Kansas City Plant Research Articles

Corrigendum: 3D printed cellular solid outperforms traditional stochastic foam in long-term mechanical response.

Scientific Reports 6: Article number: 24871; Published online: 27 April 2016; Updated 25 May 2016 The Acknowledgements section in this Article is incomplete. “We would like to sincerely thank Dr. Jim Schneider of National Security Campus, MO (formerly Kansas City Plant) for giving us access to the results of their load retention study on the stochastic foam material.

On the Use of Information Theory to Quantify Parameter Uncertainty in Groundwater Modeling

We applied information theory to quantify parameter uncertainty in a groundwater flow model. A number of parameters in groundwater modeling are often used with lack of knowledge of site conditions due to heterogeneity of hydrogeologic properties and limited access to complex geologic structures. The present Information Theory-based (ITb) approach is to adopt entropy as a measure of uncertainty at the most probable state of hydrogeologic conditions. The most probable conditions are those at which the groundwater model is optimized with respect to the uncertain parameters. An analytical solution to estimate parameter uncertainty is derived by maximizing the entropy subject to constraints imposed by observation data. MODFLOW-2000 is implemented to simulate the groundwater system and to optimize the unknown parameters. The ITb approach is demonstrated with a three-dimensional synthetic model application and a case study of the Kansas City Plant. Hydraulic heads are the observations and hydraulic conductivities are assumed to be the unknown parameters. The applications show that ITb is capable of identifying which inputs of a groundwater model are the most uncertain and what statistical information can be used for site exploration.

Robustness and Versatility of Thin Films on Low Temperature Cofired Ceramic (LTCC)

Thin film multilayers have previously been introduced on multilayer low temperature cofired ceramic (LTCC). The ruggedness of a multipurpose Ti-Cu-Pt-Au stack has continued to benefit fabrication and reliability in state-of-the-art modules. Space optimization is described, preserving miniaturization of critical spaces and component pads. Additional soldering details are also presented, including trends with solder-stop materials. Feature compensation becomes a simple step in the normal manufacturing flow which enables exact targeting of desired feature sizes. In addition, fine details of the manufacturing process, including ion milling, will be discussed. We will discuss full long-term aging results and structural details that reinforce the reliability and function. Different thin film materials for specific applications can be exploited for additional capabilities such as filters and other integral components. Cross sections verify the results shown. This successful integration of thin films on LTCC points to higher frequencies which require finer lines and spaces. Advancements of these applications become possible due to the associated progression of smaller skin depth and thinner metallic material. This work prepared by The Kansas City Plant for the United States Department of Energy under Contract No. DENA0000622. The Kansas City Plant is operated by Honeywell Federal Manufacturing & Technologies, LLC.

Directed site exploration for permeable reactive barrier design

Permeable reactive barriers (PRBs) are being employed for in situ site remediation of groundwater that is typically flowing under natural gradients. Site characterization is of critical importance to the success of a PRB. A design-specific site exploration approach called quantitatively directed exploration (QDE) is presented. The QDE approach employs three spatially related matrices: (1) covariance of input parameters, (2) sensitivity of model outputs, and (3) covariance of model outputs to identify the most important location to explore based on a specific design. Sampling at the location that most reduces overall site uncertainty produces a higher probability of success of a particular design. The QDE approach is demonstrated on the Kansas City Plant, Kansas City, MO, a case study where a PRB was installed and failed. It is shown that additional quantitatively directed site exploration during the design phase could have prevented the remedial failure that was caused by missing a geologic body having high hydraulic conductivity at the south end of the barrier. The most contributing input parameter approach using head uncertainty clearly indicated where the next sampling should be made toward the high hydraulic conductivity zone. This case study demonstrates the need to include the specific design as well as site characterization uncertainty when choosing the sampling locations.

Evaluation of permeable reactive barrier (PRB) integrity using electrical imaging methods

The permeable reactive barrier (PRB) is a promising in‐situ technology for treatment of hydrocarbon‐contaminated groundwater. A PRB is typically composed of granular iron which degrades chlorinated organics into potentially nontoxic dehalogenated organic compounds and inorganic chloride. Geophysical methods may assist assessment of in‐situ barrier integrity and evaluation of long‐term barrier performance. The highly conductive granular iron makes the PRB an excellent target for conductivity imaging methods. In addition, electrochemical storage of charge at the iron–solution interface generates an impedance that decreases with frequency. The PRB is thus a potential induced polarization (IP) target. Surface and cross‐borehole electrical imaging (conductivity and IP) was conducted at a PRB installed at the U.S. Department of Energy's Kansas City plant. Poor signal strength (25% of measurements exceeding 8% reciprocal error) and insensitivity at depth, which results from current channeling in the highly conductive iron, limited surface imaging. Crosshole 2D and 3D electrical measurements were highly effective at defining an accurate, approximately 0.3‐m resolution, cross‐sectional image of the barrier in‐situ. Both the conductivity and IP images reveal the barrier geometry. Crosshole images obtained for seven panels along the barrier suggest variability in iron emplacement along the installation. On five panels the PRB structure is imaged as a conductive feature exceeding 1 S/m. However, on two panels the conductivity in the assumed vicinity of the PRB is less than 1 S/m. The images also suggest variability in the integrity of the contact between the PRB and bedrock. This noninvasive, in‐situ evaluation of barrier geometry using conductivity/IP has broad implications for the long‐term monitoring of PRB performance as a method of hydrocarbon removal.

LiGA measurement and acceptance evaluation

In support of establishing production capability of Lithographie Galvanoformung Abformung (LiGA) technology at the Honeywell Federal Manufacturing and Technologies (FM&T), also known as the Department of Energy (DOE) Kansas City Plant (KCP), measurement and acceptance techniques were evaluated on micro-miniature mechanical prototype components. Four nickel (Ni) prototype components, which were fabricated, required ±10 μm dimensional tolerance, 10 μm contours, and had to meet specific metallurgical requirements. These requirements pushed the KCP measurement and acceptances processes to their limit. The measurement techniques used to support the prototype work and the new technologies being considered from lessons learned to support future LiGA activities are described. This work was completed jointly with Sandia National Laboratories and supports future production needs for the Department of Energy.

Mortality from non-malignant respiratory disease in the fibreglass manufacturing industry

Objectives: To investigate the question of whether there is an association between workplace exposures and sociodemographic factors and mortality from non-malignant respiratory disease excluding influenza and pneumonia (NMRDxIP) among workers...

Field application of palladized iron for the dechlorination of trichloroethene

Palladized iron (Pd/Fe) has been tested under field conditions for the dechlorination of trichloroethene (TCE) in groundwater. Contaminated water was pumped from aquifers in Ohio (∼0.7– 1.5 mg/l TCE) and Missouri (2–9 mg/l TCE and 1,2-dichloroethene) and passed through columns of Pd/Fe. The experiments demonstrated that the dechlorination reaction occurs efficiently until the surface of the Pd/Fe becomes fouled. Regeneration of the surface with dilute (1M) hydrochloric acid is easily accomplished under laboratory conditions, but initially was unsuccessful in the field. Further experiments indicated, that reduced sulfur species, although not naturally present in the groundwater being treated, were permanently poisoning the palladium. Apparently, sulfur-reducing bacteria utilize the hydrogen produced by the Pd/Fe process and reduce the sulfate that is present. An anion exchange column was used to remove sulfate (∼20 mg/l) from groundwater at the Kansas City Plant in order to test this theory. Under these conditions, a column of Pd/Fe was repetitively regenerated for a 4-week period. A second column, not protected by sulfate removal, could not be regenerated. The results demonstrated that Pd/Fe could be used in a long-term field process if a material with more resistance to Fe and Pd losses is developed.

The Use of the Dorr Clarifier in Water Treatment

The introduction of the Dorr to water treatment is so recent that I may assume some of you are unfamiliar with the apparatus, so I shall give a brief history and description of the mechanism. I would characterize it as a device for the continuous separation of solids from a suspending liquid, the elimination of a large part of the liquid trapped by the settling solids, and the continuous removal from the containing basin or tank, of the solids thus thickened. It was invented and patented in about 1910 by J. B. N. Dorr, a mining engineer, as a device for the dewatering of gold ores undergoing cyanidation. From this metallurgical origin in the West, application of the same principle was made in the East, first to the chemical industries, then to the handling of domestic sewage and trade wastes. Only within the last five years has the Dorr entered the field of water treatment, first in water softening, and just now one might say, in preliminary sedimentation of turbid waters, the Kansas City plant being the first designed for this purpose. Before describing the Dorr Clarifier, I want to comment on its name. A rose may smell as sweet by any other name, but in water treatment a Dorr by some other appellation would not give rise to the confusion as to its purpose, which, I believe, often exists in the minds of water works engineers. The names Thickener, and Classifier, as applied in the metallurgical industries, are indeed descriptive, but the use of the name Clarifier in the sanitary engineering field is not defensible, nor is it descriptive. I cannot refrain from insisting that the name is misleading, because one at once associates an influence of the mechanism on the water undergoing treatment and overflowing from the basin, whereas in reality, the influence is exerted on the mud being discharged at the bottom of the basin. Only by reason of the fact that, through the