[en] Purpose: To enable control rod insertion and extraction in a predetermined time with no effects from pressure variations in the reactor. Constitution: The pressure conditions in the reactor are detected by a pressure generator and the detected value is inputted to a pressure compensator. An adequate signal corresponding to the changes in the flow rate resulted from the changes in the reactor pressure is set and compensated in the pressure compensator. The proportional gain in a flow rate indication regulator is thus made pressure-dependent and the total gain can be obtained always at a certain level irrespective of the reactor pressure. (Ikeda, J.)

[en] Pulse-jet fabric filters (PJFFs) are widely used in US industrial boiler applications and in utility and industrial boilers abroad. Their smaller size and reduced cost relative to more conventional baghouses make PJFFs appear to be a particularly attractive particulate control option for utility boilers. This paper summarizes the results of a survey co-funded by the Electric Power Research Institute and Canadian Electric Association to characterize the performance of and operating experiences with PJFFs applied to coal-fired boilers. The survey involved site visits to interview technical and plant personnel involved in the design, installation and day-to-day operation of PJFFs worldwide. Actual field experiences with PJFF performance in terms of outlet emissions, pressure drop and bag life for different types of pulse-jet cleaning methods, fabrics and boilers are compared

[en] Variations in systems dynamics and modeling uncertainty(due to unmodeled systems behavior and/or presence of disturbances),have posed significant challenges to the effective luminosity and orbit control in accelerators.Problems of similar nature occur in a wide variety of other applications from chemical processes to power plants to financial systems.Adaptive control has long been pursued as a possible solution,but difficulties with online model identification and robust implementation of the adaptive control algorithms has prevented their widespread application.In general developing and maintaining appropriate models is the key to the success of any deployed control solution.Meanwhile the performance of the control system is contingent on the responsiveness of the control algorithm to the inevitable deviations of the model from the actual system.This project uses neural networks to detect significant changes in system behavior,and develops an optimal model-predictive-based adaptive control algorithm that enables the robust implementation of an effective control strategy that is applicable in a wide range of applications.Simulation studies were conducted to clearly demonstrate the feasibility and benefits of implementing model predictive control technology in accelerator control problems.The requirements for an effective commercial product that can meet the challenge of optimal model-predictive-based adaptive control technology were developed.A prototype for the optimal model-predictive-based adaptive control algorithm was developed for a well-known nonlinear temperature control problem for gas-phase reactors that proved the feasibility of the proposed approach.This research enables a commercial party to leverage the knowledge gained through collaboration with a national laboratory to develop new system identification and optimal model-predictive-based adaptive control software to address current and future challenges in process industries,power systems,and financial systems.In particular,the day-to-day operation of the accelerators will immediately benefit from the findings in this project

[en] Current global change policy debate reverberates around the polarized extremes of civilization-level cooperation through treaties as a mitigation tactic, on the one hand, and a wait-and-see approach that may lead to a climatic tragedy of the commons, on the other. Meanwhile, energy technology research is rapidly generating a perception that it will be possible to tune the earth system via carbon sequestration and other types of biogeochemical engineering. The consequences of this potential for planetary management, based on provincial self-interest, include the transition of the earth sciences into a security industry involving proprietary scientific knowledge bases of biogeochemical cycling and the evolution of a climate-design brokerage dominated by military/industrial interests. As the dominant political powers perceive the potential for planetary engineering and consider implementation, the global economy will adjust to exploit new opportunities, perceptions of which will be determined by the quality of system simulations. The growth of a viable international climate-design community will profoundly influence the trajectory of the earth system by providing either the illusion or the reality of predictability. Although this process will be chaotic at first, the probability of stabilization will ultimately be enhanced because the vast resources of the military/industrial sector will become involved. These concepts are disturbingly familiar in that they acknowledge the pervasion of competition and conflict in human technological affairs. However, they are consistent with approaches used in thermodynamics, ecological energetics, behavioral evolution, economics, and interdisciplinary climate science to describe collectively the evolution of the earth system. This paper argues that the perception that the climate can be regulated inexpensively will create an economic driving force for international cartel-style management of the total earth system. That is, the earth system may well become syndicated by those with the resources to effect large-scale management

[en] Internal air of the reactor hall is discharged to the outside through a filter, and the internal pressure is maintained as the negative pressure, 2.5 mmWG more than atmospheric pressure. In this situation, when the outside atmospheric pressure changes drastically, a problem occurred for the set negative pressure could not be automatically maintained; when the system is broke down, another problem rose as it is very difficult to secure an expensive PID Controller. A new measuring system was applied by selecting an autotuning controller to improve a stability of negative pressure control. As a result, stability and response character against a drastic change of atmospheric pressure has improved, increasing the operational efficiency of the negative pressure control system

[en] The presentation covers several new technologies and companies that are making small scale hydrogen with less carbon involved than traditional approaches. Some international activities were also covered

[en] Improving food security, environmental preservation and enhancing livelihood should be the main targets of the innovators of today's farming systems. Conservation agriculture (CA), based on minimum tillage, crop residue retention and crop rotations, has been proposed as an alternative system combining benefits for the farmer with advantages for the society. This paper reviews the potential impact of CA on C sequestration by synthesizing the knowledge of carbon and nitrogen cycling in agriculture, summarizing the influence of tillage, residue management and crop rotation on soil organic carbon stocks and compiling the existing case study information. To evaluate the C sequestration capacity of farming practices, their influence on emissions from farming activities should be considered together with their influence on soil C stocks. The largest contribution of CA to reducing emissions from farming activities is made by the reduction of tillage operations. The soil C case study results are not conclusive. In 7 of the 78 cases withheld, the soil C stock was lower in zero compared to conventional tillage, in 40 cases it was higher and in 31 of the cases there was no significant difference. The mechanisms that govern the balance between increased or no sequestration after conversion to zero tillage are not clear, although some factors that play a role can be distinguished e.g. root development and rhizodeposits, baseline soil C content, bulk density and porosity, climate, landscape position and erosion/deposition history. Altering crop rotation can influence soil C stocks by changing quantity and quality of organic matter input. More research is needed, especially in the tropical areas where good quantitative information is lacking. However, even if C sequestration is questionable in some areas and cropping systems, CA remains an important technology that improves soil processes, controls soil erosion and reduces tillage-related production costs. (author)

No abstract available

[en] Officials representing the President's Council on Environmental Quality, US EPA, Office of Technology Assessment, and representatives of environmental groups testified at a hearing on global warming. Concentrations of greenhouse gases have markedly increased around the world. While many industrialized nations have adopted specific targets and timetables for curbing carbon dioxide emissions, the United States has resisted such an approach, which has resulted in a degree of isolation between our government and other major industrialized nations on this issue. Witnesses describe what is rapidly becoming an indisputable fact: that global warming is a fundamental reality, and we must act now to formulate the appropriate national and international responses. Testimony also relates that there exists a wide range of available and affordable policy and technology options which can reduce the rate of global warming. The business and trade opportunities associated with commercializing technologies for reducing greenhouse gases are explored

[en] A method of containing oil or like spillage floating on the surface of the sea or other waterway is described. It is achieved by means of a disposable self inflating boom assembly which is launched into the sea. Inflation of the assembly via control valves and supply lines is from a gas supply module, and both are launched from within a mobile assembly or container on a ship, platform, helicopter or by parachute from an aeroplane. Gas may be supplied from compressed gas cylinders, or by chemical reaction on contact with water, or from an air compressor or blower. Various arrangements of boom are described including having a membrane to create separately inflatable compartments, having at least one lower skirt, and using two adjacent boom assemblies. When the containment operation is completed the boom is recovered from the sea, cleaned and disposed of. (Author)