The Melton Valley Storage Tanks (MVSTs) and the evaporator service tanks at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) are used for the collection and storage of liquid low-level waste (LLLW). Wastes collected in these tanks are typically acidic when generated and are neutralized with sodium hydroxide to protect the tanks from corrosion; however, the high pH of the solution causes the formation of insoluble compounds that precipitate. These precipitates formed a sludge layer approximately 0.6 to 1.2 m (2 to 4 ft) deep in the bottom of the tanks. The sludge in the MVSTs and the evaporator service tanks will eventually need to be removed from the tanks and treated for final disposal or transferred to another storage facility. The primary options for removing the sludge include single-point sluicing, use of a floating pump, robotic sluicing, and submerged-nozzle sluicing. The objectives of this study were to (1) evaluate the feasibility of submerged-nozzle sluicing in horizontal cylindrical tanks and (2) obtain experimental data to validate the TEMPEST (time-dependent, energy, momentun, pressure, equation solution in three dimensions) computer code.

The hydraulic conductivity functions of the matrix rocks at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, are among the most important data needed as input for the site-scale hydrological model of the unsaturated zone. The difficult and time-consuming nature of hydraulic conductivity measurements renders it infeasible to directly measure this property on large numbers of cores. Water retention and sorptivity measurements, however, can be made relatively rapidly. The sorptivity is, in principle, a unique functional of the conductivity and water retention functions. It therefore should be possible to invert sorptivity and water retention measurements in order to estimate the conductivity; the porosity is the only other parameter that is required for this inversion. In this report two methods of carrying out this inversion are presented, and are tested against a limited data set that has been collected by Flint et al. at the USGS on a set of Yucca Mountain tuffs. The absolute permeability is usually predicted by both methods to within an average error of about 0.5 - 1.0 orders of magnitude. The discrepancy appears to be due to the fact that the water retention curves have only been measured during drainage, whereas the imbibition water retention curve is the one that is …

Estimating terrestrial net primary production (NPP) using remote- sensing tools and ecosystem models requires adequate ground-based measurements for calibration, parameterization, and validation. These data needs were strongly endorsed at a recent meeting of ecosystem modelers organized by the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme`s (IGBP`s) Data and Information System (DIS) and its Global Analysis, Interpretation, and Modelling (GAIM) Task Force. To meet these needs, a multinational, multiagency project is being coordinated by the IGBP DIS to compile existing NPP data from field sites and to regionalize NPP point estimates to various-sized grid cells. Progress at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) on compiling NPP data for grasslands as part of the IGBP DIS data initiative is described. Site data and associated documentation from diverse field studies are being acquired for selected grasslands and are being reviewed for completeness, consistency, and adequacy of documentation, including a description of sampling methods. Data are being compiled in a database with spatial, temporal, and thematic characteristics relevant to remote sensing and global modeling. NPP data are available from the ORNL Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC) for biogeochemical dynamics. The ORNL DAAC is part of the Earth Observing System Data and Information System, of the US National Aeronautics and …

In manufacture of structural ceramic components, grinding costs can comprise up to 80% of the entire manufacturing cost. Most of these costs arise from the conventional multi-step grinding process with numerous grinding wheels and additional capital equipment, perishable dressing tools, and labor. In an attempt to reduce structural ceramic grinding costs, a feasibility investigation was undertaken to develop a single step, roughing-finishing process suitable for producing high-quality silicon nitride ceramic parts at high material removal rates at lower cost than traditional, multi-stage grinding. This feasibility study employed combined use of laboratory grinding tests, mathematical grinding models, and characterization of resultant material surface condition. More specifically, this Phase 1 final report provides a technical overview of High-Speed, Low-Damage (HSLD) ceramic grinding and the conditions necessary to achieve the small grain depths of cut necessary for low damage grinding while operating at relatively high material removal rates. Particular issues addressed include determining effects of wheel speed and material removal rate on resulting mode of material removal (ductile or brittle fracture), limiting grinding forces, calculation of approximate grinding zone temperatures developed during HSLD grinding, and developing the experimental systems necessary for determining HSLD grinding energy partition relationships. In addition, practical considerations for production …

The Hanford Site Groundwater Protection Management Program recognized the need to integrate monitoring well activities in a centralized manner. A key factor to Hanford Site well integration was the need to clearly identify a responsible party for each of the wells. WHC was asked to identify all wells on site, the program(s) using each well, and the program ultimately responsible for the well. This report lists the custodian and user(s) for each Hanford well and supplies a comprehensive list of all decommissioned and orphaned wells on the Hanford Site. This is the first update to the original report released in December 1993.

Laboratory experiments were conducted to evaluate the sorptivity of cesium onto Los Alamos soils under controlled experimental conditions. Four soil profiles were collected and each soil profile which is broken into layers according to previously identified soil horizons were studied. Batch sorption isotherms were studied to quantify the chemical reactivity of each soil horizon toward cesium ion. Radioactive cesium-137 was used as sorbent and gamma counting was used to quantify the amount of sorption. Desorption experiments were conducted after the sorption experiments. Batch desorption isotherms were studied to quantify the desorption of presorbed cesium from these Los Alamos soils. This study suggests cesium may sorb strongly and irreversibly on most Los Alamos soils. The amount of cesium sorption and desorption is possibly related to the clay content of the soil sample since subsurface sample has a higher clay content than that of surface sample.

A Workshop on the Role of Natural Analogs in Geologic Disposal of High-Level Nuclear Waste was held in San Antonio, Texas on July 22--25, 1991. The proceedings comprise seventeen papers submitted by participants at the workshop. A series of papers addresses the relation of natural analog studies to the regulation, performance assessment, and licensing of a geologic repository. Applications of reasoning by analogy are illustrated in papers on the role of natural analogs in studies of earthquakes, petroleum, and mineral exploration. A summary is provided of a recently completed, internationally coordinated natural analog study at Pocos de Caldas, Brazil. Papers also cover problems and applications of natural analog studies in four technical areas of nuclear waste management-. waste form and waste package, near-field processes and environment, far-field processes and environment, and volcanism and tectonics. Summaries of working group deliberations in these four technical areas provide reviews and proposals for natural analog applications. Individual papers have been cataloged separately.

The Department of Energy is developing an estimate of the undeveloped hydropower potential in the United States. The Hydropower Evaluation Software (HES) is a computer model that was developed by the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory for this purpose. The software measures the undeveloped hydropower resources available in the United States, using uniform criteria for measurement. The software was developed and tested using hydropower information and data provided by the Southwestern Power Administration. It is a menu-driven software program that allows the personal computer user to assign environmental attributes to potential hydropower sites, calculate development suitability factors for each site based on the environmental attributes present, and generate reports based on these suitability factors. This report details the resource assessment results for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

The authors have made progress in two general areas of confinement plasma physics. (1) We studies a new loss mechanism of the toroidally trapped particles related to the up-down asymmetry of ripple in a tokamak. (2) We estimated the bootstrap current of the particles making transitions between the toroidally and locally states in non-axisymmetric tori, stellarators and tokamaks.

This document results from the Secretary of Energy`s response to Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board Recommendation 94--2. The Secretary stated that the US Department of Energy (DOE) would ``address such issues as...the need for additional requirements, standards, and guidance on low-level radioactive waste management. `` The authors gathered information and compared DOE requirements and standards for the safety aspects Of low-level disposal with similar requirements and standards of non-DOE entities.

The Department of Energy is developing an estimate of the undeveloped hydro-power potential in the United States. The Hydropower Evaluation Software (HES) is a computer model that was developed by the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory for this purpose. The software measures the undeveloped hydropower resources available in the United States, using uniform criteria for measurement. The software was developed and tested using hydropower information and data provided by the Southwestern Power Administration. It is a menu-driven software program that allows the personal computer user to assign environmental attributes to potential hydropower sites, calculate development suitability factors for each site based on the environmental attributes present, and generate reports based on these suitability factors. This report details the resource assessment results for the State of Maine.

Staff exchanges, such as the one described in this report, are intended to facilitate communication and collaboration among scientists and engineers at DOE laboratories, in US industry, and academia. During the past 5 years, PNL has developed prototype instrumentation to automate the data collection required for electrochemical determination of corrosion rates and behavior of materials in various electrically conductive environments. The last version is labeled the Sentry 100 prototype corrosion data scanner. Applications include these in the pulp and paper industry and at hazardous waste sites.

Four different stellarator configurations (a Compact Torsatron, a new modular torsatron, Helias, and a new Modular Helias-like Heliac) were analyzed as fusion power plants and compared with the second-stability ARIES-IV tokamak. The device and plasma parameters were determined by minimizing the projected cost of electricity subject to various constraints. The stellarators were competitive with ARIES-IV for a range of assumptions on confinement models, alpha-particle losses, and beta. 1-D power balance equations were solved for both Lackner-Gottardi confinement scaling with an assumed n{sub e}(r) and for helical-ripple-induced transport with both assumed and calculated forms for n{sub e}(r) and E{sub r}(r).

The overall goal of this project is to improve the efficiency of miscible CO{sub 2} floods and enhance the prospects for flooding heterogeneous reservoirs. This objective is being accomplished by extending experimental research in three task areas: (1) foams for selective mobility control in heterogeneous reservoirs, (2) reduction of the amount of CO{sub 2} required in CO{sub 2} floods, and (3) miscible CO{sub 2} flooding in fractured reservoirs. This report provides results of the first year of the three-year project for each of the three task areas.

This document presents the details of the inorganic and organic analysis that was performed on samples from the headspace of Hanford waste tank 241-BY-103. The results described were obtained to support the safety and toxicological evaluations. A summary of the results for the inorganic and organic analytes is included, as well as, a detailed description of the results which appears in the text.

As part of the Hanford Site Ground-Water Surveillance Project, Flow System Characterization Task. Pacific Northwest Laboratory examines the potential for offsite migration of contamination within the upper basalt confined aquifer system for the US Department of Energy (DOE). As part of this activity, groundwater samples were collected over the past 2 years from selected wells completed in the upper Saddle Mountains Basalt. The hydrochemical and isotopic information obtained from these groundwater samples provides hydrologic information concerning the aquifer-flow system. Ideally, when combined with other hydrologic property information, hydrochemical and isotopic data can be used to evaluate the origin and source of groundwater, areal groundwater-flow patterns, residence and groundwater travel time, rock/groundwater reactions, and aquifer intercommunication for the upper basalt confined aquifer system. This report presents the first comprehensive Hanford Site-wide summary of hydrochemical properties for the upper basalt confined aquifer system. This report provides the hydrogeologic characteristics (Section 2.0) and hydrochemical properties (Section 3.0) for groundwater within this system. A detailed description of the range of the identified hydrochemical parameter subgroups for groundwater in the upper basalt confined aquifer system is also presented in Section 3.0. Evidence that is indicative of aquifer contamination/aquifer intercommunication and an assessment of the potential …

The basement membrane (BM) extracellular matrix induces differentiation and suppresses apoptosis in mammary epithelial cells, whereas cells lacking BM lose their differentiated phenotype and undergo apoptosis. Addition of purified BM components, which are known to induce {beta}-casein expression, did not prevent apoptosis, indicating that a more complex BM was necessary. A comparison of culture conditions where apoptosis would or would not occur allowed us to relate inhibition of apoptosis to a complete withdrawal from the cell cycle, which was observed only when cells acquired a three-dimensional alveolar structure in response to BM. In the absence of this morphology, both the G1 cyclin kinase inhibitor p21/WAF-I and positive proliferative signals including c-myc and cyclin Dl were expressed and the retinoblastoma protein (Rb) continued to be hyperphosphorylated. When we overexpressed either c-myc in quiescent cells or p21 when cells were still cycling, apoptosis was induced. In the absence of three-dimensional alveolar structures, mammary epithelial cells secrete a number of factors including transforming growth factor a and tenascin, which when added exogenously to quiescent cells induced expression of c-myc and interleukin-{beta}1-converting enzyme (ICE) mRNA and led to apoptosis. These experiments demonstrate that a correct tissue architecture is crucial for long-range homeostasis, suppression of …

Reverse convection towers have attracted attention as a medium for cleansing modern cities. Evaporation of an aqueous mist injected at the tower opening could generate electrical power by creating descent, and simultaneously scavenge unsightly and unhealthful particulates. The study offered here assesses the influence to tower water droplets on the photochemical component of Los Angeles type smog. The primary radical chain initiator OH is likely removed into aqueous phases well within the residence time of air in the tower, and then reacts away rapidly. Organics do not dissolve, but nighttime hydrolysis of N{sub 2}O{sub 5} depletes the nitrogen oxides. A lack of HOx would slow hydrocarbon oxidation and so also ozone production. Lowering of NOx would also alter ozone production rates, but the direction is uncertain. SO{sub 2} is available in sufficient quantities in some urban areas to react with stable oxidants, and if seawater were the source of the mist, the high pH would lead to fast sulfur oxidation kinetics. With an accommodation coefficient of 10{sup {minus}3}, however, ozone may not enter the aqueous phase efficiently. Even if ozone is destroyed or its production suppressed, photochemical recovery times are on the order of hours, so that tower processing must …

This report describes the development and use of a semi-analytical dual-porosity simulator for unsaturated flow in fractured rock masses. Fluid flow between the fracture network and the matrix blocks is described by a nonlinear equation that relates the imbibition rate to the local difference in liquid-phase pressure between the fractures and the matrix blocks. This equation is a generalization of the Warren-Root equation, but is accurate in both early and late time regimes. The fracture/matrix interflow equation has been incorporated into a computational module that acts as a source/sink term for fracture elements; this module is compatible with the unsaturated flow simulator TOUGH. Flow processes are then simulated using only fracture elements in the computational grid. This semi-analytical dual-porosity module has been tested with TOUGH on various problems involving transient flow in fractured/porous media, and compared with simulations performed using explicit discretization of the matrix blocks. The new semi-analytical dual-porosity model accurately simulates flow processes in unsaturated fractured rocks, and typically requires an order of magnitude less computational time than do simulations using fully-discretized matrix blocks.

=Rapid feedback control is needed for practical microwave processing of continuous ceramic oxide filaments to regulate the process temperature where the dielectric properties of the filaments change rapidly with temperature. A broadband traveling wave tube (TWT) amplifier provides a highly versatile process control platform for filament processing. By comparing a rf signal from the cavity to a reference signal from the TWT, phase information can be used in a negative feedback loop to allow the oscillator to track the cavity frequency as it shifts due to the changing dielectric constant in the filaments being heated. By sampling the field level in the cavity with a detector, amplitude control can be done to maintain a consistent electric field level in the cavity, which is important for controlling the filament heating and temperature. The system design will be discussed along with application data for commercial ceramic samples.

While the inclusion of visual, aural, and tactile senses into virtual reality systems is widespread, the sense of smell has been largely ignored. We have developed a chemical vapor sensing system for the automated identification of chemical vapors (smells). Our prototype chemical vapor sensing system is composed of an array of tin-oxide vapor sensors coupled to an artificial neural net-work. The artificial neural network is used in the recognition of different smells and is constructed as a standard multilayer feed-forward network trained with the backpropagation algorithm. When a chemical sensor array is combined with an automated pattern identifier, it is often referred to as an electronic or artificial nose. Applications of electronic noses include monitoring food and beverage odors, automated flavor control, analyzing fuel mixtures, and quantifying individual components in gas mixtures. Our prototype electronic nose has been used to identify odors from common household chemicals. An electronic nose will potentially be a key component in an olfactory input to a telepresent virtual reality system. The identified odor would be electronically transmitted from the electronic nose at one site to an odor generation system at another site. This combination would function as a mechanism for transmitting olfactory information for telepresence. …

Rapid feedback control is needed for practical microwave processing of continuous ceramic oxide filaments to regulate the process temperature where the -dielectric properties of the filaments change rapidly with temperature. These dielectric changes can produce large rapid changes in the resonant frequency, the reflectivity, and the power density of the cavity. A broadband traveling wave tube (TWT) amplifier provides a highly versatile process control platform for filament processing. By comparing a RF signal from the cavity to a reference signal from the TWT, phase information can be used in a negative feedback loop to allow the oscillator to track the cavity frequency as it shifts due to the changing dielectric constant in the filaments being heated. By sampling the electric field level in the cavity with a detector, amplitude control can be done to maintain a constant absorbed power in a fiber tow, which is important for controlling the tow heating and temperature. This paper describes the design and testing of feedback controller with mullite rods in a single-mode TE{sub 10n} resonator driven by a commercial TWT.

Compact, portable systems capable of quickly identifying contaminants in the field are of great importance when monitoring the environment. In this paper, we examine the effectiveness of using artificial neural networks for real-time data analysis of a sensor array. Analyzing the sensor data in parallel may allow for rapid identification of contaminants in the field without requiring highly selective individual sensors. We use a prototype sensor array which consists of nine tin-oxide Taguchi-type sensors, a temperature sensor, and a humidity sensor. We illustrate that by using neural network based analysis of the sensor data, the selectivity of the sensor array may be significantly improved, especially when some (or all) the sensors are not highly selective.

This workshop dealt with engineering aspects and material properties of silicon electronic devices. Crystalline silicon growth, modeling, and properties are discussed in general and as applied to solar cells. Topics considered in discussions of silicon growth include: casting, string ribbons, Al backside contacts, ion implantation, gettering, passivation, and ultrasound treatments. Properties studies include: Electronic properties of defects and impurities, dopant and carrier concentrations, structure and bonding, nitrogen effects, degradation of bulk diffusion length, and recombination parameters. Individual papers from the workshop are indexed separately on the Energy Data Bases.