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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 163 records · Page 9
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1982

A bismuth germanate-shielded mercuric iodide X-ray detector for space applications

The development of HgI2 for solid state X-ray detector applications over the past decade was carried out in connection with the ability of the crystal to operate as a detector at room temperature. In order to achieve the lowest background possible for HgI2 detectors in a space-like environment (balloon and/or satellite altitudes), attention was given to the design of a shielding system which actively vetoes nonaperture events such as gamma rays and charged particles that can mimic signal X-rays by partial deposition of energy in the main detector. The detector system consists of two HgI2 detectors mounted back to back and operated in anticoincidence. The two detectors are placed inside a bismuth germanate scintillating shield along with two hybrid charge-sensitive preamps. Monte Carlo simulations of detector performance are discussed.

Vallerga, J. V.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Simulation of Fluid Flow and Collection Efficiency for a SEA Inc. Multi-Element Probe and Ice Crystal Detector Using GlennICE

Numerical simulation results of fluid flow and collection efficiency of the Science Engineering Associates Inc. Multi-Element Probe (Multiwire) and Ice Crystal Detector (ICD) are presented. Fluid flow simulations were conducted using NASA's FUN3D while collection efficiency simulations were conducted using NASA's LEWICE3D software and GlennICE software. For both probes, 3D unsteady flow results were time averaged. Simulations were computed for freestream velocities ranging from 85 to 185 m/s and freestream total pressures of 44.8 and 93.1 kPa. Collection efficiency results were computed for four spherical particle diameter sizes of 5, 20, 50, and 100 µm. GlennICE collection efficiency results for the multiwire were compared with previously published collection efficiency values calculated using LEWICE3D. Numerical collection efficiency results for the Ice Crystal Detector are presented for the first time.

aircraft, icing, Computational Fluid Dynamics↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Simulation of Fluid Flow and Collection Efficiency for a SEA Inc. Multi-Element Probe and Ice Crystal Detector Using GlennICE

Numerical simulation results of fluid flow and collection efficiency of the Science Engineering Associates Inc. Multi-Element Probe (Multiwire) and Ice Crystal Detector (ICD) are presented. Fluid flow simulations were conducted using NASA's FUN3D while collection efficiency simulations were conducted using NASA's LEWICE3D software and GlennICE software. For both probes, 3D unsteady flow results were time-averaged. Simulations were computed for free steam velocities ranging from 85 to 185 m/s and freestream total pressures of 44.8 and 93.1 kPa. Collection efficiency results were computed for four spherical particle diameter sizes of 5, 20, 50, and 100 µm. GlennICE collection efficiency results for the multiwire were compared with previously published collection efficiency values calculated using LEWICE3D. Numerical collection efficiency results for the Ice Crystal Detector are presented for the first time.

aircraft, icing, Computational Fluid Dynamics↗
DOE OSTI2025

Benchmarking fast-neutron response of 7 Li-enriched C 7 LYC scintillators: Simulations and experiment

New insights into the fast neutron response of 7 Li-enriched C 7 LYC scintillators have been obtained through detailed Geant4 simulations of 35 Cl(n,p) and 35 Cl(n, α) reactions that are primarily responsible for the fast neutron response of C 7 LYC. The light output of a 1” x1” C 7 LYC detector was simulated using the Birks equation for light quenching in scintillators. The simulations were benchmarked against neutron scattering data from a 12 C target obtained with a white neutron beam at the Los Alamos LANSCE facility and fourteen 1”x1” C 7 LYC detectors. Incident neutron energies extracted from time-of-flight measurements, and appropriate recoil corrections for the different detector angles were used to map the response of C 7 LYC to mono-energetic neutrons. Resonances in the 35 Cl(n,p) reaction cross-section below 3 MeV incident neutron energy were directly observed in C 7 LYC. The experimental data and simulations are compared with ENDF databases, as well as recent direct cross-section measurements of neutrons scattered from a 35 Cl target. In conclusion, the results suggest a scrutiny of the 35 Cl(n,p) and 35 Cl(n, α) cross sections at low energy in the ENDF library.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS2005

Simulation of the ATIC-2 Silicon Matrix for Protons and Helium GCR Primaries at 0.3, 10, and 25 TeV/Nucleon

The energy deposition distribution for protons and helium galactic cosmic ray primaries at 0.3, 10, and 25 TeV/nucleon in the ATIC-2 silicon matrix detector are simulated with GEANT4. The GEANT3 geometrical model of ATIC developed by the University of Maryland was combined with a GEANT4 application developed for the Deep Space Test Bed (DSTB) detector package. The new code included relatively minor modifications to completely describe the ATIC materials and a more detailed model of the Silicon Matrix detector. For this analysis all particles were started as a unidirectional beam at a single point near the center of the Silicon Matrix front surface. The point was selected such that each primary passed through at least two of the overlapping silicon pixels.

Watts, J.↗
DOE OSTI2021

A channel flow cell with double disk electrodes for oxygen electroreduction study at elevated temperatures and pressures: Theory

We report a new double-disk-electrode channel flow cell has been designed, constructed and tested. A theoretical treatment and implicit finite difference numerical simulations are presented, which permit the computation of the hydrodynamic behavior of this cell under steady state conditions, i.e., the diffusion limited current at the working electrode and the collection efficiency of the detector. The simulated results are consistent with those measured experimentally, indicating that our simulations appropriately describe the hydrodynamic behavior of this cell. The oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) on a carbon-supported nanoparticle Pt catalyst at both room temperature and 110 °C were preliminarily studied with this cell.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2022

Simulating self-powered neutron detector responses to infer burnup-induced power distribution perturbations in next-generation light water reactors

Understanding how 3D power distribution will be monitored throughout reactor core volumetric space in next-generation nuclear power reactors is crucial to the design, deployment, and licensing of these reactors. Although numerous techniques exist for 3D power distribution monitoring based on the response of both in situ and ex situ sensors currently implemented or proposed for use in the US reactor fleet, crucial details about these techniques are often unclear. The publicly available documentation does not include information such as how well these techniques are characterized and optimized in their implementations and the levels of uncertainty in the inferred 3D power distribution. The work described herein investigated a recently developed 3D power distribution inferencing method as applied to two next-generation reactor simulations: (1) the NuScale small modular reactor design and (2) the Westinghouse AP1000 design, both of which contain in-core strings of vanadium self-powered neutron detectors (SPNDs). This investigation considered a range of SPND string sensor densities, as well as a range of 3D power distribution axial segment sizes. In this work, SPND response simulation is informed by neutron flux calculations in representative homogenized cores. For the different sensor densities and power distribution axial segment sizes in these simulations, the average solution error, solver iterations, and run time were tracked to parameterize the sensor-core configuration.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Detector Characterization for Accurate Monte Carlo Simulation and Neutron Energy-spectrum Unfolding

This report details the characterization of a deuterated scintillation detector for use in neutron spectroscopy via the spectrum unfolding technique. The active volume of the detector consists of a 3-in. diameter by 3 in. depth right circular cylinder that contains 337 cm3 of liquid scintillator EJ-315, deuterated benzene with a D:H ratio of 141:1. A deuterated scintillator is desirable for unfolding fast neutron energy spectra because the backscattering of neutrons from deuterium produces peaks in the pulse height response corresponding to the incident neutron energy. Spectrum unfolding requires the detector’s response to be accurately known for any input neutron energy. The characterization in this report supports using a simulated response matrix calibrated by the measured light output and convolved with the measured resolution to produce a response matrix without bringing the detector to a neutron beam facility for characterization. In particular, characterization measurements were performed that included calibration of the detector’s light output to recoil electrons from gamma sources, calibration of the detector’s resolution to recoil electrons, and calibration of the detector’s light output to recoil protons from a time-tagged neutron source and a monoenergetic 14.1 MeV neutron source.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2023

Towards Realistic and High Fidelity Models for Nuclear Reactor Power Synthesis Simulation with Self-Powered Neutron Detectors

As presented in this report, a weighting function–based inferencing method is being applied to synthesize the power distribution in next-generation and university research reactors based on simulated self power neutron detector (SPND) responses. The overall goal is to assess the impacts of sensor uncertainty and true power distribution perturbations on the error in the synthesized power distribution. Regarding sensor uncertainty, the NuScale Small Modular Reactor (SMR) and the Westinghouse AP1000 serve as testbeds for analyzing the impact of varying the sensor uncertainty, as well as varying the number of sensors per sensor string in the reactor core. The reactor models are informed by Monte Carlo N-Particle (MCNP) neutron flux tallies. For the NuScale SMR and Westinghouse AP1000, the SPND response functions (i.e., the response of the SPNDs to individual segments of fuel) were determined homogeneously. Regarding an analysis of power distribution perturbation detection, the Texas A&M Testing, Research, Isotopes, General Atomics Reactor (TAMU TRIGA) reactor was used as a demonstration case with one particular arrangement of SPNDs; the response functions for this reactor model were determined heterogeneously, making this a uniquely high-fidelity demonstration of perturbation detection. Finally, SPND models generated in the Geometry and Tracking 4 (Geant4) code have been generated and tested for comparison with traditionally implemented analytical SPND models, with the intent for Geant4 integration with the full methodological framework. SPND current outputs as a function of distance from some fuel assembly segment in the NuScale SMR are compared with the analytically determined currents. Results from the sensor uncertainty simulations for the NuScale SMR and AP1000 indicate that the average error in the inferred power distribution on the fuel assembly segment level is reasonably low, being slightly less than the random uncertainty applied to all respective SPNDs in both cores. For example, if all SPNDs in the core have a random uncertainty of 5%, then the corresponding fuel assembly segment level error (i.e. difference between the true and inferred local power) is ~2–3%. However, the maximum error in the inferred power distribution on the fuel assembly segment level can be considerably high (>15%) when SPND random uncertainties start to exceed ~3%. In general, the average and maximum errors in the inferred power distribution were slightly higher in the AP1000 as opposed to the NuScale SMR for the sensor string configurations considered herein. Another result determined from analysis of the sensor uncertainty simulations was that increasing the number of SPNDs per string does not clearly reduce inferred power distribution error and can in fact make the error large in some cases; however, this assessment may skewed due to imposed iteration limits. Results from the perturbation detection demonstration using the high-fidelity TAMU TRIGA model indicate that, given the arrangement of 17 SPND strings and 4 SPNDs per string considered herein, there is a clear, provable ability to infer a localized Gaussian-type peak perturbation in the 3D power distribution. Such a perturbation was detected with an average fuel assembly segment level error of 0.19%, and the general visualization of the detected perturbation clearly indicates that the magnitude and shape were appropriately resolved. Finally, the electrical current output generated by the Geant4 modeled SPND indicates significant magnitude differences than the analytically modeled SPND, demonstrating the need for accurate SPND models which account for finite sensor geometry effects to inform the power synthesis work described herein.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
NASA NTRS2000

X-Ray Astronomy

Dr. S. N. Zhang has lead a seven member group (Dr. Yuxin Feng, Mr. XuejunSun, Mr. Yongzhong Chen, Mr. Jun Lin, Mr. Yangsen Yao, and Ms. Xiaoling Zhang). This group has carried out the following activities: continued data analysis from space astrophysical missions CGRO, RXTE, ASCA and Chandra. Significant scientific results have been produced as results of their work. They discovered the three-layered accretion disk structure around black holes in X-ray binaries; their paper on this discovery is to appear in the prestigious Science magazine. They have also developed a new method for energy spectral analysis of black hole X-ray binaries; four papers on this topics were presented at the most recent Atlanta AAS meeting. They have also carried Monte-Carlo simulations of X-ray detectors, in support to the hardware development efforts at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). These computation-intensive simulations have been carried out entirely on the computers at UAH. They have also carried out extensive simulations for astrophysical applications, taking advantage of the Monte-Carlo simulation codes developed previously at MSFC and further improved at UAH for detector simulations. One refereed paper and one contribution to conference proceedings have been resulted from this effort.

Wu, S. T.↗
DOE OSTI2025

A simulation pipeline for fast neutron imaging and spectroscopy using quantified detector attributes

Radiation imaging capabilities, essential in the nuclear nonproliferation regime, facilitate source localization and, in certain cases, spectroscopy. Scatter-based neutron cameras, which can measure the neutron signatures from special nuclear material, hold particular interest. Systems incorporating organic scintillators can extract neutron energy spectra, potentially distinguishing fission neutron sources from others, such as alpha-neutron sources. The development and testing of a scatter-based neutron imager, however, can be challenging without having an accurate simulation model or first constructing a prototype. This work describes a simulation pipeline that takes output from MCNPX-PoliMi simulations and creates the expected back-projection neutron images and neutron energy spectra. This pipeline was developed to improve the modeling of fast neutron imagers and bridge the current gap in literature, which predominantly focuses on gamma-ray Compton imager models. This work also reports on the significance of various real-world system considerations and their effects on the simulated detector responses. The pipeline was verified and validated with experimental data collected using a 252 Cf spontaneous fission source using a fast neutron scattering imager developed at the University of Michigan.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2021

Accelerating End-to-End Deep Learning for Particle Reconstruction using CMS open data

Machine learning algorithms are gaining ground in high energy physics for applications in particle and event identification, physics analysis, detector reconstruction, simulation and trigger. Currently, most data-analysis tasks at LHC experiments benefit from the use of machine learning. Incorporating these computational tools in the experimental framework presents new challenges. This paper reports on the implementation of the end-to-end deep learning with the CMS software framework and the scaling of the end-to-end deep learning with multiple GPUs. The end-to-end deep learning technique combines deep learning algorithms and low-level detector representation for particle and event identification. We demonstrate the end-to-end implementation on a top quark benchmark and perform studies with various hardware architectures including single and multiple GPUs and Google TPU.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Single differential $\nu_\mu$ charged-current cross section with the MicroBooNE detector using the Cosmic Ray Tagger

We perform a single differential $\nu_\mu$ charged current (CC) inclusive cross section measurement in MicroBooNE using improved detector response simulation, reconstruction, and with improved cosmic ray-induced background rejection using an external Cosmic Ray Tagger (CRT). The measurement uses data recorded from Fermilab’s Booster Neutrino Beamline (BNB) between December 2017 and July 2018, corresponding to an integrated protons on target of 7.6e18). We present the results in a similar manner as our previous $\nu_\mu$ charged current (CC) inclusive cross section to allow for direct comparison. The direct comparison highlights two improvements in this measurement over the previous measurement: firstly, the drastically reduced cosmic contamination achieved when using the CRT, and secondly the significantly improved detector modeling, with associated reduced systematic uncertainties. It is shown in this analysis that the outcome is an improved measurement (σ = 0.800 ± 0.030 (stat) ± 0.101 (sys) · 10 -38 cm 2 ) with much smaller uncertainties but a result consistent with that of the previous analysis (σ previous = 0.693 ± 0.010 ± 0.165 · 10 -38 cm 2 ).

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Simulation studies of a full-ring, CZT SPECT system for whole-body imaging of 99m Tc and 177 Lu

Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) is an imaging modality that has demonstrated its utility in a number of clinical indications. Despite this progress, a high sensitivity, high spatial resolution, multi-tracer SPECT with a large field of view suitable for whole-body imaging of a broad range of radiotracers for theranostics is not available. With the goal of filling this technological gap, we have designed a cadmium zinc telluride (CZT) full-ring SPECT scanner instrumented with a broad-energy tungsten collimator. The final purpose is to provide a multi-tracer solution for brain and whole-body imaging. Our static SPECT does not rely on the dual- and the triple-head rotational SPECT standard paradigm, enabling a larger effective area in each scan to increase the sensitivity. We provide a demonstration of the performance of our design using a realistic model of our detector with simulated body-sized phantoms filled with 99m Tc and 177 Lu. Our SPECT design can resolve 7.9 mm rods for 99m Tc (140 keV) and 9.5 mm for 177 Lu (208 keV) in a hot-rod Derenzo phantom with a 3-min exposure and reach an image contrast of 78% for 99m Tc and 57% for 177 Lu using the NEMA IQ phantom with a 6-min exposure. Our modified scatter correction shows an improved contrast-recovery ratio compared to a standard correction. In this paper, we demonstrate the good performance of our design for whole-body imaging purposes. This adds to our previous demonstration of improved qualitative and quantitative 99m Tc imaging of brain perfusion and 123 I imaging of dopamine transport with respect to state-of-the-art NaI dual-head cameras. We show that our design provides similar IQ and contrast to the commercial full-ring SPECT VERITON for 99m Tc. Regarding 177 Lu imaging of the 208 keV emissions, our design provides similar contrast to that of other state-of-the-art SPECTs with a significant reduction in exposure. In conclusion, the high sensitivity and extended energy range up to 250 keV makes our SPECT design a promising alternative for clinical imaging and theranostics of emerging radionuclides.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Improved modeling of in-ice particle showers for IceCube event reconstruction

The IceCube Neutrino Observatory relies on an array of photomultiplier tubes to detect Cherenkov light produced by charged particles in the South Pole ice. IceCube data analyses depend on an in-depth characterization of the glacial ice, and on novel approaches in event reconstruction that utilize fast approximations of photoelectron yields. Here, a more accurate model is derived for event reconstruction that better captures our current knowledge of ice optical properties. When evaluated on a Monte Carlo simulation set, the median angular resolution for in-ice particle showers improves by over a factor of three compared to a reconstruction based on a simplified model of the ice. The most substantial improvement is obtained when including effects of birefringence due to the polycrystalline structure of the ice. When evaluated on data classified as particle showers in the high-energy starting events sample, a significantly improved description of the events is observed.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2021

Seamless integration of commercial Clouds with ATLAS Distributed Computing

The CERN ATLAS Experiment successfully uses a worldwide dis-tributed computing Grid infrastructure to support its physics programme at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The Grid workflow system PanDA routinely manages up to 700,000 concurrently running production and analysis jobs to process simulation and detector data. In total more than 500 PB of data are distributed over more than 150 sites in the WLCG and handled by the ATLAS data management system Rucio. To prepare for the ever growing data rate in future LHC runs new developments are underway to embrace industry accepted protocols and technologies, and utilize opportunistic resources in a standard way. This paper reviews how the Google and Amazon Cloud computing ser-vices have been seamlessly integrated as a Grid site within PanDA and Rucio. Performance and brief cost evaluations will be discussed. Such setups could offer advanced Cloud tool-sets and provide added value for analysis facilities that are under discussions for LHC Run-4.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2023

The Forward Physics Facility at the High-Luminosity LHC

High energy collisions at the High-Luminosity Large Hadron Collider (LHC) produce a large number of particles along the beam collision axis, outside of the acceptance of existing LHC experiments. The proposed Forward Physics Facility (FPF), to be located several hundred meters from the ATLAS interaction point and shielded by concrete and rock, will host a suite of experiments to probe standard model (SM) processes and search for physics beyond the standard model (BSM). In this report, we review the status of the civil engineering plans and the experiments to explore the diverse physics signals that can be uniquely probed in the forward region. FPF experiments will be sensitive to a broad range of BSM physics through searches for new particle scattering or decay signatures and deviations from SM expectations in high statistics analyses with TeV neutrinos in this low-background environment. High statistics neutrino detection will also provide valuable data for fundamental topics in perturbative and non-perturbative QCD and in weak interactions. Experiments at the FPF will enable synergies between forward particle production at the LHC and astroparticle physics to be exploited. We report here on these physics topics, on infrastructure, detector, and simulation studies, and on future directions to realize the FPF’s physics potential.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗