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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 343 records · Page 19
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

April 2025 Semiannual Composite Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) Decontaminated Salt Solution (DSS) Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) Results

The aqueous waste from the Salt Waste Processing Facility is sampled semiannually for transfers to the Saltstone Production Facility. Salt solution is treated at the Saltstone Production Facility and disposed of in the Saltstone Disposal Facility. Per request of customer, X-TTR-Z-00027, Revision 0, one Saltstone Disposal Facility waste form was prepared at Savannah River National Laboratory using the Salt Waste Processing Facility Decontaminated Salt Solution and Z-area premix material for the April 2025 semiannual Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure sample. The sample contained 60:40 (by weight) of slag and fly ash (referred to as the “Cement-Free grout sample”). Results from the technical report support Task 2: ‘Grout Leaching Analyses’ of the Task Technical Request prepared by Savannah River Mission Completion. At 43 days cured, the Saltstone sample was collected and shipped to a certified laboratory for analysis using the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure. The April 2025 semiannual Cement-Free grout sample met the South Carolina Code of Regulations for Hazardous Waste Management Regulations 61-79.261.24 and 61-79.268.48 requirements for a non-hazardous waste form with respect to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act metals and Underlying Hazardous Constituents, and met the Saltstone Production Facility Waste Acceptance Criteria that was in effect at the time of the sample collection at the Salt Waste Processing Facility.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2024

History of Pu-238 Production Restart Efforts at Idaho National Laboratory and Oak Ridge National Laboratory

In the early 2010s, efforts to restart production in the U.S. of plutonium-238 heat source (HSPu) material for NASA deep space missions were initiated. Processes, procedures, hardware, and chemical separations were developed and implemented to enable the production of heat source material at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Idaho National Laboratory (INL). Here, this review provides an overview of the timeline and efforts associated with the restart of production, as well as upcoming efforts to increase production.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗
NASA NTRS1995

SeaWiFS technical report series. Volume 31: Stray light in the SeaWiFS radiometer

Some of the measurements from the Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) will not be useful as ocean measurements. For the ocean data set, there are procedures in place to mask the SeaWiFS measurements of clouds and ice. Land measurements will also be masked using a geographic technique based on each measurment's latitude and longitude. Each of these masks involves a source of light much brighter than the ocean. Because of stray light in the SeaWiFS radiometer, light from these bright sources can contaminate ocean measurements located a variable number of pixels away from a bright source. In this document, the sources of stray light in the sensor are examined, and a method is developed for masking measurements near bright targets for stray light effects. In addition, a procedure is proposed for reducing the effects of stray light in the flight data from SeaWiFS. This correction can also reduce the number of pixels masked for stray light. Without these corrections, local area scenes must be masked 10 pixels before and after bright targets in the along-scan direction. The addition of these corrections reduces the along-scan masks to four pixels before and after bright sources. In the along-track direction, the flight data are not corrected, and are masked two pixels before and after. Laboratory measurements have shown that stray light within the instrument changes in a direct ratio to the intensity of the bright source. The measurements have also shown that none of the bands show peculiarities in their stray light response. In other words, the instrument's response is uniform from band to band. The along-scan correction is based on each band's response to a 1 pixel wide bright sources. Since these results are based solely on preflight laboratory measurements, their successful implementation requires compliance with two additional criteria. First, since SeaWiFS has a large data volume, the correction and masking procedures must be such that they can be converted into computationally fast algorithms. Second, they must be shown to operate properly on flight data. The laboratory results, and the corrections and masking procedures that derive from them, should be considered as zeroeth order estimates of the effects that will be found on orbit.

Hooker, Stanford B.↗
DOE OSTI2022

EDGE COVID-19: a web platform to generate submission-ready genomes from SARS-CoV-2 sequencing efforts

Abstract Summary Genomics has become an essential technology for surveilling emerging infectious disease outbreaks. A range of technologies and strategies for pathogen genome enrichment and sequencing are being used by laboratories worldwide, together with different and sometimes ad hoc, analytical procedures for generating genome sequences. A fully integrated analytical process for raw sequence to consensus genome determination, suited to outbreaks such as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, is critical to provide a solid genomic basis for epidemiological analyses and well-informed decision making. We have developed a web-based platform and integrated bioinformatic workflows that help to provide consistent high-quality analysis of SARS-CoV-2 sequencing data generated with either the Illumina or Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT). Using an intuitive web-based interface, this workflow automates data quality control, SARS-CoV-2 reference-based genome variant and consensus calling, lineage determination and provides the ability to submit the consensus sequence and necessary metadata to GenBank, GISAID and INSDC raw data repositories. We tested workflow usability using real world data and validated the accuracy of variant and lineage analysis using several test datasets, and further performed detailed comparisons with results from the COVID-19 Galaxy Project workflow. Our analyses indicate that EC-19 workflows generate high-quality SARS-CoV-2 genomes. Finally, we share a perspective on patterns and impact observed with Illumina versus ONT technologies on workflow congruence and differences. Availability and implementation https://edge-covid19.edgebioinformatics.org, and https://github.com/LANL-Bioinformatics/EDGE/tree/SARS-CoV2. Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

A Standard Operating Procedure for the Inadvertent Discovery of Native American Human Remains and Associated Funerary Objects, Sacred Objects, or Objects of Cultural Patrimony at Los Alamos National Laboratory

Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL or Laboratory) is one of several national laboratories that support the mission of the United States Department of Energy (DOE), National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Los Alamos Field Office (Field Office). It is located in Los Alamos and Santa Fe Counties, New Mexico. LANL occupies approximately 40 square miles of land owned by the U.S. Government and under the administrative control of DOE/NNSA. Cultural resources management at LANL is the responsibility of the Field Office’s Cultural Resources Program Manager, with the assistance and facilitation of the LANL Environmental Stewardship Group (ES) Cultural Resources Programs (archaeology and historic buildings), which are part of the LANL Environmental Protection and Compliance (EPC) Division. LANL, which is primarily located on the Pajarito Plateau, is extremely rich in cultural resources. Nearly 2,000 archaeological sites have been recorded at LANL, based on the systematic archaeological survey of ~90% of LANL lands. Most of the known sites (~ 85%) date from the Ancestral Pueblo Late Coalition and Classic Periods of around AD 1150 to 1600. The remaining sites date to the Archaic Period (ca. 5500 BC to 600 AD), the Late Developmental and Early Coalition Periods (ca. 900 to 1200), and the Homestead Period (ca. 1890 to 1942).

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2021

Method Development for Measuring U Isotope Ratios by Laser Ablation MC-ICP-MS. Task 1: Hardware Setup

The aim of this project is to develop methodology to identify and analyze U and Pu containing particles using laser ablation MC-ICP-MS. The final methodology will ultimately be described in a detailed procedural document that will be shared with IAEA-NWAL laboratories. In this report, we describe the Task-1 deliverable; the setup and optimization of hardware required to perform U isotopic analyses by laser ablation MC-ICP-MS.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2023

Responses to International Accrediting Services (IAS) Biennial Onsite Assessment of ALAB to CA ELAP Requirements

The purpose of this assessment was to perform an evaluation of the laboratory’s quality system, capabilities, and personnel qualifications to determine the extent of conformance to the current TNI standards and the rules enacted by the 2020 California Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP) for accreditation of environmental laboratories. The scope of the assessment included the California Code, Health and Safety Code – HSC § 100829 and 100830, the 2016 TNI-2 requirements, published methods, and the laboratory’s Quality Management System including administrative and technical operating procedures.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
NASA NTRS1970

Strain gage installation manual

Detailed specifications for installing laboratory strain gages are compiled into handy reference manual that provides laboratory technicians with ready source of instructions on techniques and procedures for cementing a wide variety of strain gages onto most of the commonly encountered engineering materials.

Nichols, D. W.↗
NASA NTRS1973

The Harvard experiment on OSO-6 - Instrumentation, calibration, operation, and description of observations.

The Harvard experiment carried by OSO-6 was an extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) spectrometer-spectroheliometer with a wavelength range of 285 to 1385 A, a spatial and spectral bandwidth of 35 x 35(arc sec) squared and 3 A, respectively. The instrument acquired data that have been deposited with the National Space Science Data Center and World Data Center A at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and are now available in their entirety to the scientific community. Aspects of the experiment that are relevant to potential users of the data are described - namely, instrument configuration and parameters, laboratory and inflight calibrations, as well as operational capabilities and procedures. The observations obtained are reported, and the nature, number, and dates of observation, where relevant, are listed.

Huber, M. C. E.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Evaluation of the smoke density chamber as an apparatus for fire toxicity screening tests

The smoke density chamber is perhaps the most widely used apparatus for smoke measurements. Because of its availability, it has been proposed as an apparatus for evaluating fire toxicity. The standard apparatus and procedure were not found suitable for toxicity screening tests using laboratory animals, because not enough materials of interest produced animal mortality or even incapacitation under standard test conditions. With modifications, the chamber offers greater promise as a screening tool, but other tests specifically designed to measure relative toxicity may be more cost-effective. Where one-dimensional heat flux is a requirement, the chamber is the most suitable apparatus available. It should be improved in regard to visibility of animals and ease of cleaning.

Hilado, C. J.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Development of a new class of chemical and biological ultrasensors: Ribonuclease contamination and control

In order to define ribonuclease contamination, an assay for ribonuclease having picogram level sensitivity was established. In this assay, polycytidylic acid is digested by ribonuclease leading to smaller fragments of poly C that remain soluble after treatment of the sample with perchloric acid and lanthanum acetate. An absorbance measurement at 260 nm of the supernatant from the centrifuged sample measures the ribonuclease. A standard curve is shown. Using this assay procedure, ribonuclease contamination was found to be significant in routine laboratory proteins, in particular, bovine serum albumin, lysozyme, catalase, and cytochrome C. This was confirmed by demonstrating a considerable reduction in this activity in the presence of phosphate buffer since phosphate inhibits ribonuclease. Ribonuclease contamination was not significantly encountered in routine laboratory glassware, plasticware, column surfaces, chromatographic particles, and buffer reagents, including airborne contamination. Some contamination could be introduced by fingerprints, however.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1985

Quasi drag free gradiometry

Gradiometers are instruments for measuring the gradient of the gravity vector. However, these devices are in varying degrees contaminated by gravity itself or by acceleration. To a large extent these problems are avoidable in orbit, and dramatic improvements in operating accuracy are envisioned. The considered improvements could lead to the possibility of detailed global gravity surveys of the earth, or other planets. An obstacle in the path toward the conduction of such surveys is related to the impossibility to demonstrate an instrument's potential orbital performance in the laboratory. A promising approach for orbital testing is possibly a procedure in which the Shuttle is operated as a drag free satellite. This procedure involves floating the gradiometer in the Shuttle bay. However, certain problems arise in connection with such a procedure. The present investigation is concerned with the possibility that the Shuttle's motion problems can be avoided through the use of a quasi-drag-free magnetic suspension.

Seaman, C. H.↗
NASA NTRS1986

NOSL experiment support

An optical lightning detector was constructed and flown, along with Vinton cameras and a Fairchild Line Scan Spectrometer, on a U-2 during the summer of 1979. The U-2 lightning data was obtained in daylight, and was supplemented with ground truth taken at Langmuir Laboratory. Simulations were prepared as required to establish experiment operating procedures and science training for the astronauts who would operate the Night/Day Optical Survey of Thunderstorm Lightning (NOSL) equipment during the STS-2 NOSL experiment on the Space Shuttle. Data was analyzed and papers were prepared for publication.

Brook, M.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Design of robust line-of-sight pointing control system for the SCOLE configuration

Robust compensator design for attitude control of the Spacecraft Control Laboratory Experiment (SCOLE) configuration is considered. A loop-shaping procedure similar to that used in the LQG/LTR method is used to iteratively design the compensator. A satisfactory compensator is obtained by including the rigid modes and three elastic modes in the design model.

Joshi, S. M.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Development of a four-dimensional variational analysis system using the adjoint method at GLA. I - Dynamics

Recent developments in the field of data assimilation have pointed to variational analysis (essentially least-squares fitting of a model solution to observed data) using the adjoint method as a new direction that holds the potential of major improvements over the current optimal interpolation method. This paper describes the initial effort in the development of a 4D variational analysis system. Although the development is based on the Goddard Laboratory for Atmospheres General Circulation Model (GCM), the methods and procedures described in this paper can be applied to any model. The adjoint code that computes the gradients needed in the analysis can be written directly from the GCM code. An easy error-detection technique was devised in the construction of the adjoint model. Also, a method of determining the weights and the preconditioning scales for the cases where model-generated data, which are error free, are used as observation is proposed. Two test experiments show that the dynamics part of the system has been successfully completed.

Chao, Winston C.↗
NASA NTRS1993

The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS)

AVIRIS is a facility consisting of a flight system, a ground data system, a calibration facility, and a full-time operations team. The facility was developed by JPL under funding from NASA. NASA also provides funding for operations and maintenance. The flight system is a whisk-broom imager that acquires data in 224 narrow, contiguous spectral bands covering the solar reflected portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. It is flown aboard the NASA high altitude ER-2 research aircraft. The ground data system is a facility dedicated to the processing and distribution of data acquired by AVIRIS. It operates year round at JPL. The calibration facility consists of a calibration laboratory at JPL and a suite of field instruments and procedures for performing inflight calibration of AVIRIS. A small team of engineers, technicians, and scientists supports a yearly operations schedule that includes 6 months of flight operations, 6 months of routine ground maintenance of the flight system, and year-round data processing and distribution. Details of the AVIRIS system, its performance history, and future plans are described.

Vane, Gregg↗
NASA NTRS1996

Evaluation of alternatives for trichlorotrifluoroethane (CFC-113) to clean and verify liquid oxygen systems

NASA Langley Research Center (LARC) investigated several alternatives to the use of tri-chloro-tri-fluoroethane(CFC-113) in oxygen cleaning and verification. Alternatives investigated include several replacement solvents, Non-Destructive Evaluation (NDE) and Total Organic Carbon (TOC) analysis. Among the solvents, 1, 1-dichloro-1-fluoroethane (HCFC 141b) and di-chloro-penta-fluoro-propane (HCFC 225) are the most suitable alternatives for cleaning and verification. However, use of HCFC 141b is restricted, HCFC 225 introduces toxicity hazards, and the NDE and TOC methods of verification are not suitable for processes at LaRC. Therefore, the interim recommendation is to sparingly use CFC-113 for the very difficult cleaning tasks where safety is critical and to use HCFC 225 to clean components in a controlled laboratory environment. Meanwhile, evaluation must continue on now solvents and procedures to find one suited to LaRCs oxygen cleaning needs.

Morris, Michelle L.↗
NASA NTRS2000

Adiabatic Compression Sensitivity of Liquid Fuels and Monopropellants

Liquid rocket propellants can be sensitive to rapid compression. Such liquids may undergo decomposition and their handling may be accompanied with risk. Decomposition produces small gas bubbles in the liquid, which upon rapid compression may cause catastrophic explosions. The rapid compression can result from mechanical shocks applied on the tank containing the liquid or from rapid closure of the valves installed on the lines. It is desirable to determine the conditions that may promote explosive reactions. At Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), we constructed an apparatus and established a safe procedure for estimating the sensitivity of propellant materials towards mechanical shocks (Adiabatic Compression Tester). A sample is placed on a stainless steel U-tube, held isothermally at a temperature between 20 and 150 C then exposed to an abrupt mechanical shock of nitrogen gas at a pressure between 6.9 and 20.7 MPa (1000 to 3000 psi). The apparatus is computer interfaced and is driven with LABTECH NOTEBOOK-pro (registered) Software. In this presentation, the design of the apparatus is shown, the operating procedure is outlined, and the safety issues are addressed. The results obtained on different energetic materials are presented.

Ismail, Ismail M. K.↗