I finally made it through the report.
In the image showing the camera setup the camera trained upon the reactor does appear to be of the right type for the measurement.
It is possible that it is monitoring in the SW or 'near-visible' band (7.5 to 13 um is more in the MW band but filtering may allow data from the high end to be used). If so, it is a lab-grade camera and quite accurate if used properly. Most of these have the ability to output an analog signal from a specified cross-hair or cursor box. The software available with these allows later data filtering for corrections.
I assumed they were using a more conventional camera. I may be mistaken. They did make comparisons to a t-couple. Perhaps their temperature data is not far off.
I think that all the angles have been covered, that being the empty dummy run just with the heater and then after with the "fuel", then we have the ref: spots also. I would say the % error is not a problem with the overall COP being over 300%. The aluminium oxide would have to be changed for another type of container if water was to be used, we also get into the problem of water flow rates as the reactor temp would be at over 1200c "min" with super heated steam we start getting into some very complicated systems as in all WCR's (water cooled reactors). What Ion has stated would have been a good idea but with an opening at the bottom of the box as well as the top, all that is needed then is the delta T between bottom and top, in and out, with appropriate temperature sensors. I am sure they looked at all this, but what you can't get away from is the change from fuel to ash composition, unless all the SEM, X ray etc analysis was wrong, and I doubt that very much. What is also interesting is that there was no radiation event for these changes, so do we have a new found type of nuclear reaction? and are we to find out that we don't know all about the atom as we think we do? hmm. regards Mike
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