Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “Implementation Plan”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 973 records · Page 54
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2012

Towards sustainable settlement growth: A new multi-criteria assessment for implementing environmental targets into strategic urban planning

For nearly one decade, the German political and research-agenda has been to a large extent determined by the ongoing question of how to limit the expansion of settlement areas around cities in order to preserve natural resources, make settlement growth more sustainable and to strengthen the re-use of existing inner-urban areas (see a.o. Koetter et al. 2009a, 2010; Schetke et al. 2009, 2010b). What is already under discussion within the international literature are the recommendations of the German Council for Sustainability to quantitatively reduce the daily greenfield consumption from the current rate of over 100 ha per day to a rate of 30 ha per day in 2020 and to bring urban infill development up to a ratio of 3:1 with greenfield development (German Council for Sustainability, 2004).). This paper addresses the added value beyond those abstract political targets and presents an innovative, multi-criteria assessment (MCA) of greenfield and infill sites to evaluate their sustainability and resource efficiency. MCA development and its incorporation into a Decision Support System (DSS) were accomplished by utilising a stakeholder-driven approach. The resulting tool can be applied in preparing and revising land-use plans. The paper presents the concept and the development process of the MCA-DSS. Test runs with planners prove that the evaluation of potential housing sites using individually weighted environmental indicators helps to identify those strategies of housing development that accord most closely with sustainability goals. The tests further show that the development of greenfield sites generally exhibits less sustainability than that of infill sites. - Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer This paper presents an innovative, multi-criteria assessment (MCA) of greenfield and infill sites. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The MCA evaluates sustainability and resource efficiency of potential housing sites in a stakeholder-driven approach. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Test runs with planners identified prominent environmental indicators and assigned individual weights. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The resulting tool can be applied in preparing and revising land-use plans according to sustainable housing development. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Test runs also show that greenfield development generally exhibits less sustainability than infill development.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2014

SU-E-T-154: Establishment and Implement of 3D Image Guided Brachytherapy Planning System

Purpose: Cannot observe the dose intuitionally is a limitation of the existing 2D pre-implantation dose planning. Meanwhile, a navigation module is essential to improve the accuracy and efficiency of the implantation. Hence a 3D Image Guided Brachytherapy Planning System conducting dose planning and intra-operative navigation based on 3D multi-organs reconstruction is developed. Methods: Multi-organs including the tumor are reconstructed in one sweep of all the segmented images using the multiorgans reconstruction method. The reconstructed organs group establishs a three-dimensional visualized operative environment. The 3D dose maps of the three-dimentional conformal localized dose planning are calculated with Monte Carlo method while the corresponding isodose lines and isodose surfaces are displayed in a stereo view. The real-time intra-operative navigation is based on an electromagnetic tracking system (ETS) and the fusion between MRI and ultrasound images. Applying Least Square Method, the coordinate registration between 3D models and patient is realized by the ETS which is calibrated by a laser tracker. The system is validated by working on eight patients with prostate cancer. The navigation has passed the precision measurement in the laboratory. Results: The traditional marching cubes (MC) method reconstructs one organ at one time and assembles them together. Compared to MC, presented multi-organs reconstruction method has superiorities in reserving the integrality and connectivity of reconstructed organs. The 3D conformal localized dose planning, realizing the 'exfoliation display' of different isodose surfaces, helps make sure the dose distribution has encompassed the nidus and avoid the injury of healthy tissues. During the navigation, surgeons could observe the coordinate of instruments real-timely employing the ETS. After the calibration, accuracy error of the needle position is less than 2.5mm according to the experiments. Conclusion: The speed and quality of 3D reconstruction, the efficiency in dose planning and accuracy in navigation all can be improved simultaneously.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Community Planning for Solar: Compiling a Community Solar Action Plan

This document provides an annotated outline for a Community Solar Action Plan. This document is designed to assist community officials, volunteers, and regional planning agency staff in preparing a draft Community Solar Action Plan for a municipality, community, or other jurisdiction. Preparing a Community Solar Action Plan is the fifth step in the Community Planning for Solar process (ag.umass.edu/solarplanning). The plan is intended to be the culmination of the planning process. The contents of the plan will include summaries of information gathered as part of foregoing steps in the process, including completion of a Solar Resource and Infrastructure Assessment, administering of a Community Solar Survey, interpretation of survey results, and review of Solar Financing and Ownership Options and tools. Once the Community Solar Action Plan has been drafted, it should be reviewed by municipal board and commission members and presented at an open community forum. Any important comments or revisions can be incorporated before the final Community Solar Action Plan is approved and implemented. The approved Community Solar Action Plan is a living document that guides community solar planning action over time. As conditions change, new information becomes available, or actions progress over the life of the plan, adjustments may be necessary to maintain the plan's relevance. The Monitoring, Evaluating, and Updating Your Community Solar Action Plan fact sheet (Step 6, Item a) describes some things to consider when updating the Community Solar Action Plan over time.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
NASA NTRS1982

PV history: Lessons for the future

A history of terrestrial photovoltaics is presented indicating that the photovoltaic potential was well perceived and a good technology developent plan was formulated and implemented. Major accomplishments of the technology plan are highlighted. Research objectives and research needs for the future are outlined.

Ralph, E. L.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Maintaining consistency between planning hierarchies: Techniques and applications

In many planning and scheduling environments, it is desirable to be able to view and manipulate plans at different levels of abstraction, allowing the users the option of viewing and manipulating either a very detailed representation of the plan or a high-level more abstract version of the plan. Generating a detailed plan from a more abstract plan requires domain-specific planning/scheduling knowledge; the reverse process of generating a high-level plan from a detailed plan Reverse Plan Maintenance, or RPM) requires having the system remember the actions it took based on its domain-specific knowledge and its reasons for taking those actions. This reverse plan maintenance process is described as implemented in a specific planning and scheduling tool, The Mission Operations Planning Assistant (MOPA), as well as the applications of RPM to other planning and scheduling problems; emphasizing the knowledge that is needed to maintain the correspondence between the different hierarchical planning levels.

Zoch, David R.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Development and implementation of a scrub habitat compensation plan for Kennedy Space Center

Kennedy Space Center (KSC), located on Merritt Island on the east coast of central Florida, is one of three remaining major populations of the Florida Scrub Jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens coerulescens), listed as threatened by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) since 1987. Construction of new facilities by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on KSC over the next five years has the potential to impact up to 193 ac (78.1 ha) of Scrub Jay habitat. Under an early consultation process with the Endangered Species Office of the USFWS, NASA agreed to a compensation plan for loss of Scrub Jay habitat. The compensation plan required NASA to restore or create scrub on KSC at a 2:1 ratio for that lost. The compensation plan emphasized restoration of scrub habitat that is of marginal or declining suitability to Scrub Jays because it has remained unburned. Although prescribed burning has been conducted by the USFWS Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (MINWR) for more than ten years, significant areas of scrub remain unburned because they have been excluded from fire management units or because landscape fragmentation and a period of fire suppression allowed scrub to reach heights and diameters that are fire resistant. For such areas, mechanical cutting followed by prescribed burning was recommended for restoration. A second part of the restoration plan is an experimental study of scrub reestablishment (i.e., creation) on abandoned, well drained agricultural sites by planting scrub oaks and other scrub plants. The compensation plan identified 260 ac (105 ha) of scrub restoration in four areas and a 40 ac (16 ha) scrub creation site. Monitoring of restoration sites required under the plan included: establishing permanent vegetation sample transects before treatment and resampling annually for ten years after treatment, and color banding Scrub Jays to determine territories prior to treatment followed by monitoring reproductive success and survival for ten years after treatment. Monitoring scrub creation sites included determining survival of planted material for five years and establishing permanent transects to follow vegetation development for ten years after planting. Scrub Jay monitoring of creation sites is incorporated with that of adjacent restoration sites.

Schmalzer, Paul A.↗
DOE OSTI2012

A One-Step Cone-Beam CT-Enabled Planning-to-Treatment Model for Palliative Radiotherapy-From Development to Implementation

Purpose: To develop a cone-beam computed tomography (CT)-enabled one-step simulation-to-treatment process for the treatment of bone metastases. Methods and Materials: A three-phase prospective study was conducted. Patients requiring palliative radiotherapy to the spine, mediastinum, or abdomen/pelvis suitable for treatment with simple beam geometry ({<=}2 beams) were accrued. Phase A established the accuracy of cone-beam CT images for the purpose of gross tumor target volume (GTV) definition. Phase B evaluated the feasibility of implementing the cone-beam CT-enabled planning process at the treatment unit. Phase C evaluated the online cone-beam CT-enabled process for the planning and treatment of patients requiring radiotherapy for bone metastases. Results: Eighty-four patients participated in this study. Phase A (n = 9) established the adequacy of cone-beam CT images for target definition. Phase B (n = 45) established the quality of treatment plans to be adequate for clinical implementation for bone metastases. When the process was applied clinically in bone metastases (Phase C), the degree of overlap between planning computed tomography (PCT) and cone-beam CT for GTV and between PCT and cone-beam CT for treatment field was 82% {+-} 11% and 97% {+-} 4%, respectively. The oncologist's decision to accept the plan under a time-pressured environment remained of high quality, with the cone-beam CT-generated treatment plan delivering at least 90% of the prescribed dose to 100% {+-} 0% of the cone-beam CT planning target volume (PTV). With the assumption that the PCT PTV is the gold-standard target, the cone-beam CT-generated treatment plan delivered at least 90% and at least 95% of dose to 98% {+-} 2% and 97% {+-} 5% of the PCT PTV, respectively. The mean time for the online planning and treatment process was 32.7 {+-} 4.0 minutes. Patient satisfaction was high, with a trend for superior satisfaction with the cone-beam CT-enabled process. Conclusions: The cone-beam CT-enabled palliative treatment process is feasible and is ready for clinical implementation for the treatment of bone metastases using simple beam geometry, providing a streamlined one-step process toward palliative radiotherapy.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗
DOE OSTI2016

MO-FG-CAMPUS-TeP3-02: Benchmarks of a Proton Relative Biological Effectiveness (RBE) Model for DNA Double Strand Break (DSB) Induction in the FLUKA, MCNP, TOPAS, and RayStation™ Treatment Planning System

Purpose: Validate implementation of a published RBE model for DSB induction (RBEDSB) in several general purpose Monte Carlo (MC) code systems and the RayStation™ treatment planning system (TPS). For protons and other light ions, DSB induction is a critical initiating molecular event that correlates well with the RBE for cell survival. Methods: An efficient algorithm to incorporate information on proton and light ion RBEDSB from the independently tested Monte Carlo Damage Simulation (MCDS) has now been integrated into MCNP (Stewart et al. PMB 60, 8249–8274, 2015), FLUKA, TOPAS and a research build of the RayStation™ TPS. To cross-validate the RBEDSB model implementation LET distributions, depth-dose and lateral (dose and RBEDSB) profiles for monodirectional monoenergetic (100 to 200 MeV) protons incident on a water phantom are compared. The effects of recoil and secondary ion production ({sub 2}H{sub +}, {sub 3}H{sub +}, {sub 3}He{sub 2+}, {sub 4}He{sub 2+}), spot size (3 and 10 mm), and transport physics on beam profiles and RBEDSB are examined. Results: Depth-dose and RBEDSB profiles among all of the MC models are in excellent agreement using a 1 mm distance criterion (width of a voxel). For a 100 MeV proton beam (10 mm spot), RBEDSB = 1.2 ± 0.03 (− 2–3%) at the tip of the Bragg peak and increases to 1.59 ± 0.3 two mm distal to the Bragg peak. RBEDSB tends to decrease as the kinetic energy of the incident proton increases. Conclusion: The model for proton RBEDSB has been accurately implemented into FLUKA, MCNP, TOPAS and the RayStation™TPS. The transport of secondary light ions (Z > 1) has a significant impact on RBEDSB, especially distal to the Bragg peak, although light ions have a small effect on (dosexRBEDSB) profiles. The ability to incorporate spatial variations in proton RBE within a TPS creates new opportunities to individualize treatment plans and increase the therapeutic ratio. Dr. Erik Traneus is employed full-time as a Research Scientist at RaySearch Laboratories. The research build of the RayStation used in the study was made available to the University of Washington free of charge. RaySearch Laboratories did not provide any monetary support for the reported studies.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

Guidance on Including Social, Organizational and Technical Influences in Nuclear Utility and Plant Modernization Plans

The objective of this report is to provide the nuclear power industry with guidance on including socio-technical issues in plans developed for current and future modernization efforts. Socio-technical issues of concern include social, organizational and related technical aspects of modernized systems. These can be addressed using a set of systematic analysis and design methods developed to address socio-technical issues of the sort facing the nuclear power industry. The next phase of this work will involve developing and implementing a modernization plan that includes socio-technical tools and methods identified and discussed in a report by Dainoff and colleagues (2020). The plan is expected to be developed and implemented in cooperation with a nuclear utility that has expressed interest in participating. The Dainoff et al report provides the foundation for the present effort and presents a methodological tool set for analyzing socio-technical issues applicable to many modernization efforts. The tools described by Dainoff et al are based on principles of human factors engineering, safety engineering, and systems engineering and are discussed within the specific context of nuclear utility modernization and transformation efforts. It is expected that the plan and the concepts described in the current report will be developed and implemented with a nuclear utility partner. The plan developed with the nuclear utility partner will have a substantially higher level of detail than the guidance provided in this report, particularly with regard to details of plan logistics, etc.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Integrated energy-water-land nexus planning in the Colorado River Basin (Argentina)

Integrated energy-water-land (EWL) planning promotes synergies and avoids conflicts in ways that sector-specific planning approaches cannot. Many important decisions that influence emerging EWL nexus issues are implemented at regional (e.g., large river basin, electricity grid) and sub-regional (e.g., small river basin, irrigation district) scales. However, actual implementation of integrated planning at these scales has been limited. Simply collecting and visualizing data and interconnections across multiple sectors and sub-regions in a single modeling platform is a unique endeavor in many regions. This study introduces and applies a novel approach to linking together multiple sub-regions in a single platform to characterize and visualize EWL resource use, EWL system linkages within and among sub-regions, and the EWL nexus implications of future policies and investments. This integrated planning methodology is applied in the water-stressed Colorado River Basin in Argentina, which is facing increasing demands for agricultural and fossil fuel commodities. Guided by stakeholders, this study seeks to inform basin planning activities by characterizing and visualizing (1) the basin’s current state of EWL resources, (2) the linkages between sectors within and among basin sub-regions, and (3) the EWL nexus implications of planned future agricultural development activities. Results show that water scarcity, driven in part by human demands that have historically reached 60% of total surface water supply, poses a substantial constraint to economic development in the basin. The Colorado basin has the potential to serve as a testbed for crafting novel and generalizable sub-regional EWL planning approaches capable of informing the EWL planning dialogue globally.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2012

A territorial understanding of sustainability in public development

Sustainability theories in European Union (EU) development policies are facing significant challenges: it is difficult to transmit context-specific, publicly communicable messages; the recent development policies strengthen the concurrent development paradigm of economic growth and competitiveness; 'climate change' became a more popular environmental integration term than sustainability in the last few years. However, due to the recent crises of the economic growth, there is a great chance to reintroduce a sustainability-based development. A territorial/regional understanding of sustainability can also be an answer for the current challenges, a platform for refreshing the concept with relevant, specific messages that are close to the everyday life. This paper summarises the 'territorial system'-based basic principles of territorial sustainability in a model called AUTHARSIIV (AUTonomy, HARmony, Solidarity, Innovation, Identity and Values). This is a supplementary sustainability content specified for the context of spatial/regional development or planning. The paper also examines the presence of 'general and territorial sustainability' in regional development programmes, and case studies on applying the territorial sustainability principles in planning, assessment, and implementation. According to the results, sustainability is rarely adapted to the conditions of a given sector or a region, and the territorial aspect of sustainability is underrepresented even in territorial programmes. Therefore, the paper proposes a new planning and assessment system that is based on a set of regionally legitimate sustainability values.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Production Agency Quality Assurance Management Execution Strategy [Thesis]

There are multiple federal directives that Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) must follow for the proper implementation of quality assurance, strategic planning, and execution of manufacturing and surveillance operations. Recent assessments identified that manufacturing in all processing areas is dynamic due to influencing scope changes, design modifications, funding adjustments, and staff attrition. In response, this project was started to develop a comprehensive PAQ execution strategy to support the success of LANL’s manufacturing mission. This project’s method for developing an updated architecture was to create an integrated, flexible, reliable, and agile strategic process. The execution plan has five deliverables: 1) an integrated schedule view of PAQ work scope, 2) a resource management plan that aligns with the required scope, 3) a metrics monitoring dashboard, 4) a project management plan for sustaining NAP 401.1A implementation, and 5) a risk management plan. The research design is a mixed-method approach focused on data collection for each deliverable. The methodology entails qualitative and quantitative research, metrics monitoring, data analysis, and the creation of a dashboard. The qualitative methods used include literature reviews and interviews. The quantitative methods include resource, financial, schedule and survey data analysis. Preliminary and final results were peer reviewed by subject matter experts both within the ALDWP organization and deployed support.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2017

Influence of tumor location on the intensity-modulated radiation therapy plan of helical tomotherapy

Given the design of the Helical TomoTherapy device, the patient's central axis is routinely aligned with the machine's rotational axis to prevent the patient's body from colliding with the machine walls. However, for treatment of tumors located away from the patient's central axis, this position may not be optimal as the adequate radiation dose may not reach the affected site. Our study aimed to investigate the influence of tumor location on dose quality and delivery efficiency of tomotherapy plans. A phantom and 15 patients were selected for this study. Two plans, A and B, were implemented for each case. In plan A, the patient's central axis was aligned with the machine's rotational axis, whereas in plan B, the center of the planning target volume (PTV) was aligned with the machine's rotational axis. Both plans were optimized with the same planning parameters, and the dose quality of the plans was evaluated using dosimetrics. The delivery efficiency was determined from delivery time and monitor units (MUs). A paired t-test or nonparametric Wilcoxon signed-rank test was performed for statistical comparison. In the phantom study, the median delivery times were 358 and 336 seconds for plans A and B, respectively, and this difference was significant (p = 0.005). In the patient study, the median delivery times were 348 and 317 seconds for plans A and B, respectively, and this difference was also significant (p = 0.001). The dose qualities of both plans for each patient were nearly identical. No significant differences were found in the conformal index, heterogeneity index, and mean dose delivered to normal tissue between the plans. Both phantom and patient studies showed that for normal-sized patients, the delivery time reduced as the distance between the PTV and the patient's central axis increased when the PTV center was aligned with the machine axis. In conclusion, aligning the PTV center with the machine's rotational axis by shifting the patient during tomotherapy reduces the delivery time without compromising the dose quality of intensity-modulated radiation therapy.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗
NASA NTRS2007

CASPER Version 2.0

CASPER is designed to perform automated planning of interdependent activities within a system subject to requirements, constraints, and limitations on resources. In contradistinction to the traditional concept of batch planning followed by execution, CASPER implements a concept of continuous planning and replanning in response to unanticipated changes (including failures), integrated with execution. Improvements over other, similar software that have been incorporated into CASPER version 2.0 include an enhanced executable interface to facilitate integration with a wide range of execution software systems and supporting software libraries; features to support execution while reasoning about urgency, importance, and impending deadlines; features that enable accommodation to a wide range of computing environments that include various central processing units and random- access-memory capacities; and improved generic time-server and time-control features.

Chien, Steve↗
DOE OSTI2015

SU-D-207-07: Implementation of Full/half Bowtie Filter Model in a Commercial Treatment Planning System for Kilovoltage X-Ray Imaging Dose Estimation

Purpose: To implement full/half bowtie filter models in a commercial treatment planning system (TPS) to calculate kilovoltage (kV) x-ray imaging dose of Varian On-Board Imager (OBI) cone beam CT (CBCT) system. Methods: Full/half bowtie filters of Varian OBI were created as compensator models in Pinnacle TPS (version 9.6) using Matlab software (version 2011a). The profiles of both bowtie filters were acquired from the manufacturer, imported into the Matlab system and hard coded in binary file format. A Pinnacle script was written to import each bowtie filter data into a Pinnacle treatment plan as a compensator. A kV x-ray beam model without including the compensator model was commissioned per each bowtie filter setting based on percent depth dose and lateral profile data acquired from Monte Carlo simulations. To validate the bowtie filter models, a rectangular water phantom was generated in the planning system and an anterior/posterior beam with each bowtie filter was created. Using the Pinnacle script, each bowtie filter compensator was added to the treatment plan. Lateral profile at the depth of 3cm and percent depth dose were measured using an ion chamber and compared with the data extracted from the treatment plans. Results: The kV x-ray beams for both full and half bowtie filter have been modeled in a commercial TPS. The difference of lateral and depth dose profiles between dose calculations and ion chamber measurements were within 6%. Conclusion: Both full/half bowtie filter models provide reasonable results in kV x-ray dose calculations in the water phantom. This study demonstrates the possibility of using a model-based treatment planning system to calculate the kV imaging dose for both full and half bowtie filter modes. Further study is to be performed to evaluate the models in clinical situations.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗