This report provides radiation dose modeling analysis supporting the technical derivation of the authorized limits for selected portions of the Hanford Reach National Monument (HRNM). The RESRAD (Yu et al. 2001) computer program was used as the calculational model. The goal of this effort was to produce authorized limits, in units of pCi/g in soil, for the HRNM that would result in radiation doses less than 25 mrem/y, in compliance with the requirements of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

LERs consist of a one page standard form with a standard header and free text data, followed by additional continuation pages of free text data. Currently this LER data is analyzed by first inputting the heading and text data manually into a categorical relational database. The data is then evaluated by enumeration of data in various categories and supplemented by review of individual LERs. This is labor intensive and makes it difficult to relate specific descriptive text to enumerated results. State of the art data mining and visualization technology exists that can eliminate the need for manual categorization, maintain the text relationships within each report, produce the same enumerated results currently available, and provide a tool to support potentially useful additional analysis of the informational content of LERs in a more timely and cost effective manner.

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A Saltstone waste form was prepared in the Savannah River Technical Center (SRTC) shielded cells facility from a Tank 41H sample and Z-Area premix material. After a cure of at least 28 days, samples of the Saltstone were collected and characterized. Results showed that a Class 3 Industrial Solid Waste Landfill (ISWLF) would be required for disposal of this Tank 41H Saltstone waste form because of high leachate nitrate and alpha-emitting radionuclide concentrations.

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This Institutional Plan for FY 2004-2008 is the principal annual planning document submitted to the Department of Energy's Office of Science by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washington. This plan describes the Laboratory's mission, roles, and technical capabilities in support of Department of Energy priorities, missions, and plans. It also describes the Laboratory strategic plan, key planning assumptions, major research initiatives, and program strategy for fundamental science, energy resources, environmental quality, and national security.

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) 528: Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) Contamination, Nevada Test Site (NTS), Nevada, under the Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order. Located in Area 25 of the NTS, CAU 528 consists of one Corrective Action Site (CAS): 25-27-03, Polychlorinated Biphenyls Surface Contamination. Corrective Action Unit 528 was created to address the presence of PCBs around the Test Cell C concrete pad. Corrective action investigation activities were performed from August 24, 2003, through January 8, 2004. The PCBs and total petroleum hydrocarbons-diesel range organics were identified as contaminants of concern in the surface and shallow subsurface soils in 12 areas (Areas 1 through 12) at CAS 25-27-03. Based on the review of existing data, future use, and current operations at the NTS, the following alternatives have been developed for consideration: Alternative 1 - No Further Action; Alternative 2 - Clean Closure; Alternative 3 - Closure in Place with Administrative Controls. The three corrective action alternatives were evaluated on their technical merits, focusing on performance, reliability, feasibility, …

An analysis of the standard system of differential equations describing multi-speed flows of multi-phase media is performed. It is proved that the Cauchy problem, as posed in most best-estimate thermal-hydraulic codes, results in unstable solutions and potentially unreliable description of many physical phenomena. A system of equations, free from instability effects, is developed allowing more rigorous numerical modeling.

Three-dimensional Monte Carlo neutral transport simulations of gas flow through the Alcator C-Mod subdivertor yield conductances comparable to those found in dedicated experiments. All are significantly smaller than the conductance found with the previously used axisymmetric geometry. A benchmarking exercise of the code against known conductance values for gas flow through a simple pipe provides a physical basis for interpreting the comparison of the three-dimensional and experimental C-Mod conductances.

The purpose of this analysis report is to evaluate and document the inclusion or exclusion of the system-level features, events, and processes (FEPs) with respect to modeling used to support the total system performance assessment for the license application (TSPA-LA). A screening decision, either Included or Excluded, is given for each FEP along with the technical basis for screening decisions. This information is required by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) at 10 CFR 63.113 (d, e, and f) (DIRS 156605). The system-level FEPs addressed in this report typically are overarching in nature, rather than being focused on a particular process or subsystem. As a result, they are best dealt with at the system level rather than addressed within supporting process-level or subsystem-level analyses and models reports. The system-level FEPs also tend to be directly addressed by regulations, guidance documents, or assumptions listed in the regulations; or are addressed in background information used in development of the regulations. For included FEPs, this analysis summarizes the implementation of the FEP in the TSPA-LA (i.e., how the FEP is included). For excluded FEPs, this analysis provides the technical basis for exclusion from the TSPA-LA (i.e., why the FEP is excluded). The initial …

Identifying moving objects in a video sequence is a fundamental and critical task in many computer-vision applications. Background subtraction techniques are commonly used to separate foreground moving objects from the background. Most background subtraction techniques assume a single rate of adaptation, which is inadequate for complex scenes such as a traffic intersection where objects are moving at different and varying speeds. In this paper, we propose a foreground validation algorithm that first builds a foreground mask using a slow-adapting Kalman filter, and then validates individual foreground pixels by a simple moving object model, built using both the foreground and background statistics as well as the frame difference. Ground-truth experiments with urban traffic sequences show that our proposed algorithm significantly improves upon results using only Kalman filter or frame-differencing, and outperforms other techniques based on mixture of Gaussians, median filter, and approximated media filter.

This project addresses the energy efficiency and productivity of solids manufacturing and separation processes that use crystallization. The overall objective is to develop crystallization simulation technology and software tools that significantly improve industry's ability to predict and control product quality and optimize process and equipment performance while reducing energy use. This project addresses both levels of simulation models of importance to industry: (1) Process flowsheet models, and (2) Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) models of process components. The project results are delivered in commercial software products that allow industry to predict and optimize the performance of real industrial crystallization processes.

A decision support system (DSS) has been designed and will be implemented over the next three years to assist in the control and management of episodes of low dissolved oxygen (DO) in a Deep Water Ship Channel (DWSC), located near Stockton, California. The DSS integrates three information technology functions. The first part is the collection and management of data on flow, pollution loads and water quality. The second part is the simulation model which can forecast the dissolved oxygen sag in the DWSC and determine management actions necessary to improve dissolved oxygen concentrations. The third part is the graphical user interface, which facilitates the computer simulations and posting of the forecasted dissolved oxygen and remedial measures to a stakeholder group for implementations.

This wetland plant guide was developed to aid moist soil plant identification and to assist in the mapping of waterfowl and shorebird habitat in the Grassland Water District and surrounding wetland areas. The motivation for this habitat mapping project was a concern that real-time salinity management of wetland drainage might have long-term consequences for wildfowl habitat health--changes in wetland drawdown schedules might, over the long term, lead to increased soil salinity and other conditions unfavorable to propagation of the most desirable moist soil plants. Hence, the implementation of a program to monitor annual changes in the most common moist soil plants might serve as an index of habitat health and sustainability. Our review of the current scientific and popular literature failed to identify a good, comprehensive field guide that could be used to calibrate and verify high resolution remote sensing imagery, that we had started to use to develop maps of wetland moist soil plants in the Grassland Water District. Since completing the guide it has been used to conduct ground truthing field surveys using the California Native Plant Society methodology in 2004. Results of this survey and a previous wetland plant survey in 2003 are published in a companion …

The objective of this study is to develop a methodology for a probabilistic assessment of the reliability and security of electrical energy distribution networks. This includes consideration of the future grid system, which will rely heavily on the existing digitally based communication infrastructure for monitoring and protection. Another important objective of this study is to provide information and insights from this research to Consolidated Edison Company (Con Edison) that could be useful in the design of the new network segment to be installed in the area of the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan. Our method is microscopic in nature and relies heavily on the specific design of the portion of the grid being analyzed. It extensively models the types of faults that a grid could potentially experience, the response of the grid, and the specific design of the protection schemes. We demonstrate that the existing technology can be extended and applied to the electrical grid and to the supporting communication network. A small subsection of a hypothetical grid based on the existing New York City electrical grid system of Con Edison is used to demonstrate the methods. Sensitivity studies show that in the current design the frequency for the …

As scientific computing applications grow in complexity, more and more functionality is being packaged in independently developed libraries. Worse, as the computing environments in which these applications run grow in complexity, it gets easier to make mistakes in building, installing and using libraries as well as the applications that depend on them. Unfortunately, SQA standards so far developed focus primarily on applications, not libraries. We show that SQA standards for libraries differ from applications in many respects. We introduce and describe a variety of practices aimed at minimizing the likelihood of making mistakes in using libraries and at maximizing users' ability to diagnose and correct them when they occur. We introduce the term Smart Library to refer to a library that is developed with these basic principles in mind. We draw upon specific examples from existing products we believe incorporate smart features: MPI, a parallel message passing library, and HDF5 and SAF, both of which are parallel I/O libraries supporting scientific computing applications. We conclude with a narrative of some real-world experiences in using smart libraries with Ale3d, VisIt and SAF.

This report provides technical data regarding the reuse of excess foundry sand. The report addresses three topics: a statistically sound evaluation of the characterization of foundry sand, a laboratory investigation to qualify excess foundry sand as a major component in controlled low-strength material (CLSM), and the identification of the best methods for using foundry sand as a replacement for natural aggregates for construction purposes, specifically in asphalt paving materials. The survival analysis statistical technique was used to characterize foundry sand over a full spectrum of general chemical parameters, metallic elements, and organic compounds regarding bulk analysis and leachate characterization. Not limited to characterization and environmental impact, foundry sand was evaluated by factor analyses, which contributes to proper selection of factor and maximization of the reuse marketplace for foundry sand. Regarding the integration of foundry sand into CLSM, excavatable CLSM and structural CLSM containing different types of excess foundry sands were investigated through laboratory experiments. Foundry sand was approved to constitute a major component in CLSM. Regarding the integration of foundry sand into asphalt paving materials, the optimum asphalt content was determined for each mixture, as well as the bulk density, maximum density, asphalt absorption, and air voids at Nini, Ndes, …

The environmental condition called vacuum is created any time the pressure of a gas is reduced compared to atmospheric pressure. On earth we typically create a vacuum by connecting a pump capable of moving gas to a relatively leak free vessel. Through operation of the gas pump the number of gas molecules per unit volume is decreased within the vessel. As soon as one creates a vacuum natural forces (in this case entropy) work to restore equilibrium pressure; the practical effect of this is that gas molecules attempt to enter the evacuated space by any means possible. It is useful to think of vacuum in terms of a gas at a pressure below atmospheric pressure. In even the best vacuum vessels ever created there are approximately 3,500,000 molecules of gas per cubic meter of volume remaining inside the vessel. The lowest pressure environment known is in interstellar space where there are approximately four molecules of gas per cubic meter. Researchers are currently developing vacuum technology components (pumps, gauges, valves, etc.) using micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) technology. Miniature vacuum components and systems will open the possibility for significant savings in energy cost and will open the doors to advances in …

POLARATS (Polar On-Line Acquisition Relay And Transmission System) is being developed by YAHSGS LLC (YAHSGS) and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to provide remote, unattended monitoring of environmental parameters under harsh environmental conditions. In particular, instrumental design and engineering is oriented towards protection of human health in the Arctic, and with the additional goal of advancing Arctic education and research. POLARATS will obtain and transmit environmental data from hardened monitoring devices deployed in locations important to understanding atmospheric and aquatic pollutant migration as it is biomagnified in Arctic food chains. An Internet- and personal computer (PC)-based educational module will provide real time sensor data, on-line educational content, and will be integrated with workbooks and textbooks for use in middle and high school science programs. The educational elements of POLARATS include an Internet-based educational module that will instruct students in the use of the data and how those data fit into changing Arctic environments and food chains. POLARATS will: (1) Enable students, members of the community, and scientific researchers to monitor local environmental conditions in real time over the Internet; and (2) Provide additional educational benefits through integration with middle- and high-school science curricula. Information will be relayed from POLARATS devices …

This project seeks to improve the ability of integrated assessment models (IA) to incorporate changes in technology, especially environmental technologies, cost and performance over time. In this report, we present results of research that examines past experience in controlling other major power plant emissions that might serve as a reasonable guide to future rates of technological progress in carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) systems. In particular, we focus on U.S. and worldwide experience with sulfur dioxide (SO{sub 2}) and nitrogen oxide (NO{sub x}) control technologies over the past 30 years, and derive empirical learning rates for these technologies. The patterns of technology innovation are captured by our analysis of patent activities and trends of cost reduction over time. Overall, we found learning rates of 11% for the capital costs of flue gas desulfurization (FGD) system for SO{sub 2} control, and 13% for selective catalytic reduction (SCR) systems for NO{sub x} control. We explore the key factors responsible for the observed trends, especially the development of regulatory policies for SO{sub 2} and NO{sub x} control, and their implications for environmental control technology innovation.

A design methodology for the waste packages and ancillary components, viz., the emplacement pallets and drip shields, has been developed to provide designs that satisfy the safety and operational requirements of the Yucca Mountain Project. This methodology is described in the ''Waste Package Design Methodology Report'' Mecham 2004 [DIRS 166168]. To demonstrate the practicability of this design methodology, four waste package design configurations have been selected to illustrate the application of the methodology. These four design configurations are the 21-pressurized water reactor (PWR) Absorber Plate waste package, the 44-boiling water reactor (BWR) waste package, the 5-defense high-level waste (DHLW)/United States (U.S.) Department of Energy (DOE) spent nuclear fuel (SNF) Co-disposal Short waste package, and the Naval Canistered SNF Long waste package. Also included in this demonstration is the emplacement pallet and continuous drip shield. The purpose of this report is to document how that design methodology has been applied to the waste package design configurations intended to accommodate naval canistered SNF. This demonstrates that the design methodology can be applied successfully to this waste package design configuration and support the License Application for construction of the repository.

Recently, we reported that apoAV plays key role in triglycerides lowering. Here, we attempted to determine the mechanism underlying this hypotriglyceridemic effect. We showed that triglyceride turnover is faster in hAPOA5 transgenic compared to wild type mice. Moreover, both apoB and apoCIII are decreased and LPL activity is increased in postheparin plasma of hAPOA5 transgenic mice. These data suggest a decrease in size and number of VLDL. To further investigate the mechanism of hAPOA5 in hyperlipidemic background, we intercrossed hAPOA5 and hAPOC3 transgenic mice. The effect resulted in a marked decreased of VLDL triglyceride, cholesterol, apolipoproteins B and CIII. In postprandial state, the triglyceride response is abolished in hAPOA5 transgenic mice. We demonstrated that in response to the fat load in hAPOA5XhAPOC3 mice, apoAV shifted from HDL to VLDL, probably to limit the elevation of triglycerides. In vitro, apoAV activates lipoprotein lipase. However, apoAV does not interact with LPL but interacts physically with apoCIII. This interaction does not seem to displace apoCIII from VLDL but may induce conformational change in apoCIII and consequently change in its function leading the activation of lipoprotein lipase.

The Sensor Research & Development Corporation (SRD) has undertaken the development of a Continuous Emissions Monitor (CEM) for mercury based on the technique of Cavity Ring-Down Spectroscopy (CRD). The project involved building an instrument for the detection of trace levels of mercury in the flue gas emissions from coal-fired power plants. The project has occurred over two phases. The first phase concentrated on the development of the ringdown cavity and the actual detection of mercury. The second phase dealt with the construction and integration of the sampling system, used to carry the sample from the flue stack to the CRD cavity, into the overall CRD instrument. The project incorporated a Pulsed Alexandrite Laser (PAL) system from Light Age Incorporated as the source to produce the desired narrow band 254 nm ultra-violet (UV) radiation. This laser system was seeded with a diode laser to bring the linewidth of the output beam from about 150 GHz to less than 60 MHz for the fundamental beam. Through a variety of non-linear optics the 761 nm fundamental beam is converted into the 254 nm beam needed for mercury detection. Detection of the mercury transition was verified by the identification of the characteristic natural isotopic …