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FINAL REPORT ON GDE GAP CELL
A project has been undertaken to develop an electrochemical cell and support equipment for evaluation of a gas diffusion electrode-based, narrow-electrolyte-gap anode for SO{sub 2} oxidation in the hydrogen production cycle of the hybrid sulfur (HyS) process. The project supported the HyS development program at the Savannah River National Lab (SRNL). The benefits of using a gas diffusion electrode in conjunction with the narrow anolyte gap are being determined through electrochemical polarization testing under a variety conditions, and by comparison to results produced by SRNL and others using anode technologies that have no anolyte gap. These test results indicate that the NGA cell has low resistance suitable for use in the HyS electrolyzer, exhibits good efficiency at high current densities compared to the direct feed HyS electrolyzer, and indicates robust performance in extended testing over 65 hours. Seepage episodes were mostly caused by port clogging, which can be mitigated in future designs through minor modifications to the hardware. Significant reductions in sulfur crossover have not yet been demonstrated in the NGA configuration compared to in-house direct feed testing, but corroborative sulfur layer analysis is as yet incomplete. Further testing in a single-pass anolyte configuration is recommended for complete evaluation of steady-state electrochemical efficiency and SO{sub 2} crossover in the narrow gap configuration
Dynamic Models in Atmospheric Monitoring Signal Evaluation for Safety, Health and Cost Benefits
It is prudent to interpret atmospheric monitoring signals in real time for checking the safe limits of the air conditions in underground mines. In gassy mines, real-time evaluation increases the safety of operations. In all mines, continuous monitoring and evaluation contributes to maintaining air conditions within healthy and safe limits. Signal interpretation for safety conditions in mines is difficult for many reasons. An increase in hazardous contaminant concentrations can be predicted by signal pattern recognition, root cause analysis of rapid changes toward deterioration, and forward prediction in time using algorithms and numerical models. The paper describes an early warning system for analyzing monitored signal patterns continuously in real time as well as forward predicting the various environmental and working conditions to recognize dangerous trends that may affect safety and health in underground mines. A dynamic, numerical ventilation model with heat and gas contaminant simulation components is used for the analysis of atmospheric data. Methods and test results are discussed with numerical examples for signal propagation prediction. Several mine examples are studied using controlled, synthetic data for malfunction simulations to evaluate time delays between the detection time of suspicious signal trends and the time of dangerous threshold crossing marking an accident scenario. Delay time is found in the order of 20\ua0min in the examples, signifying the useful time period for preventive intervention between EWS warning and the likely breakout of a following accident
Attentional demand influences strategies for encoding into visual working memory
Visual selective attention and visual working memory (WM) share the same
capacity-limited resources. We investigated whether and how participants can
cope with a task in which these 2 mechanisms interfere. The task required
participants to scan an array of 9 objects in order to select the target
locations and to encode the items presented at these locations into WM (1 to 5
shapes). Determination of the target locations required either few attentional
resources (“popout condition”) or an attention-demanding serial search (“non
pop-out condition”). Participants were able to achieve high memory performance
in all stimulation conditions but, in the non popout conditions, this came at
the cost of additional processing time. Both empirical evidence and subjective
reports suggest that participants invested the additional time in memorizing the
locations of all target objects prior to the encoding of their shapes into WM.
Thus, they seemed to be unable to interleave the steps of search with those of
encoding. We propose that the memory for target locations substitutes for
perceptual pop-out and thus may be the key component that allows for flexible
coping with the common processing limitations of visual WM and attention. The
findings have implications for understanding how we cope with real-life
situations in which the demands on visual attention and WM occur
simultaneously
The MINERA Data Acquisition System and Infrastructure
MINERA (Main INjector ExpeRiment -A) is a new few-GeV neutrino
cross section experiment that began taking data in the FNAL NuMI (Fermi
National Accelerator Laboratory Neutrinos at the Main Injector) beam-line in
March of 2010. MINERA employs a fine-grained scintillator detector capable
of complete kinematic characterization of neutrino interactions. This paper
describes the MINERA data acquisition system (DAQ) including the read-out
electronics, software, and computing architecture.Comment: 34 pages, 16 figure
The T2K ND280 Off-Axis Pi-Zero Detector
The Pi-Zero detector (P{\O}D) is one of the subdetectors that makes up the
off-axis near detector for the Tokai-to-Kamioka (T2K) long baseline neutrino
experiment. The primary goal for the P{\O}D is to measure the relevant cross
sections for neutrino interactions that generate pi-zero's, especially the
cross section for neutral current pi-zero interactions, which are one of the
dominant sources of background to the electron neutrino appearance signal in
T2K. The P{\O}D is composed of layers of plastic scintillator alternating with
water bags and brass sheets or lead sheets and is one of the first detectors to
use Multi-Pixel Photon Counters (MPPCs) on a large scale.Comment: 17 pages, submitted to NIM
Measurement of the eta-Meson Mass using psi(2S) --> eta J/psi
We measure the mass of the eta meson using psi(2S) --> eta J/psi events
acquired with the CLEO-c detector operating at the CESR e+e- collider. Using
the four decay modes eta --> gamma gamma, 3pi0, pi+pi-pi0, and pi+pi-gamma, we
find M(eta)=547.785 +- 0.017 +- 0.057 MeV, in which the first uncertainty is
statistical and the second systematic. This result has an uncertainty
comparable to the two most precise previous measurements and is consistent with
that of NA48, but is inconsistent at the level of 6.5sigma with the much
smaller mass obtained by GEM.Comment: 10 pages postscript,also available through
http://www.lns.cornell.edu/public/CLNS/2007/, Submitted to PR
Determination of the D0 -> K+pi- Relative Strong Phase Using Quantum-Correlated Measurements in e+e- -> D0 D0bar at CLEO
We exploit the quantum coherence between pair-produced D0 and D0bar in
psi(3770) decays to study charm mixing, which is characterized by the
parameters x and y, and to make a first determination of the relative strong
phase \delta between doubly Cabibbo-suppressed D0 -> K+pi- and Cabibbo-favored
D0bar -> K+pi-. We analyze a sample of 1.0 million D0D0bar pairs from 281 pb^-1
of e+e- collision data collected with the CLEO-c detector at E_cm = 3.77 GeV.
By combining CLEO-c measurements with branching fraction input and
time-integrated measurements of R_M = (x^2+y^2)/2 and R_{WS} = Gamma(D0 ->
K+pi-)/Gamma(D0bar -> K+pi-) from other experiments, we find \cos\delta = 1.03
+0.31-0.17 +- 0.06, where the uncertainties are statistical and systematic,
respectively. In addition, by further including external measurements of charm
mixing parameters, we obtain an alternate measurement of \cos\delta = 1.10 +-
0.35 +- 0.07, as well as x\sin\delta = (4.4 +2.7-1.8 +- 2.9) x 10^-3 and \delta
= 22 +11-12 +9-11 degrees.Comment: 37 pages, also available through
http://www.lns.cornell.edu/public/CLNS/2007/. Incorporated referee's comment
Suppressed Decays of D_s^+ Mesons to Two Pseudoscalar Mesons
Using data collected near the Ds*+ Ds- peak production energy Ecm = 4170 MeV
by the CLEO-c detector, we study the decays of Ds+ mesons to two pseudoscalar
mesons. We report on searches for the singly-Cabibbo-suppressed Ds+ decay modes
K+ eta, K+ eta', pi+ K0S, K+ pi0, and the isospin-forbidden decay mode Ds+ to
pi+ pi0. We normalize with respect to the Cabibbo-favored Ds+ modes pi+ eta,
pi+ eta', and K+ K0S, and obtain ratios of branching fractions: Ds+ to K+ eta /
Ds+ to pi+ eta = (8.9 +- 1.5 +- 0.4)%, Ds+ to K+ eta' / Ds+ to pi+ eta' = (4.2
+- 1.3 +- 0.3)%, Ds+ to pi+ K0S / Ds+ to K+ K0S = (8.2 +- 0.9 +- 0.2)%, Ds+ to
K+ pi0 / Ds+ to K+ K0S = (5.0 +- 1.2 +- 0.6)%, and Ds+ to pi+ pi0 / Ds+ to K+
K0S < 4.1% at 90% CL, where the uncertainties are statistical and systematic,
respectively.Comment: 9 pages postscript,also available through
http://www.lns.cornell.edu/public/CLNS/2007/, Submitted to PR
Measurement of the Decay Constant using $D_S^+ --> ell^+ nu
We measure the decay constant fDs using the Ds -> l+ nu channel, where the l+
designates either a mu+ or a tau+, when the tau+ -> pi+ nu. Using both
measurements we find fDs = 274 +-13 +- 7 MeV. Combining with our previous
determination of fD+, we compute the ratio fDs/fD+ = 1.23 +- 0.11 +- 0.04. We
compare with theoretical estimates.Comment: 6 pages postscript,also available through
http://www.lns.cornell.edu/public/CLNS/2007
Measurement of Absolute Hadronic Branching Fractions of D Mesons and e^+ e^- --> D D-bar Cross Sections at the psi(3770)
Using 281 /pb of e^+ e^- collisions recorded at the psi(3770) resonance with
the CLEO-c detector at CESR, we determine absolute hadronic branching fractions
of charged and neutral D mesons using a double tag technique. Among
measurements for three D^0 and six D^+ modes, we obtain reference branching
fractions B(D^0 --> K^-pi^+) = (3.891 +- 0.035 +- 0.059 +- 0.035)% and B(D^+
--> K^-pi^+pi^+) = (9.14 +- 0.10 +- 0.16 +- 0.07)%, where the first uncertainty
is statistical, the second is all systematic errors other than final state
radiation (FSR), and the third is the systematic uncertainty due to FSR. We
include FSR in these branching fractions by allowing for additional unobserved
photons in the final state. Using an independent determination of the
integrated luminosity, we also extract the cross sections sigma(e+e- --> D^0
D^0-bar) = (3.66+- 0.03 +- 0.06) nb and sigma(e+e- --> D^+ D^-) = (2.91+- 0.03
+- 0.05) nb at a center of mass energy, E_cm = 3774 +- 1 MeV.Comment: 47 pages, postscript also available through this
http://www.lns.cornell.edu/public/CLNS/2007/, to be published in PRD, updated
branching fractions using B(KS0 --> pi+ pi-) from PDG 2007, and updated text
in response to the PRD reviewe
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