Nuclear Engineering Commons^™

The Decomposition Of 5-Hydroxymethyl-2-Furaldehyde Under Gamma Irradiation, William George Bowles

Masters Theses

"An investigation into the effects of gamma irradiation decomposition of 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furaldehyde (HMF) revealed HMF to be resistant to radiation catalyzed decomposition. A 1.0 normal solution of HMF was irradiated at a dose rate of 4.1 x 10⁵ Rads/hr to a total dose of 8.2 x 10⁶ Rads from a 5000 Curie ⁶⁰Co source. a total of 31 per cent of the HMF decomposed in a zero order reaction, although it was found the HMF decomposed completely under cadmium shielded irradiation in a nuclear reactor with some neutrons present. The reaction rate constant was found to be 4.8 x 10⁻³ moles …

Design And Construction Of A Liquid Nitrogen Cryostat For Use In A Swimming Pool Type Reactor, Bruce B. Joiner

Masters Theses

"The continued expansion of the nuclear reactor facility and the nuclear engineering program dictates the need that a liquid nitrogen cooled cryostat be available at the reactor. This unit would be available for use in graduate and undergraduate laboratories and for graduate research. A liquid nitrogen cooled cryostat capable of maintaining a sample between 77°K to 80°K for an extended period of time in or adjacent to the core of the reactor was designed, constructed, and successfully operated. Recommendations were made for possible modifications to expand the versatility of the system"--Abstract, page ii.

Computer Simulation Of Radiation Damage In Fe₃Al, Roland Otto Jackson

Masters Theses

"A computer program, designed to simulate the ordered state of the B.C.C. alloy, Fe₃Al, was used to study the effects of irradiation on an order-disorder alloy. Twenty-six runs were made with this program representing a variety of initial conditions. In all cases, the final damaged state consisted of Frenkel defects, vacancy-interstitial pairs; and the distance separating these pairs was a sensitive function of the energy and direction imparted to the primary knock-on. Both the vacancy and the interstitial were found to be normal, stable defects, with the interstitial residing in a "split"-configuration oriented in the [110] direction. The threshold energies …

Shutdown Reactivity Worth Of Reactor Control Rods By A Subcritical Multiplication Method, Leslie Roger Conner

Masters Theses

"Two modified subcritical multiplication methods for measuring the reactivity worth of control elements were developed and investigated. The first involved the calibration of a subcritical count interval by the asymptotic period method. The second involved the calibration of a subcritical count interval by a rod interchange with the reactor regulating rod which had previously been calibrated by the asymptotic period method. The accuracy of these methods is relatively poor. this inaccuracy is due to shadowing effects and to the spatial harmonics which exist in the core. An investigation of the spatial harmonics to determine the best location for the neutron …

Fast Flux Measurement By A Single Multi-Threshold Foil, Kenneth Lawrence Cage

Masters Theses

"The purpose of this investigation is to determine the fast neutron spectrum by use of a single multi-threshold foil. The foils and the elements which constituted the foils were selected by the following criteria: availability of adequate cross-section data, energy dependence of the given reaction, gamma radiation emitted during decay and the half-life of the daughter. The two foils selected were an In-Fe- P pellet, and ALCOA 2509 (Al-Ni). The gamma spectrum of each constitute was stripped from the composite spectra using a least-squares fit. The activation results were utilized to calculate the fast flux using the weighted orthonormal method. …

The Construction Of A Fermi Neutron Chopper For Cross Section Measurements, Cleon Marion Mobley

Masters Theses

"A Fermi neutron chopper and control system has been constructed and put into operation at the end of the UMR Reactor thermal column.

The operation of the chopper has been demonstrated by reproducing the slow neutron cross section data for aluminum and by measuring the previously undetermined slow cross section of cobalt.

The chopper which is powered by a series DC motor consists of 34 cadmium plated stainless steel blades separated by 1/16 inch aluminum spacers. The design incorporates the better characteristics of the Brookhaven and Argonne slow choppers. Speed regulation is accomplished using a silicon controlled rectifier feed back …

Catalytic Effects On Radiation-Induced Polymerization Of Methyl Methacryalate, David E. Bartine

Masters Theses

"A study has been made of the effect of Kaolin clay particle size and acidity on the degree of radiation-induced polymerization of methyl methacrylate. The results indicate that the degree of polymerization varies with the clay particle size, and that the amount of polymer produced is influenced by the pH of the clay"--Abstract, page ii.

The Construction Of A Single Crystal Neutron Diffraction Unit And Measurement Of Effective Neutron Temperature, Larry Dean Thompson

Masters Theses

"The continued expansion of the nuclear reactor facility and the nuclear engineering program makes it desirable that a neutron spectrometer be available at the reactor facility. This unit would be available for use in graduate and undergraduate laboratories and for graduate research.

A single crystal, white radiation spectrometer including collimator, automatic controls, and shielding was designed and constructed.

The performance of the unit was checked using LiF and Cu crystals. A rocking crystal curve and a θ - 2θ curve was obtained with each crystal. The effective neutron temperature was then determined from the LiF crystal θ - 2θ curve"--Abstract, …

An Evaluation Of The Feasibility Of Neutron Microradiography, Maynard L. Arment

Masters Theses

"The metal working industry has used metallography and microradiography extensively in the past decade. X-ray or gamma microradiography has several advantages as compared to metallography, but a disadvantage concerning alloys of adjacent elements; microradiography cannot distinguish between elements 2 or less atomic numbers apart. Attempts were made using neutron microradiography to distinguish between cadmium and tin rich grains. A maximum resolution of 0.017 inches was found with a calculated possibility of a resolution less than 0.002 inches"--Abstract, page ii.

Impulsive Loading Of Metals And Alloys, William Barnes Mclane

Masters Theses

“This thesis deals with the construction of an explosive deformation apparatus. Using the apparatus an investigation was made of the deformation changes in the structure of a 10% uranium-aluminum alloy and a hot rolled high carbon Manganese steel. Also a study of deformation through different thickness of Stainless Steel, Type-304, plates was carried out.

All of the deformations were obtained using a constant explosive charge consisting of a #6 commercial blasting cap coupled with a commercial chemical booster"--Abstract, page ii.

A Study Of The Haeffner Effect In Mercury, James Nicholson Baysden

Masters Theses

"In 1953, E, Haeffner reported that when he passed a direct electric current through a capillary tube filled with mercury, he obtained a separation in the isotopes of mercury with the heavier isotopes being enriched at the negative terminal and the lighter isotopes at the positive terminal. This effect has since been referred to as the Haeffner Effect, Since the original experiment with mercury, other investigators have observed this effect in many other liquid metal systems.

This investigation of the Haeffner Effect in mercury involves the use of a radioactive isotope of mercury (Hg 203) as a tracer to follow …

Porous Cooling Of A Pile, Tarsem Singh Purewal

Masters Theses

"In this investigation the problem of a limiting case of steady state one dimensional solid-fluid Newtonian heat transfer is examined in which an incompressible non-heat generating coolant fluid is flowing through a heat generating porous plate.

The effect of grain size on the Newtonian heat transfer in the porous plate with various kinds of internal heat generations is determined analytically. The temperature difference between the solid and the coolant fluid through the porous plate is determined. All the previous studies assume that in the porous plate, coolant fluid temperature and solid temperatures are approximately equal. This analysis eliminates this simplifying …

The Removal Of Sub-Structure From Alpha Uranium, Albert E. Bolon

Masters Theses

"The possibility of obtaining larger, perfect single crystals of alpha uranium by a modified strain-anneal method has been investigated. A -196°C tensile deformation was performed on pseudo single crystal rods which had been prepared by the phase transformation method. The specimens were subsequently annealed at 650°C.

It was found that by utilizing pseudo single crystals with a prescribed crystallographic orientation with respect to the tensile axis that recrystallized crystals of comparable size and perfection to those prepared by the grain coarsening method could be produced. Grain coarsening is the presently accepted process for preparing perfect single crystals of alpha uranium. …

A Theoretical Study Of The Mechanism For The Haeffner Effect, David Charles Jacobs

Masters Theses

"In 1953, E. Haeffner reported that when he had passed a direct electric current through a length of capillary filled with liquid mercury, the lighter mercury isotopes were enriched at the positive terminal and the heavier mercury isotopes were enriched at the negative terminal. This phenomenon is referred to as the Haeffner Effect. Since Haeffner’s original experiment, other investigators have obtained similar results in other liquid metal systems.

When a direct electric current passes through a metallic conductor a free energy gradient is established. The direction of the negative free energy gradient is in the direction of the positive terminal. …

A Systematic Study Of Experimental Parameters In A Cloud Chamber Search For Subionizers, Zin Aung

Masters Theses

"Since there is no theoretical basis for the quantization of electric charge, it is reasonable to consider the possible existence of particles with charges much less than the electronic charge ‘e’. Such particles, if they exist, are expected to ionize more lightly than the electron. Similar remarks hold true for particles with electric dipole moments, and relativistic monopoles with strengths much less than ’e’ electrostatic units. These particles have been termed subionizers.

The selection of apparatus for a subionizer search has been discussed. The desired conditions for such a search using a low background, long sensitive time Wilson cloud chamber …

A Study Of The Transient State Of Transpiration Cooling, William C. Wolkenhauer

Masters Theses

"This thesis is a successful attempt to show a new approach to the transpiration cooling problem. Transpiration cooling has long been known as an effective way of removing heat from porous material.

It is shown here that transpiration cooling from a porous material, assuming a temperature difference between the coolant and the porous material, is less effective than where the coolant within the pores is assumed to be at the same temperature as the material adjacent to the pore. Previous investigators made the latter assumption.

The specific problem considered here is that of a uniform, porous plate with constant physical …

A Study Of The Adsorption Of Radioactive Zirconium, Niobium, Cesium, And Barium On Alumina, Silica Gels And Clays, Dale Wesley Harris

Masters Theses

"The purpose of this investigation was: (1) search the literature and review various methods investigated for the safe storage of radioactive waste products, (2) study the possible methods for the recovery, of useful radioactive isotopes by selective adsorption, (3) perform laboratory tests to determine the capacity of various adsorbents for radioactive isotopes, (4) evaluate the data and correlate it with the findings reported in the literature, (5) make recommendations of the feasibility of using these adsorbents for removal or storage of the radioactive products, and (6) make recommendations for further investigations. The adsorption of radioactive zirconium, niobium, cesium and barium …

Linear And Vortex Flow Heat Transfer Coefficients, Edward Robert Schmidt Jr.

Masters Theses

"In order to make possible better, more efficient equipment, a higher and higher rate of heat transfer has been the goal of engineers for many years. The need for heat transfer rates never thought of 25 years ago has been brought about by the advent of modern high-performance devices such as nuclear reactors and rocket motors. "A heat release of about 40,000 Btu/hr.cu.ft. is considered good practice in a modern boiler, but in a rocket or a nuclear reactor it may be 1,000,000,000 Btu/hr.cu.ft." This heat must be removed by transfer to a coolant or converted into work or the …