Heliostat Characterization at the Central Receiver Test Facility

1981 ◽  
Vol 103 (2) ◽  
pp. 82-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. L. King ◽  
D. E. Arvizu

The Central Receiver Test Facility (CRTF) operated for the Department of Energy by Sandia Laboratories in Albuquerque, N. M. was constructed for the purpose of evaluating solar central receiver design concepts. At this facility working experience with the CRTF heliostat field has been gained and an extensive heliostat evaluation capability has evolved. Valuable information has been gained at the CRTF that will help in the future design and specification of heliostats. This paper summarizes the work that led to the current state of heliostat evaluation capability and includes; a description of the CRTF heliostat, measurements of environmental degradation of mirror reflectance, heliostat beam measurements with an instrumented sweeping bar, beam quality and tracking accuracy data obtained with the newly developed Beam Characterization System (BCS) and comparisons of measured beam data with the heliostat computer model HELIOS.

Author(s):  
Andrey S. KIRILLOV ◽  
Aleksandr P. PYSHKO ◽  
Andrey A. ROMANENKO ◽  
Valery I. YARYGIN

The paper describes an overview of the history of development and the current state of JSC “SSC RF-IPPE” reactor research and test facility designed for assembly, research and full-scale life energy tests of space nuclear power plants with a thermionic reactor. The leading specialists involved in development and operation of this facility are represented. The most significant technological interfaces and upgrade operations carried out in the recent years are discussed. The authors consider the use of an oil-free pumping system as part of this facility during degassing and life testing. Proposed are up-to-date engineering solutions for development of the automated special measurement system designed to record NPP performance, including volt-ampere characteristics together with thermophysical and nuclear physical parameters of a ground prototype of the space nuclear power plant. Key words: reactor research and test facility, thermionic reactor, life energy tests, oil-free pumping system, automated special measurement system, volt-ampere characteristics.


1983 ◽  
Vol 105 (2) ◽  
pp. 348-353 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. E. Wright ◽  
L. L. Tignac

Rocketdyne is under contract to the Department of Energy for the development of heat exchanger technology that will allow coal to be burned for power generation and cogeneration applications. This effort involves both atmospheric fluidized bed and pulverized coal combustion systems. In addition, the heat exchanger designs cover both metallic and ceramic materials for high-temperature operations. This paper reports on the laboratory and small AFB test results completed to date. It also covers the design and installation of a 6×6 ft atmospheric fluidized bed test facility being used to correlate and expand the knowledge gained from the initial tests. The paper concludes by showing the direction this technology is taking and outlining the steps to follow in subsequent programs.


Author(s):  
William J. Waugh ◽  
Craig H. Benson ◽  
William H. Albright

The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Legacy Management is investigating alternatives to conventional cover designs for uranium mill tailings. A cover constructed in 2000 near Monticello, Utah, USA, was a redundant design with a conventional low-conductivity composite cover overlain with an alternative cover designed to mimic the natural soil water balance as measured in nearby undisturbed native soils and vegetation. To limit percolation, the alternative cover design relies on a 160-cm layer of sandy clay loam soil overlying a 40-cm sand capillary barrier for water storage, and a planting of native sagebrush steppe vegetation to seasonally release soil water through evapotranspiration (ET). Water balance monitoring within a 3.0-ha drainage lysimeter, embedded in the cover during construction, provided convincing evidence that the cover has performed well over a 9-year period (2000–2009). The total cumulative percolation, 4.8 mm (approximately 0.5 mm yr−1), satisfied a regulatory goal of <3.0 mm yr−1. Most percolation can be attributed to the very wet winter and spring of 2004–2005, when soil water content exceeded the storage capacity of the cover. Diversity, percent cover, and leaf area of vegetation increased over the monitoring period. Field and laboratory evaluations several years after construction show that soil structural development, changes in soil hydraulic properties, and development of vegetation patterns have not adversely impacted cover performance. A new test facility was constructed in 2008 near Grand Junction, Colorado, USA, to evaluate low-cost methods for renovating or transforming conventional covers into more sustainable ET covers.


Author(s):  
Griffin Beck ◽  
Melissa Poerner ◽  
Kevin Hoopes ◽  
Sandeep Verma ◽  
Garud Sridhar ◽  
...  

Hydraulic fracturing treatments are used to produce oil and gas reserves that would otherwise not be accessible using traditional production techniques. Fracturing treatments require a significant amount of water, which has an associated environmental impact. In recent work funded by the Department of Energy (DOE), an alternative fracturing process has been investigated that uses natural gas as the primary fracturing fluid. In the investigated method, a high-pressure foam of natural gas and water is used for fracturing, a method than could reduce water usage by as much as 80% (by volume). A significant portion of the work focused on identifying and optimizing a mobile processing facility that can be used to pressurize natural gas sourced from adjacent wells or nearby gas processing plants. This paper discusses some of the evaluated processes capable of producing a high-pressure (10,000 psia) flow of natural gas from a low-pressure source (500 psia). The processes include five refrigeration cycles producing liquefied natural gas as well as a cycle that directly compresses the gas. The identified processes are compared based on their specific energy as calculated from a thermodynamic analysis. Additionally, the processes are compared based on the estimated equipment footprint and the process safety. Details of the thermodynamic analyses used to compare the cycles are provided. This paper also discusses the current state of the art of foam fracturing methods and reviews the advantages of these techniques.


Vacuum ◽  
1967 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 168-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
C.P. Boebel ◽  
S.J. Babjak

2022 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadja Könsgen ◽  
Barbara Prediger ◽  
Anna Schlimbach ◽  
Ana-Mihaela Bora ◽  
Simone Hess ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Second medical opinions (SOs) can assist patients in making informed treatment decisions and improve the understanding of their diagnosis. In Germany, there are different approaches to obtain a structured SO procedure: SO programs by health insurers and SOs according to the SO Directive. Through a direct survey of the population, we aimed to assess how structured SOs should be provided to fulfil patients’ needs. Methods A stratified sample of 9990 adults (≥18 years) living in the federal states of Berlin and Brandenburg (Germany) were initially contacted by post in April and sent a reminder in May 2020. The survey results were analyzed descriptively. Results Among 1349 participants (response rate 14%), 56% were female and the median age was 58 years (interquartile range (IQR) 44–69). Participants wanted to be informed directly and personally about the possibility of obtaining an SO (89%; 1201/1349). They preferred to be informed by their physician (93%; 1249/1349). A majority of participants would consider it important to obtain an SO for oncological indications (78%; 1049/1349). Only a subset of the participants would seek an SO via their health insurer or via an online portal (43%; 577/1349 and 16%; 221/1349). A personally delivered SO was the preferred route of SO delivery, as 97% (1305/1349) would (tend to) consider this way of obtaining an SO. Participants were asked to imagine having moderate knee pain for years, resulting in a treatment recommendation for knee joint replacement. They were requested to rate potential qualification criteria for a physician providing the SO. The criteria rated to be most important were experience with the recommended diagnosis/treatment (criterion (very) important for 93%; 1257/1349) and knowledge of the current state of research (criterion (very) important for 86%; 1158/1349). Participants were willing to travel 60 min (median; IQR 60–120) and wait 4 weeks (median; IQR 2–4) for their SO in the hypothetical case of knee pain. Conclusion In general, SOs were viewed positively. We found that participants have clear preferences regarding SOs. We propose that these preferences should be taken into account in the future design and development of SO programs.


Author(s):  
Paul S. Weitzel

Babcock & Wilcox Power Generation Group, Inc. (B&W) has received a competitively bid award from the United States (U.S.) Department of Energy to perform the preliminary front-end engineering design of an advanced ultra-supercritical (A-USC) steam superheater for a future A-USC component test program (ComTest) achieving 760C (1400F) steam temperature. The current award will provide the engineering data necessary for proceeding to detail engineering, manufacturing, construction and operation of a ComTest. The steam generator superheater would subsequently supply the steam to an A-USC intermediate pressure steam turbine. For this study the ComTest facility site is being considered at the Youngstown Thermal heating plant facility in Youngstown, Ohio. The ComTest program is important because it would place functioning A-USC components in operation and in coordinated boiler and turbine service. It is also important to introduce the power plant operation and maintenance personnel to the level of skills required and provide initial hands-on training experience. Preliminary fabrication, construction and commissioning plans are to be developed in the study. A follow-on project would eventually provide a means to exercise the complete supply chain events required to practice and refine the process for A-USC power plant design, supply, manufacture, construction, commissioning, operation and maintenance. Representative participants would then be able to transfer knowledge and recommendations to the industry. ComTest is conceived as firing natural gas in a separate standalone facility that will not jeopardize the host facility or suffer from conflicting requirements in the host plant’s mission that could sacrifice the nickel alloy components and not achieve the testing goals. ComTest will utilize smaller quantities of the expensive materials and reduce the risk in the first operational practice for A-USC technology in the U.S. Components at suitable scale in ComTest provide more assurance before applying them to a full size A-USC demonstration plant. The description of the pre-front-end engineering design study and current results will be presented.


Author(s):  
T. Conboy ◽  
J. Pasch ◽  
D. Fleming

The US Department of Energy is currently focused on the development of next-generation nuclear power reactors, with an eye towards improved efficiency and reduced capital cost. To this end, reactors using a closed-Brayton power conversion cycle have been proposed as an attractive alternative to steam turbines. The supercritical-CO2 recompression cycle has been identified as a leading candidate for this application as it can achieve high efficiency at relatively low operating temperatures with extremely compact turbomachinery. Sandia National Laboratories has been a leader in hardware and component development for the supercritical-CO2 cycle. With contractor Barber-Nichols Inc, Sandia has constructed a megawatt-class S-CO2 cycle test-loop to investigate the key areas of technological uncertainty for this power cycle, and to confirm model estimates of advantageous thermodynamic performance. Until recently, much of the work has centered on the simple S-CO2 cycle — a recuperated Brayton loop with a single turbine and compressor. However work has recently progressed to a recompression cycle with split-shaft turbo-alternator-compressors, unlocking the potential for much greater efficiency power conversion, but introducing greater complexity in control operations. The following sections use testing experience to frame control actions made by test loop operators in bringing the recompression cycle from cold startup conditions through transition to power generation on both turbines, to the desired test conditions, and finally to a safe shutdown. During this process, considerations regarding turbocompressor thrust state, CO2 thermodynamic state at the compressor inlet, compressor surge and stall, turbine u/c ratio, and numerous other factors must be taken into account. The development of these procedures on the Sandia test facility has greatly reduced the risk to industry in commercial development of the S-CO2 power cycle.


Author(s):  
S. V. Gunn ◽  
J. R. McCarthy

Under contract from the Department of Energy, Rocketdyne is developing the technology of coal-fired gas heaters for utilization in Brayton-cycle cogeneration systems. The program encompasses both atmospheric fluidized bed and pulverized coal combustion systems; and it is directed toward the development of gas heater systems capable of delivering high pressure air or helium at 1550 F, when employing metallic heat exchangers, and 1750 F, when employing ceramic heat exchangers. This paper reports on the development status of the program, with discussions of the completed “screening” corrosion/erosion tests of candidate heat exchanger materials, a description and summary of the operating experience with the 6- by 6-foot AFB test facility and a projection of the potential for relatively near term commercialization of such heater systems.


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