also produces excellent results for quantities outside the fitting range. Structural and elastic properties, defect energetics, and thermal behavior compare well with DFT results and experimental data, e.g., DFT surface energies are reproduced with less than 4% error, generalized stacking-fault energies differ from DFT values by less than 15%, and the melting temperature is within 2% of the experimental value.Comment: 17 pages, 13 figures, 7 table

SPONTANEOUS CATALYTIC WET AIR OXIDATION DURING PRE-TREATMENT OF HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE SLUDGE

Savannah River Remediation, LLC (SRR) operates the Defense Waste Processing Facility for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Savannah River Site. This facility immobilizes high-level radioactive waste through vitrification following chemical pretreatment. Catalytic destruction of formate and oxalate ions to carbon dioxide has been observed during qualification testing of non-radioactive analog systems. Carbon dioxide production greatly exceeded hydrogen production, indicating the occurrence of a process other than the catalytic decomposition of formic acid. Statistical modeling was used to relate the new reaction chemistry to partial catalytic wet air oxidation of both formate and oxalate ions driven by the low concentrations of palladium, rhodium, and/or ruthenium in the waste. Variations in process conditions led to increases or decreases in the total oxidative destruction, as well as partially shifting the preferred species undergoing destruction from oxalate ion to formate ion

Methods for non-proportional hazards in clinical trials: A systematic review

For the analysis of time-to-event data, frequently used methods such as the log-rank test or the Cox proportional hazards model are based on the proportional hazards assumption, which is often debatable. Although a wide range of parametric and non-parametric methods for non-proportional hazards (NPH) has been proposed, there is no consensus on the best approaches. To close this gap, we conducted a systematic literature search to identify statistical methods and software appropriate under NPH. Our literature search identified 907 abstracts, out of which we included 211 articles, mostly methodological ones. Review articles and applications were less frequently identified. The articles discuss effect measures, effect estimation and regression approaches, hypothesis tests, and sample size calculation approaches, which are often tailored to specific NPH situations. Using a unified notation, we provide an overview of methods available. Furthermore, we derive some guidance from the identified articles. We summarized the contents from the literature review in a concise way in the main text and provide more detailed explanations in the supplement (page 29)

EVALUATION OF THE FAILURE OF A RADIOACTIVE WASTE TRANSFER LINE JACKET

Radioactive wastes are confined in 49 underground storage tanks at the Savannah River Site. The waste is transported between tanks primarily via an underground transfer piping system. Due to the hazardous nature of the waste, the inner core stainless steel pipe is typically surrounded by a carbon steel pipe jacket, which provides secondary containment. Recently several through-wall penetrations were discovered on a segment of one of the jackets. An evaluation was performed to verify the failure mechanism and to estimate the degree of damage that occurred to the pipe segment. Failure analysis of a section of the jacket confirmed that pitting corrosion on the exterior of the pipe led to the through-wall penetration. Ultrasonic measurements on sections of the pipe were utilized to determine the remaining wall thickness in adjacent areas of the pipe. Based on these measurements, the degree of pitting and general corrosion was determined. Pit growth rate models were then developed to estimate the life expectancy of sections of the pipe that had not been excavated. The calculations estimated that the occurrence of through-wall failures in this jacket will begin to increase substantially in 12 years. Given that this pipe segment will be utilized beyond this time, short-term and long-term solutions to this failure were proposed. The short-term solutions focused on the repair or replace decisions that must be made to return the jacket to service as soon as practical. The long-term solutions focused on a broader strategy to address jacket integrity issues in the entire tank farm facility. These solutions included the evaluation of innovative remote inspection and repair techniques

Mid-infrared interference coatings with excess optical loss below 10 ppm

Low excess optical loss, combined absorption and scatter loss, is a key performance metric for any high-reflectance coating technology and is currently one of the main limiting factors for the application of optical resonators in the mid-infrared spectral region. Here we present high-reflectivity substrate-transferred single-crystal GaAs/AlGaAs interference coatings at a center wavelength of 4.54 µm with record-low excess optical loss below 10 parts per million. These high-performance mirrors are realized via a novel microfabrication process that differs significantly from the production of amorphous multilayers generated via physical vapor deposition processes. This new process enables reduced scatter loss due to the low surface and interfacial roughness, while low background doping in epitaxial growth ensures strongly reduced absorption. We report on a suite of optical measurements, including cavity ring-down, transmittance spectroscopy, and direct absorption tests to reveal the optical losses for a set of prototype mirrors. In the course of these measurements, we observe a unique polarization-orientation-dependent loss mechanism which we attribute to elastic anisotropy of these strained epitaxial multilayers. A future increase in layer count and a corresponding reduction of transmittance will enable optical resonators with a finesse in excess of 100,000 in the mid-infrared spectral region, allowing for advances in high-resolution spectroscopy, narrow-linewidth laser stabilization, and ultrasensitive measurements of various light–matter interactions