16,912 research outputs found
Development of a thermal storage module using modified anhydrous sodium hydroxide
The laboratory scale testing of a modified anhydrous NaOH latent heat storage concept for small solar thermal power systems such as total energy systems utilizing organic Rankine systems is discussed. A diagnostic test on the thermal energy storage module and an investigation of alternative heat transfer fluids and heat exchange concepts are specifically addressed. A previously developed computer simulation model is modified to predict the performance of the module in a solar total energy system environment. In addition, the computer model is expanded to investigate parametrically the incorporation of a second heat exchange inside the module which will vaporize and superheat the Rankine cycle power fluid
Development of a phase-change thermal storage system using modified anhydrous sodium hydroxide for solar electric power generation
A thermal storage system for use in solar power electricity generation was investigated analytically and experimentally. The thermal storage medium is principally anhydrous NaOH with 8% NaNO3 and 0.2% MnO2. Heat is charged into storage at 584 K and discharged from storage at 582 K by Therminol-66. Physical and thermophysical properties of the storage medium were measured. A mathematical simulation and computer program describing the operation of the system were developed. A 1/10 scale model of a system capable of storing and delivering 3.1 x 10 to the 6th power kJ of heat was designed, built, and tested. Tests included steady state charging, discharging, idling, and charge-discharge conditions simulating a solar daily cycle. Experimental data and computer-predicted results are correlated. A reference design including cost estimates of the full-size system was developed
Wheat yield forecasts using LANDSAT data
Several considerations of winter wheat yield prediction using LANDSAT data were discussed. In addition, a simple technique which permits direct early season forecasts of wheat production was described
Forecasts of winter wheat yield and production using LANDSAT data
There are no author-identified significant results in this report
Wheat productivity estimates using LANDSAT data
The author has identified the following significant results. Large area LANDSAT yield estimates were generated. These results were compared with estimates computed using a meteorological yield model (CCEA). Both of these estimates were compared with Kansas Crop and Livestock Reporting Service (KCLRS) estimates of yield, in an attempt to assess the relative and absolute accuracy of the LANDSAT and CCEA estimates. Results were inconclusive. A large area direct wheat prediction procedure was implemented. Initial results have produced a wheat production estimate comparable with the KCLRS estimate
Applicability of selected wheat remote sensing technology to corn and soybeans
There are no author-identified significant results in this report
Can crack front waves explain the roughness of cracks ?
We review recent theoretical progress on the dynamics of brittle crack fronts
and its relationship to the roughness of fracture surfaces. We discuss the
possibility that the intermediate scale roughness of cracks, which is
characterized by a roughness exponent approximately equal to 0.5, could be
caused by the generation, during local instabilities by depinning, of
diffusively broadened corrugation waves, which have recently been observed to
propagate elastically along moving crack fronts. We find that the theory agrees
plausibly with the orders of magnitude observed. Various consequences and
limitations, as well as alternative explanations, are discussed. We argue that
another mechanism, possibly related to damage cavity coalescence, is needed to
account for the observed large scale roughness of cracks that is characterized
by a roughness exponent approximately equal to 0.8Comment: 26 pages, 3 .eps figure. Submitted to J. Mech. Phys. Solid
Stochastic modelling of intermittent scrape-off layer plasma fluctuations
Single-point measurements of fluctuations in the scrape-off layer of
magnetized plasmas are generally found to be dominated by large-amplitude
bursts which are associated with radial motion of blob-like structures. A
stochastic model for these fluctuations is presented, with the plasma density
given by a random sequence of bursts with a fixed wave form. Under very general
conditions, this model predicts a parabolic relation between the skewness and
kurtosis moments of the plasma fluctuations. In the case of exponentially
distributed burst amplitudes and waiting times, the probability density
function for the fluctuation amplitudes is shown to be a Gamma distribution
with the scale parameter given by the average burst amplitude and the shape
parameter given by the ratio of the burst duration and waiting times.Comment: 11 pages, 1 figur
Understanding and utilization of Thematic Mapper and other remotely sensed data for vegetation monitoring
The TM Tasseled Cap transformation, which provides both a 50% reduction in data volume with little or no loss of important information and spectral features with direct physical association, is presented and discussed. Using both simulated and actual TM data, some important characteristics of vegetation and soils in this feature space are described, as are the effects of solar elevation angle and atmospheric haze. A preliminary spectral haze diagnostic feature, based on only simulated data, is also examined. The characteristics of the TM thermal band are discussed, as is a demonstration of the use of TM data in energy balance studies. Some characteristics of AVHRR data are described, as are the sensitivities to scene content of several LANDSAT-MSS preprocessing techniques
- …