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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 739 records · Page 41
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2018

Comparative SEM and TEM analyses of apatite phases prepared by a multi-sample loading device

Highlights: • A multi-sample loading device which ultrasonically disperses samples was developed. • Comparative EM analyses on various apatite phases were efficiently carried out. • SEM-EDS data revealed distinctive values of O/P and Ca/P intensity ratios. • TEM-SAED data presented characteristic structural features of apatite phases. • Lattice parameters of bone and fossil apatite were affected by CO{sub 3} content. - Abstract: Comparative chemical and structural characterization of various apatite phases from both synthetic and natural sources were carried out by utilizing a multi-sample loading device developed for scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analyses. The device is capable of spraying nanoparticles via ultrasonication, and four separate samples were loaded on a single TEM grid by a masking tool to characterize different apatite phases in consistent instrumental and analytical conditions. SEM energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis of the apatite samples revealed distinctive values of O/P and Ca/P intensity ratios except for the fossil apatite due to its high proportion of externally originating phases. Selected area electron diffraction (SAED) pattern analysis presented the characteristic lattice parameters of the apatite phases, especially the bone and fossil apatite which had CO{sub 3}in their chemistry. Analyzing distinctive chemical and structural features among varied apatite phases can be efficiently carried out through electron microscopy with multiple samples on a single TEM grid, and such methods can be employed for characterizing a wider range of materials.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2013

A method for direct, semi-quantitative analysis of gas phase samples using gas chromatography-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry

A new and complete GC–ICP-MS method is described for direct analysis of trace metals in a gas phase process stream. The proposed method is derived from standard analytical procedures developed for ICP-MS, which are regularly exercised in standard ICP-MS laboratories. In order to implement the method, a series of empirical factors were generated to calibrate detector response with respect to a known concentration of an internal standard analyte. Calibrated responses are ultimately used to determine the concentration of metal analytes in a gas stream using a semi-quantitative algorithm. The method was verified using a traditional gas injection from a GC sampling valve and a standard gas mixture containing either a 1 ppm Xe + Kr mix with helium balance or 100 ppm Xe with helium balance. Data collected for Xe and Kr gas analytes revealed that agreement of 6–20% with the actual concentration can be expected for various experimental conditions. To demonstrate the method using a relevant “unknown” gas mixture, experiments were performed for continuous 4 and 7 hour periods using a Hg-containing sample gas that was co-introduced into the GC sample loop with the xenon gas standard. System performance and detector response to the dilute concentration of the internal standard were pre-determined, which allowed semi-quantitative evaluation of the analyte. The calculated analyte concentrations varied during the course of the 4 hour experiment, particularly during the first hour of the analysis where the actual Hg concentration was under predicted by up to 72%. Calculated concentration improved to within 30–60% for data collected after the first hour of the experiment. Similar results were seen during the 7 hour test with the deviation from the actual concentration being 11–81% during the first hour and then decreasing for the remaining period. The method detection limit (MDL) was determined for the mercury by injecting the sample gas into the system following a period of equilibration. The MDL for Hg was calculated as 6.8 μg · m -3 . This work describes the first complete GC–ICP-MS method to directly analyze gas phase samples, and detailed sample calculations and comparisons to conventional ICP-MS methods are provided.

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

Trace Actinide Signatures of a Bulk Neptunium Sample

In nuclear forensic analyses, measurements of actinide elements in a sample can assist with identifying interdicted or unknown materials. While these radiochemical signatures have been extensively investigated in uranium materials, less is known about bulk neptunium samples. This paper describes the measurement of trace actinide concentrations and isotopic profiles in a 237 Np oxide sample. Uranium, plutonium, americium, and curium concentrations and isotopic profiles in the sample were determined and deemed potentially useful for distinguishing different sources of 237 Np. Furthermore, several different potential radiochronometry systems were also investigated; discordant results indicate that the Np sample was never completely purified of other actinide elements, or that subsequent contamination of the sample occurred. Few prior studies of neptunium materials have been reported, and these data suggest that trace actinide constituents could provide unique signatures to identify material out of regulatory control.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Automated Nanoflow Two-Dimensional Reversed-Phase Liquid Chromatography System Enables In-Depth Proteome and Phosphoproteome Profiling of Nanoscale Samples

Two-dimensional reversed-phase liquid chromatography (2D RPLC) separations have enabled near-comprehensive proteome profiling of biological systems. However, large samples containing milligram amounts of protein are usually required due to the significant sample losses incurred during offline fractionation. The large sample requirements preclude the application of 2D RPLC to biological systems having sample availability in the nanogram to low-microgram range. To achieve in-depth proteomic studies of trace samples, we have developed an automated nanoflow 2D RPLC platform in which the first dimension high-pH fractionation was performed at 300 nL/min on a 75-µm i.d. capillary column.Each fraction was then fully transferred to a second-dimension nanoLC separation using an autosampler equipped with a custom-machined syringe. In addition to optimizing fractionation conditions, we found that the use of a plastic 96-well plate as collection device and the adding of n-Dodecyl ß-D-Maltoside (0.01%) in the collection buffer can significantly improve sample recovery. We have demonstrated the nanoflow 2D RPLC platform can achieve confident identifications of ~37,000–69,000 unique peptides, corresponding to ~5300–6900 protein groups using only 100 to 1000 ng of HeLa tryptic digest. Furthermore, by integrating phosphopeptide enrichment, the platform can identify as many as ~20,000 phosphopeptides from 100 µg of MCF7 protein digest. Because this platform is assembled from commercially available components, our approach can be readily adapted in other proteomics laboratories.

Mass spectrometry, multidimensional separations, n↗
DOE OSTI2015

Aqueous Processing of Atmospheric Organic Particles in Cloud Water Collected via Aircraft Sampling

Cloud water and below-cloud atmospheric particle samples were collected onboard a research aircraft during the Southern Oxidant and Aerosol Study (SOAS) over a forested region of Alabama in June 2013. The organic molecular composition of the samples was studied to gain insights into the aqueous-phase processing of organic compounds within cloud droplets. High resolution mass spectrometry with nanospray desorption electrospray ionization and direct infusion electrospray ionization were utilized to compare the organic composition of the particle and cloud water samples, respectively. Isoprene and monoterpene-derived organosulfates and oligomers were identified in both the particles and cloud water, showing the significant influence of biogenic volatile organic compound oxidation above the forested region. While the average O:C ratios of the organic compounds were similar between the atmospheric particle and cloud water samples, the chemical composition of these samples was quite different. Specifically, hydrolysis of organosulfates and formation of nitrogen-containing compounds were observed for the cloud water when compared to the atmospheric particle samples, demonstrating that cloud processing changes the composition of organic aerosol.

Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory↗
DOE OSTI2017

High-throughput automated microfluidic sample preparation for accurate microbial genomics

Low-cost shotgun DNA sequencing is transforming the microbial sciences. Sequencing instruments are so effective that sample preparation is now the key limiting factor. Here, we introduce a microfluidic sample preparation platform that integrates the key steps in cells to sequence library sample preparation for up to 96 samples and reduces DNA input requirements 100-fold while maintaining or improving data quality. The general-purpose microarchitecture we demonstrate supports workflows with arbitrary numbers of reaction and clean-up or capture steps. By reducing the sample quantity requirements, we enabled low-input (B10,000 cells) whole-genome shotgun (WGS) sequencing of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and soil micro-colonies with superior results. We also leveraged the enhanced throughput to sequence B400 clinical Pseudomonas aeruginosa libraries and demonstrate excellent single-nucleotide polymorphism detection performance that explained phenotypically observed antibiotic resistance. Fully-integrated lab-on-chip sample preparation overcomes technical barriers to enable broader deployment of genomics across many basic research and translational applications.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2024

PySAGES: flexible, advanced sampling methods accelerated with GPUs

Abstract Molecular simulations are an important tool for research in physics, chemistry, and biology. The capabilities of simulations can be greatly expanded by providing access to advanced sampling methods and techniques that permit calculation of the relevant underlying free energy landscapes. In this sense, software that can be seamlessly adapted to a broad range of complex systems is essential. Building on past efforts to provide open-source community-supported software for advanced sampling, we introduce PySAGES, a Python implementation of the Software Suite for Advanced General Ensemble Simulations (SSAGES) that provides full GPU support for massively parallel applications of enhanced sampling methods such as adaptive biasing forces, harmonic bias, or forward flux sampling in the context of molecular dynamics simulations. By providing an intuitive interface that facilitates the management of a system’s configuration, the inclusion of new collective variables, and the implementation of sophisticated free energy-based sampling methods, the PySAGES library serves as a general platform for the development and implementation of emerging simulation techniques. The capabilities, core features, and computational performance of this tool are demonstrated with clear and concise examples pertaining to different classes of molecular systems. We anticipate that PySAGES will provide the scientific community with a robust and easily accessible platform to accelerate simulations, improve sampling, and enable facile estimation of free energies for a wide range of materials and processes.

Chemistry↗
DOE OSTI2017

Improved spatial resolution for spot sampling in thermal desorption atomic force microscopy – mass spectrometry via rapid heating functions

The key to advancing materials is to understand and control their structure and chemistry. However, thorough chemical characterization is challenging since existing techniques characterize only a few properties of the specimen, thereby necessitating multiple measurement platforms to acquire the necessary information. The multimodal combination of atomic force microscopy (AFM) and mass spectrometry (MS) transcends existing analytical capabilities for nanometer scale spatially resolved correlation of the chemical and physical properties of a sample surface. One such hybrid system employs heated AFM cantilevers for thermal desorption (TD) sampling of molecules from a surface and subsequent gas phase ionization and detection of the liberated species by MS. Here in this paper, we report on the use of voltage pulse trains to tailor cantilever heating such that spot sampling size was reduced and mass spectral signal was improved compared to constant voltage, static heating of the cantilever. Desorption efficiency (DE), defined as the quotient of the mass spectral signal intensity and the volume of the desorption crater, was used to judge the effectiveness of a particular tailored heating function. To guide the development and optimization of the heating functions and aid in interpreting experimental results, a 1D finite element model was developed that predicted the cantilever response to different heating functions. Three tailored heating functions that used different combinations, magnitudes, and durations of rectangular voltage pulses, were used for surface spot sampling. The resultant sampling spot size and DE were compared to the same metrics obtained with the conventional method that uses a single voltage pulse. Using a model system composed of a thin film of ink containing pigment yellow 74 as a model system, desorption craters shrunk from 2 μm, using the conventional approach, to 310 nm using the optimum tailored heating function. This same pulsed heating function produced a 381× improvement in the DE and an 8× improvement in spatial resolution compared to the conventional heating approach showing that signal/amount of material sampled was improved significantly by this new cantilever heating strategy.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2017

Toward high-resolution NMR spectroscopy of microscopic liquid samples

A longstanding limitation of high-resolution NMR spectroscopy is the requirement for samples to have macroscopic dimensions. Commercial probes, for example, are designed for volumes of at least 5 mL, in spite of decades of work directed toward the goal of miniaturization. Progress in miniaturizing inductive detectors has been limited by a perceived need to meet two technical requirements: (1) minimal separation between the sample and the detector, which is essential for sensitivity, and (2) near-perfect magnetic-field homogeneity at the sample, which is typically needed for spectral resolution. The first of these requirements is real, but the second can be relaxed, as we demonstrate here. By using pulse sequences that yield high-resolution spectra in an inhomogeneous field, we eliminate the need for near-perfect field homogeneity and the accompanying requirement for susceptibility matching of microfabricated detector components. With this requirement removed, typical imperfections in microfabricated components can be tolerated, and detector dimensions can be matched to those of the sample, even for samples of volume << 5 uL. Pulse sequences that are robust to field inhomogeneity thus enable small-volume detection with optimal sensitivity. We illustrate the potential of this approach to miniaturization by presenting spectra acquired with a flat-wire detector that can easily be scaled to subnanoliter volumes. In particular, we report high-resolution NMR spectroscopy of an alanine sample of volume 500 pL.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2021

Measuring Signatures of Fuel Irradiation in Large Particle Samples

Understanding the operating history of a nuclear facility is one of the key goals in nuclear safeguards, enabling the verification of declared activities. This is accomplished via a number of mechanisms, including the analysis of samples collected at the facility. The best metrics for understanding and verifying the history of nuclear fuel are (1) actinide isotopic content and (2) actinide inter-element ratios. While techniques have long existed for measuring these values with high accuracy and precision in bulk samples, as samples become smaller – such as may be collected in environmental collection – new methods are required both for clean processing of pure samples, and for analysis of these small samples. This study describes a new extraction chromatography technique for recovering U, Pu, and Am from single small aliquots, and advanced mass spectrometry methods for high-precision and high-accuracy analysis of trace and ultra-trace levels of actinides. These techniques are applied to particle samples cut from fuel from a historic nuclear reactor. Ages calculated from Pu–Am chronometry of particles are in excellent agreement with the known operating history of the reactor.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Elemental analysis of air-sensitive frozen molten salt samples using an inert transfer chamber for LIBS/LA-ICP-TOF-MS analysis

A novel inert sample transfer system was developed and employed to enable, for the first time, the analysis of air-sensitive salt samples in a two-volume ablation cell using simultaneous laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) and laser ablation (LA)-inductively coupled plasma (ICP)-time-of-flight (TOF)-mass spectrometry (MS) analysis. Molten salts are of growing interest as a medium for advanced nuclear reactors and nuclear fuel reprocessing technologies continue to be developed around their use. However, compositional analysis of molten salt samples can be challenging because of their air-sensitive nature and varying solubilities leading to inaccurate measurements when digested. LA-based analysis provides an alternate method to digestion and can provide rapid elemental information with little sample preparation. In this study, LIBS and LA-ICP-TOF-MS were used to analyze the Ce content in frozen salt samples taken from a series of electrochemical experiments. Calibrations were built for each technique, and the resulting limits of detection for Ce were estimated to be 107 and 58 µg g −1 for LIBS and LA-ICP-TOF-MS, respectively. Test samples from the electrochemical experiments were analyzed using these calibrations. The results matched bulk digestion-based ICP-optical emission spectroscopy values, and daily trends in Ce concentration changes were identified. Additionally, the LIBS and LA-ICP-TOF-MS analysis was demonstrated for identifying microgram per gram levels of components and detecting trace contaminants. The impurities detected by LIBS included Al, Mg, Ca, and Na. The impurities detected by LA-ICP-TOF-MS included W, Ag, Al, Fe, Ni, Mo, Nd, Sm, Th, and U.

Andrews, Hunter B. [Oak Ridge National Laboratory ↗
DOE OSTI2022

Revisiting the role of bars in AGN fuelling with propensity score sample matching

The high luminosity displayed by an active galactic nucleus (AGN) requires that gas be transported to the centre of the galaxy by some mechanism. Bar-driven processes are often pointed out in this context and a number of studies have addressed the bar–AGN connection, but with conflicting results. Some of the inconsistencies can be explained by the different spatial- and timescales involved in bar-driven gas inflows, accretion by the central black hole, and AGN emission. However, the discrepant results could also be due to sample biases, because both the AGN activity determination and the bar detection are influenced by the method employed. We revisit the bar–AGN connection in a sample of galaxies from SDSS, looking for evidence of the influence of bars on AGN activity. We determine AGN activity by emission line diagnostics and the properties of the bar were previously estimated with BUDDA, which performs 2D bulge–bar–disk decomposition. Before comparing active and inactive galaxies, we made a careful selection of the sample to minimise selection biases. We created control samples by matching them with the AGN sample using propensity score matching. This technique offers an analytical approach for creating control samples given some object parameters. We find that AGN are preferentially found in barred galaxies and that the accretion rate is higher in barred galaxies, but only when different M–σ relations are used to estimate the black hole mass M• in barred and unbarred galaxies (from the central velocity dispersion σ). On the other hand, we find no correlation between activity level and bar strength. Altogether, our results strengthen theoretical predictions that the bar is an important mechanism in disc galaxies, creating a gas reservoir to feed AGN, but they also indicate that other mechanisms can play a major role, particularly at scales ≲100 pc.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Control and diagnosis of temperature, density, and uniformity in x-ray heated iron/magnesium samples for opacity measurements

Experimental tests are in progress to evaluate the accuracy of the modeled iron opacity at solar interior conditions, in particular to better constrain the solar abundance problem [S. Basu and H. M. Antia, Phys. Rep. 457, 217 (2008)]. Here, we describe measurements addressing three of the key requirements for reliable opacity experiments: control of sample conditions, independent sample condition diagnostics, and verification of sample condition uniformity. The opacity samples consist of iron/magnesium layers tamped by plastic. By changing the plastic thicknesses, we have controlled the iron plasma conditions to reach (1) T{sub e} = 167 ± 3 eV and n{sub e} = (7.1 ± 1.5)× 10{sup 21} cm{sup −3}, (2) T{sub e} = 170 ± 2 eV and n{sub e} = (2.0 ± 0.2) × 10{sup 22} cm{sup −3}, and (3) T{sub e} = 196 ± 6 eV and n{sub e} = (3.8 ± 0.8) × 10{sup 22} cm{sup −3}, which were measured by magnesium tracer K-shell spectroscopy. The opacity sample non-uniformity was directly measured by a separate experiment where Al is mixed into the side of the sample facing the radiation source and Mg into the other side. The iron condition was confirmed to be uniform within their measurement uncertainties by Al and Mg K-shell spectroscopy. The conditions are suitable for testing opacity calculations needed for modeling the solar interior, other stars, and high energy density plasmas.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2015

A pure-sampling quantum Monte Carlo algorithm

The objective of pure-sampling quantum Monte Carlo is to calculate physical properties that are independent of the importance sampling function being employed in the calculation, save for the mismatch of its nodal hypersurface with that of the exact wave function. To achieve this objective, we report a pure-sampling algorithm that combines features of forward walking methods of pure-sampling and reptation quantum Monte Carlo (RQMC). The new algorithm accurately samples properties from the mixed and pure distributions simultaneously in runs performed at a single set of time-steps, over which extrapolation to zero time-step is performed. In a detailed comparison, we found RQMC to be less efficient. It requires different sets of time-steps to accurately determine the energy and other properties, such as the dipole moment. We implement our algorithm by systematically increasing an algorithmic parameter until the properties converge to statistically equivalent values. As a proof in principle, we calculated the fixed-node energy, static α polarizability, and other one-electron expectation values for the ground-states of LiH and water molecules. These quantities are free from importance sampling bias, population control bias, time-step bias, extrapolation-model bias, and the finite-field approximation. We found excellent agreement with the accepted values for the energy and a variety of other properties for those systems.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2018

Enhanced configurational sampling with hybrid non-equilibrium molecular dynamics–Monte Carlo propagator

Molecular dynamics (MD) trajectories based on classical equations of motion can be used to sample the configurational space of complex molecular systems. However, brute-force MD often converges slowly due to the ruggedness of the underlying potential energy surface. Several schemes have been proposed to address this problem by effectively smoothing the potential energy surface. However, in order to recover the proper Boltzmann equilibrium probability distribution, these approaches must then rely on statistical reweighting techniques or generate the simulations within a Hamiltonian tempering replica-exchange scheme. The present work puts forth a novel hybrid sampling propagator combining Metropolis-Hastings Monte Carlo (MC) with proposed moves generated by non-equilibrium MD (neMD). This hybrid neMD-MC propagator comprises three elementary elements: (i) an atomic system is dynamically propagated for some period of time using standard equilibrium MD on the correct potential energy surface; (ii) the system is then propagated for a brief period of time during what is referred to as a “boosting phase,” via a time-dependent Hamiltonian that is evolved toward the perturbed potential energy surface and then back to the correct potential energy surface; (iii) the resulting configuration at the end of the neMD trajectory is then accepted or rejected according to a Metropolis criterion before returning to step 1. A symmetric two-end momentum reversal prescription is used at the end of the neMD trajectories to guarantee that the hybrid neMD-MC sampling propagator obeys microscopic detailed balance and rigorously yields the equilibrium Boltzmann distribution. The hybrid neMD-MC sampling propagator is designed and implemented to enhance the sampling by relying on the accelerated MD and solute tempering schemes. It is also combined with the adaptive biased force sampling algorithm to examine. Illustrative tests with specific biomolecular systems indicate that the method can yield a significant speedup.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2024

Thermal deflection in neutron scattering sample environments at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

The neutron sources at Oak Ridge National Laboratory use a wide suite of sample environment equipment to deliver extreme conditions for a number of experiments. Much of this instrumentation focuses on extremes of temperature, such as cryostats, closed-cycle refrigerators in both low and high temperature configurations, and radiant heating furnaces. When the temperature is controlled across a large range, thermal deflection effects can notably move the sample and affect its alignment in the beam. Here, we combine these sample environments with neutron imaging and machine vision to determine the motion of a representative sample with respect to the neutron beam. We find vertical sample displacement on the order of 1–2 mm and horizontal displacement that varies from near-negligible to 1.2 mm. While these deflections are not relevant for some of the beamlines at the first target station at the spallation neutron source and the high flux isotope reactor, they will become critical for upcoming instrumentation at the second target station, as well as any instruments targeting sub-mm samples, as neutron sources and optics evolve to smaller and more focused beams. We discuss mitigation protocols and potential modifications to the environment to minimize the effect of misalignment due to thermal deflection.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2012

REDSHIFTS, SAMPLE PURITY, AND BCG POSITIONS FOR THE GALAXY CLUSTER CATALOG FROM THE FIRST 720 SQUARE DEGREES OF THE SOUTH POLE TELESCOPE SURVEY

We present the results of the ground- and space-based optical and near-infrared (NIR) follow-up of 224 galaxy cluster candidates detected with the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect in the 720 deg{sup 2} of the South Pole Telescope (SPT) survey completed in the 2008 and 2009 observing seasons. We use the optical/NIR data to establish whether each candidate is associated with an overdensity of galaxies and to estimate the cluster redshift. Most photometric redshifts are derived through a combination of three different cluster redshift estimators using red-sequence galaxies, resulting in an accuracy of {Delta}z/(1 + z) = 0.017, determined through comparison with a subsample of 57 clusters for which we have spectroscopic redshifts. We successfully measure redshifts for 158 systems and present redshift lower limits for the remaining candidates. The redshift distribution of the confirmed clusters extends to z = 1.35 with a median of z{sub med} = 0.57. Approximately 18% of the sample with measured redshifts lies at z > 0.8. We estimate a lower limit to the purity of this SPT SZ-selected sample by assuming that all unconfirmed clusters are noise fluctuations in the SPT data. We show that the cumulative purity at detection significance {xi} > 5({xi} > 4.5) is {>=}95% ({>=}70%). We present the red brightest cluster galaxy (rBCG) positions for the sample and examine the offsets between the SPT candidate position and the rBCG. The radial distribution of offsets is similar to that seen in X-ray-selected cluster samples, providing no evidence that SZ-selected cluster samples include a different fraction of recent mergers from X-ray-selected cluster samples.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2013

THE ATACAMA COSMOLOGY TELESCOPE: DYNAMICAL MASSES AND SCALING RELATIONS FOR A SAMPLE OF MASSIVE SUNYAEV-ZEL'DOVICH EFFECT SELECTED GALAXY CLUSTERS {sup ,}

We present the first dynamical mass estimates and scaling relations for a sample of Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect (SZE) selected galaxy clusters. The sample consists of 16 massive clusters detected with the Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) over a 455 deg{sup 2} area of the southern sky. Deep multi-object spectroscopic observations were taken to secure intermediate-resolution (R {approx} 700-800) spectra and redshifts for Almost-Equal-To 60 member galaxies on average per cluster. The dynamical masses M{sub 200c} of the clusters have been calculated using simulation-based scaling relations between velocity dispersion and mass. The sample has a median redshift z = 0.50 and a median mass M{sub 200c}{approx_equal}12 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 14} h{sub 70}{sup -1} M{sub sun} with a lower limit M{sub 200c}{approx_equal}6 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 14} h{sub 70}{sup -1} M{sub sun}, consistent with the expectations for the ACT southern sky survey. These masses are compared to the ACT SZE properties of the sample, specifically, the match-filtered central SZE amplitude y{sub 0}-tilde, the central Compton parameter y{sub 0}, and the integrated Compton signal Y{sub 200c}, which we use to derive SZE-mass scaling relations. All SZE estimators correlate with dynamical mass with low intrinsic scatter ({approx}< 20%), in agreement with numerical simulations. We explore the effects of various systematic effects on these scaling relations, including the correlation between observables and the influence of dynamically disturbed clusters. Using the three-dimensional information available, we divide the sample into relaxed and disturbed clusters and find that {approx}50% of the clusters are disturbed. There are hints that disturbed systems might bias the scaling relations, but given the current sample sizes, these differences are not significant; further studies including more clusters are required to assess the impact of these clusters on the scaling relations.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗