This Technical Progress Report describes progress made on the eight sub-projects awarded in the first year and the five projects awarded in the second year of Cooperative Agreement DE-FC26-01NT41091: Establishment of the Center for Advanced Separation Technologies. This work is summarized in the body of the main report: the individual subproject Technical Progress Reports are attached as Appendices. Due to the time taken up by the solicitation/selection process (approx. six months), the second year project TPR's cover the initial 6-month period of activity only.

The CAST initiative is comprised of a diverse group of subprojects, most of which are multistage, task-oriented developmental projects that cannot be conveniently categorized by the traditional reporting criteria required by the DOE Uniform Reporting Requirements. For example, several of the projects have required the construction of unique test equipment, others the generation of simulation models, etc., as preliminary tasks in the overall execution of the project. As such, the presentation of results is more appropriately described and discussed within the context of the individual Technical Progress Reports. These reports are attached to this document as Appendices and should be referred to for this information.

This semiannual report summarizes the research performed from 17 April through 16 October 2004. Major portions of the research in several of the project's current eight tasks have been completed, and the results obtained are briefly presented. We have successfully developed the meteorological inputs using the best possible modeling configurations, resulting in improved representation of atmospheric processes. Ingestion of satellite-derived sea surface temperatures in conjunction with the use of our new surface data assimilation technique have resulted in largely improved meteorological inputs to drive the MAQSIP-VGR. The development of the variable-grid-resolution emissions model, SMOKE-VGR, is also largely complete. We expect to develop the final configuration of the SMOKE-VGR during the upcoming reporting period. We are in the process of acquiring the newly released emissions database and offshore emissions data sets to update our archives. The development of the MAQSIP-VGR has been completed and a test run was performed to ensure the functionality of this air quality model. During the upcoming reporting period, we expect to perform the first MAQSIP-VGR simulations over the Houston-Galveston region to study the roles of the meteorology, offshore emissions, and chemistry-transport interactions that determine the temporal and spatial evolution of ozone and its precursors.

Deep-sea coral communities have long been recognized by fisherman as areas that support large populations of commercial fish. As a consequence, many deep-sea coral communities are threatened by bottom trawling. Successful management and conservation of this widespread deep-sea habitat requires knowledge of the age and growth rates of deep-sea corals. These organisms also contain important archives of intermediate and deep-water variability, and are thus of interest in the context of decadal to century-scale climate dynamics. Here, we present {Delta}{sup 14}C data that suggest that bamboo corals from the Gulf of Alaska are long-lived (75-126 years) and that they acquire skeletal carbon from two distinct sources. Independent verification of our growth rate estimates and coral ages is obtained by counting seasonal Sr/Ca cycles and probable lunar cycle growth bands.

This report summarizes technical progress over the third six month period of the Phase II program ''On-Line Self-Calibrating Single Crystal Sapphire Optical Sensor Instrumentation for Accurate and Reliable Coal Gasifier Temperature Measurement'', funded by the Federal Energy Technology Center of the U.S. Department of Energy, and performed by the Center for Photonics Technology of the Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Virginia Tech. The outcome of the first phase of this program was the selection of broadband polarimetric differential interferometry (BPDI) for further prototype instrumentation development. This approach is based on the measurement of the optical path difference (OPD) between two orthogonally polarized light beams in a single-crystal sapphire disk. The objective of this program is to bring the BPDI sensor technology, which has already been demonstrated in the laboratory, to a level where the sensor can be deployed in the harsh industrial environments and will become commercially viable. Research efforts were focused on sensor probe design and machining, sensor electronics design, software algorithm design, sensor field installation procedures, and sensor remote data access and control. Field testing will begin in the next several weeks.

NAFEMS was originally founded at the United Kingdom's National Engineering Laboratory as the National Agency for Finite Element Methods and Standards. It was subsequently privatized as the not-for-profit organization NAFEMS, Ltd., but retains its mission ''To promote the safe and reliable use of finite element and related technology''. That mission has been pursued in part by sponsoring a series of studies that published benchmarked deemed suitable to assess the basic accuracy of engineering simulation tools. The early studies focused on FEA for linear solid and structural mechanics and then extended to nonlinear solid mechanics, eventually including contact. These benchmarks are complemented by educational materials concerning analysis technologies and approaches. More recently NAFEMS is expanding to consider thermal-fluid problems. Further information is available at www.nafems.org. Essentially all major commercial firms selling FEA for solid mechanics are members of NAFEMS and it seemed clear that Methods Development Group should leverage from this information resource, too. In 2002, W Program ASCI funding purchased a three-year membership in NAFEMS. In the summer of 2003 the first author hosted a summer graduate student to begin modeling some of the benchmark problems. We concentrated on NIKE3D, as the benchmarks are most typically problems most naturally run …

This Technical Progress Report describes progress made on the seventeen subprojects awarded in the first year of Cooperative Agreement DE-FC26-02NT41607: Crosscutting Technology Development at the Center for Advanced Separation Technologies. This work is summarized in the body of the main report: the individual sub-project Technical Progress Reports are attached as Appendices. Due to the time taken up by the solicitation/selection process, these cover the initial 6-month period of project activity only. The U.S. is the largest producer of mining products in the world. In 1999, U.S. mining operations produced $66.7 billion worth of raw materials that contributed a total of $533 billion to the nation's wealth. Despite these contributions, the mining industry has not been well supported with research and development funds as compared to mining industries in other countries. To overcome this problem, the Center for Advanced Separation Technologies (CAST) was established to develop technologies that can be used by the U.S. mining industry to create new products, reduce production costs, and meet environmental regulations. Originally set up by Virginia Tech and West Virginia University, this endeavor has been expanded into a seven-university consortium--Virginia Tech, West Virginia University, University of Kentucky, University of Utah, Montana Tech, New Mexico Tech …

The overall purpose of this project is to evaluate the biological and economic feasibility of restoring high-quality forests on mined land, and to measure carbon sequestration and wood production benefits that would be achieved from forest restoration procedures. In this quarterly report, we present a preliminary comparison of the carbon sequestration potential of forests growing on 14 mined sites in a seven-state region in the Midwestern and Eastern Coalfields. Carbon contents of these forests were compared to adjacent forests on non-mined land. The study was installed as a 3 x 3 factorial in a random complete block design with three replications at each location. The treatments include three forest types (white pine, hybrid poplar, mixed hardwood) and three silvicultural regimes (competition control, competition control plus tillage, competition control plus tillage plus fertilization). Each individual treatment plot is 0.5 acres. Each block of nine plots requires 4.5 acres, and the complete installation at each site requires 13.5 acres. The plots at all three locations have been installed and the plot corners marked with PVC stakes. GPS coordinates of each plot have been collected. Soil samples were collected from each plot to characterize the sites prior to treatment. Analysis of soil samples …

The overall purpose of this project is to evaluate the biological and economic feasibility of restoring high-quality forests on mined land, and to measure carbon sequestration and wood production benefits that would be achieved from forest restoration procedures. We are currently estimating the acreage of lands in VA, WV, KY, OH, and PA mined under SMCRA and reclaimed to non-forested post-mining land uses that are not currently under active management, and therefore can be considered as available for carbon sequestration. To determine actual sequestration under different forest management scenarios, a field study was installed as a 3 x 3 factorial in a random complete block design with three replications at each of three locations, Ohio, West Virginia, and Virginia. The treatments included three forest types (white pine, hybrid poplar, mixed hardwood) and three silvicultural regimes (competition control, competition control plus tillage, competition control plus tillage plus fertilization). Each individual treatment plot is 0.5 acres. Each block of nine plots requires 4.5 acres, and the complete installation at each site requires 13.5 acres. The plots at all three locations have been installed and the plot corners marked with PVC stakes. GPS coordinates of each plot have been collected. Soil samples were …

The overall purpose of this project is to evaluate the biological and economic feasibility of restoring high-quality forests on mined land, and to measure carbon sequestration and wood production benefits that would be achieved from forest restoration procedures. We are currently estimating the acreage of lands in VA, WV, KY, OH, and PA mined under SMCRA and reclaimed to non-forested post-mining land uses that are not currently under active management, and therefore can be considered as available for carbon sequestration. To determine actual sequestration under different forest management scenarios, a field study was installed as a 3 x 3 factorial in a random complete block design with three replications at each of three locations, Ohio, West Virginia, and Virginia. The treatments included three forest types (white pine, hybrid poplar, mixed hardwood) and three silvicultural regimes (competition control, competition control plus tillage, competition control plus tillage plus fertilization). Each individual treatment plot is 0.5 acres. Each block of nine plots requires 4.5 acres, and the complete installation at each site requires 13.5 acres. The plots at all three locations have been installed and the plot corners marked with PVC stakes. GPS coordinates of each plot have been collected. Tree survival, height …

Development of the ground-water flow model for the Death Valley Regional Groundwater Flow System (DVRFS) required integration of numerous supporting hydrogeologic investigations. The results from recharge, discharge, hydraulic properties, water level, pumping, model boundaries, and geologic studies were integrated to develop the required conceptual and 3-D framework models, and the flow model itself. To support the complex modeling process and the needs of the multidisciplinary DVRFS team, a hardware and software system called GeoPro (Geoscience Knowledge Integration Protocol) was developed. A primary function of GeoPro is to manage the large volume of disparate data compiled for the 100,000-square-kilometer area of southern Nevada and California. The data are primarily from previous investigations and regional flow models developed for the Nevada Test Site and Yucca Mountain projects. GeoPro utilizes relational database technology (Microsoft SQL Server{trademark}) to store and manage these tabular point data, groundwater flow model ASCII data, 3-D hydrogeologic framework data, 2-D and 2.5-D GIS data, and text documents. Data management consists of versioning, tracking, and reporting data changes as multiple users access the centralized database. GeoPro also supports the modeling process by automating the routine data transformations required to integrate project software. This automation is also crucial to streamlining pre- …

Hopper is a powerful interactive tool that allows users to transfer and manipulate files and directories by means of a graphical user interface. Users can connect to and manage resources using the major file transfer protocols. Implemented in Java, Hopper can be run almost anywhere: from an individual's desktop machine to large production machines. In a high-performance computing environment, managing files can become a difficult and time-consuming task that distracts from scientific work. Users must deal with multiple file transfer protocols, transferring enormous amounts of files between computer platforms, repeated authentication, organizing massive amounts of data, and other detailed but necessary tasks. This is often accomplished with a set of several different tools, each with its own interface and idiosyncrasies. Our goal is to develop tools for a more automated approach to file management that substantially improves users' ability to transfer, organize, search, and operate on collections of files. This paper describes the Hopper tool for advanced file management, including the software architecture, the functionality, and the user interface.

The purpose of this CR is to document that closure activities have met the approved closure standards detailed in the NDEP-approved CAP for CAU 271. The purpose of the Errata Sheet is as follows: In Appendix G, Use Restriction (UR) Documentation, the UR form and drawing of the UR area do not reflect the correct coordinates. Since the original UR was put into place, the UR Form has been updated to include additional information that was not on the original form. This Errata Sheet replaces the original UR Form and drawing. In place of the drawing of the UR area, an aerial photograph is included which reflects the UR area and the correct coordinates for the UR area.

This short brochure describes a milestone in solar (or photovoltaic, PV) research-namely, the 50th anniversary of the invention of the first viable silicon solar cell by three researchers at Bell Laboratories.

This Corrective Action Investigation Plan (CAIP) contains project-specific information including facility descriptions, environmental sample collection objectives, and criteria for conducting site investigation activities at Corrective Action Unit (CAU) 224: Decon Pad and Septic Systems, Nevada Test Site (NTS), Nevada. This CAIP has been developed in accordance with the ''Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order'' (FFACO) (1996) that was agreed to by the State of Nevada, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). The NTS is approximately 65 miles (mi) northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada (Figure 1-1). Corrective Action Unit 224 is comprised of the nine Corrective Action Sites (CASs) listed below: 02-04-01, Septic Tank (Buried); 03-05-01, Leachfield; 05-04-01, Septic Tanks (4)/Discharge Area; 06-03-01, Sewage Lagoons (3); 06-05-01, Leachfield; 06-17-04, Decon Pad and Wastewater Catch; 06-23-01, Decon Pad Discharge Piping; 11-04-01, Sewage Lagoon; and 23-05-02, Leachfield. Corrective Action Sites 06-05-01, 06-23-01, and 23-05-02 were identified in the 1991 Reynolds Electrical & Engineering Co., Inc. (REECo) inventory (1991). The remaining sites were identified during review of various historical documents. Additional information will be obtained by conducting a corrective action investigation (CAI) prior to evaluating and selecting a corrective action alternative for each CAS. The CAI will …

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Order 450.1, Environmental Protection Program, requires each DOE site to conduct environmental monitoring. Environmental monitoring at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) is conducted in order to: (a) Verify and support compliance with applicable federal, state, and local environmental laws, regulations, permits, and orders; (b) Establish baselines and characterize trends in the physical, chemical, and biological condition of effluent and environmental media; (c) Identify potential environmental problems and evaluate the need for remedial actions or measures to mitigate the problem; (d) Detect, characterize, and report unplanned releases; (e) Evaluate the effectiveness of effluent treatment and control, and pollution abatement programs; and (f) Determine compliance with commitments made in environmental impact statements, environmental assessments, safety analysis reports, or other official DOE documents. This Environmental Monitoring Plan (EMP) has been written to contain the rationale and design criteria for the monitoring program, extent and frequency of monitoring and measurements, procedures for laboratory analyses, quality assurance (QA) requirements, program implementation procedures, and direction for the preparation and disposition of reports. Changes to the environmental monitoring program may be necessary to allow the use of advanced technology and new data collection techniques. This EMP will document any proposed changes …

Argonne National Laboratory's efforts toward researching, proposing and then building a high-energy proton accelerator have been discussed in a handful of studies. In the main, these have concentrated on the intense maneuvering amongst politicians, universities, government agencies, outside corporations, and laboratory officials to obtain (or block) approval and/or funds or to establish who would have control over budgets and research programs. These ''top-down'' studies are very important but they can also serve to divorce such proceedings from the individuals actually involved in the ground-level research which physically served to create theories, designs, machines, and experiments. This can lead to a skewed picture, on the one hand, of a lack of effect that so-called scientific and technological factors exert and, on the other hand, of the apparent separation of the so-called social or political from the concrete practice of doing physics. An exception to this approach can be found in the proceedings of a conference on ''History of the ZGS'' held at Argonne at the time of the Zero Gradient Synchrotron's decommissioning in 1979. These accounts insert the individuals quite literally as they are, for the most part, personal reminiscences of those who took part in these efforts on the ground …

The guide provides a list of contact information and Web site addresses for resources that provide a range of general and technical information about wind energy, including general information, wind and renewable energy, university programs and research institutes, international wind energy associations and others.

The American Academy of Microbiology convened a colloquium November 6-7, 2003, in Key Largo, Florida, to discuss the application of genomic methods to the study of pathogenesis. Professionals in the fields of genomics, bacteriology, virology, eukaryotic microbiology, medicine, clinical diagnostics, bioinformatics, and forensics contributed their expertise to discussions on the recent advancements in the field and the outlook for future research. A number of recommendations were made for ensuring that progress in the field continues. The availability of genome sequences from pathogenic bacteria, viruses, and fungi and other eukaryotes has opened new horizons for the field of pathogenesis. The genomes of over 100 bacterial pathogens have been fully sequenced, and scientists are busy investigating the mechanisms that regulate the diversity of bacterial pathogens and their myriad abilities to evade host defenses. Close to 1,200 viral genomes have been sequenced, and virologists are now beginning to examine the genomes of those viruses that cause undetected, cryptic infections. These virus-host interactions can serve as a reservoir of viral genes that later emerge in novel pathogens with the potential to infect humans, economically important animals, or crops. A number of eukaryotic microbes, including several pathogenic fungi, have also been sequenced, revealing unimagined diversity …

N/A

This Corrective Action Decision Document (CADD) has been prepared for Corrective Action Unit (CAU) 516, Septic Systems and Discharge Points, Nevada Test Site, Nevada, in accordance with the ''Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order'' (1996). Corrective Action Unit 516 is comprised of the following Corrective Action Sites (CASs): (1) 03-59-01 - Bldg 3C-36 Septic System; (2) 03-59-02 - Bldg 3C-45 Septic System; (3) 06-51-01 - Sump and Piping; (4) 06-51-02 - Clay Pipe and Debris; (5) 06-51-03 - Clean Out Box and Piping; and (7) 22-19-04 - Vehicle Decontamination Area. The purpose of this CADD is to identify and provide the rationale for the recommendation of an acceptable corrective action alternative for each CAS within CAU 516. Corrective action investigation activities were performed between July 22 and August 14, 2003, as set forth in the Corrective Action Investigation Plan. Supplemental sampling was conducted in late 2003 and early 2004.

This Corrective Action Decision Document (CADD) identifies and rationalizes the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Site Office's selection of a recommended corrective action alternative appropriate to facilitate the closure of Corrective Action Unit (CAU) 516: Septic Systems and Discharge Points, Nevada Test Site (NTS), Nevada, under the Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order. Located in Areas 3, 6, and 22 on the NTS, CAU 516 includes six Corrective Action Sites (CASs) consisting of two septic systems, a sump and piping, a clean-out box and piping, dry wells, and a vehicle decontamination area. Corrective action investigation activities were performed from July 22 through August 14, 2003, with supplemental sampling conducted in late 2003 and early 2004. The potential exposure pathways for any contaminants of concern (COCs) identified during the development of the DQOs at CAU 516 gave rise to the following objectives: (1) prevent or mitigate exposure to media containing COCs at concentrations exceeding PALs as defined in the corrective action investigation plan; and (2) prevent the spread of COCs beyond each CAS. The following alternatives have been developed for consideration at CAU 516: Alternative 1 - No Further Action; Alternative 2 - Clean Closure; and Alternative …

A prototype archive for a selection of building energy data on thermal distribution systems in commercial buildings was developed and pilot tested. While the pilot demonstrated the successful development of the data archive prototype, several questions remain about the usefulness of such an archive. Specifically, questions on the audience, frequency of use, maintenance, and updating of the archive would need to be addressed before this prototype is taken to the next level.

This document describes the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Hanford Site environment. It is updated each year and is intended to provide a consistent description of the Hanford Site environment for the many National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) documents being prepared by DOE contractors. No statements of significance or environmental consequences are provided. This year's report is the sixteenth revision of the original document published in 1988 and is (until replaced by the seventeenth revision) the only version that is relevant for use in the preparation of Hanford NEPA, State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), and Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) documents. The two chapters included in this document (Chapters 4 and 6) are numbered to correspond to the chapters where such information is typically presented in environmental impact statements (Weiss) and other Hanford Site NEPA or CERCLA documentation. Chapter 4.0 (Affected Environment) describes Hanford Site climate and meteorology, geology, hydrology, ecology, cultural, archaeological, and historical resources, socioeconomics, occupational safety and health, and noise. Chapter 6.0 (Statutory and Regulatory Requirements) describes federal and state laws and regulations, DOE directives and permits, and presidential executive orders that are applicable to the NEPA documents prepared for Hanford Site activities.