A family of nuclear driven engines is described in which nuclear energy released by fissioning of uranium or plutonium in a prompt critical assembly is used to heat a working gas. Engine performance is modeled using a code that calculates hydrodynamics, fission energy production, and neutron transport self-consistently. Results are given demonstrating a large negative temperature coefficient that produces self-shutoff of energy production. Reduced fission product inventory and the self-shutoff provide inherent nuclear safety. It is expected that nuclear engine reactor units could be scaled from 100 MW on up. 7 refs., 3 figs.

Space exploration has demonstrated that it stimulates the national economy by creating new and improved products, increased employment, and provides a stimulus to education. The exploration of the Moon and Mars under the Space Exploration Initiative has the potential of accelerating this stimulates to the economy. It is difficult to identify all of the concrete ways this will be accomplished. However, many areas can be identified. The space exploration building blocks of power, propulsion, spacecraft, robotics, rovers, mining and manufacturing, communications, navigation, habitats, life support and infrastructures are reviewed to identify possible technology areas. For example, better means for working in hazardous areas and handling hazardous waste are potential outcomes of this initiative. Methods to produce higher quality goods and improve America's competitiveness in manufacturing will undoubtedly evolve from the need to produce products that must last many years in the harsh environments of space and planetary surfaces. Some ideas for technology transfer are covered in this paper.

Even though the currently intensive research efforts on high- temperature superconducting materials have not yet converged on a well specified practical material, the indications are that such a material may be quite brittle, anisotropic, and may contain many flaws such as microcracks and voids at grain boundaries. Consequently, practical applications of high temperature superconducting materials will require a very careful strength analysis based on fracture mechanics considerations. Because of the high sensitivity of the strength of such materials to the presence of defects, methods of quantitative non-destructive evaluation may be expected to play an important role in strength determinations. This proposal is concerned with the use of ultrasonic methods to detect and characterize isolated cracks, clusters of microcracks and microcracks distributed throughout the material. Particular attention has been, and will continue to be devoted to relating ultrasonic results to fracture mechanics considerations.

Several sets of gas pressure measurements were fielded on the LEDOUX event to evaluate the experiment room pressure history and the horizontal pressure gradient in the alluvium due to the detonation. The pressure measurements in the zero room and diagnostic drift consisted of fluid filled high pressure tubing running from each of these areas up to pressure transducer packages in their respective cable holes. The pressure gradient in the alluvium was sensed at several locations adjacent to the main drift and at a gravel filled section of the drift stemming. Fluid filled high pressure tubes were also used in this set to transmit the pressure from the sensing location to a transducer package located between the end of drift stemming and the U1-a shaft. The measurements resulted in limited success. Two very useful data records were obtained in the pressure gradient measurements adjacent to the main drift. The two remaining measurements in that set yielded no data: one suffered an electronic failure in the data transmission system, and the other sensed no pressure increase. The measurement of the diagnostic drift pressure history showed that the pressure transmission tubes were either closed off by backflow restrictor valves (containment features) or the …

The Environmental Sciences Section (ESS) of the Savannah River Laboratory has recently acquired the computer hardware (Silicon Graphics Personal Iris Workstations) and software (Dynamic Graphics, Interactive Surface and Volume Modeling) to perform three dimensional analysis of hydrogeologic data. Three dimensional digital imaging of environmental data is a powerful technique that can be used to incorporate field, analytical, and modeling results from geologic, hydrologic, ecologic, and chemical studies into a comprehensive model for visualization and interpretation. This report covers the contamination of four different sites of the Savannah River Plant. Each section of this report has a computer graphic display of the concentration of contamination in the groundwater and/or sediments of each site.

Space exploration has demonstrated that it stimulates the national economy by creating new and improved products, increased employment, and provides a stimulus to education. The exploration of the Moon and Mars under the Space Exploration Initiative has the potential of accelerating this stimulates to the economy. It is difficult to identify all of the concrete ways this will be accomplished. However, many areas can be identified. The space exploration building blocks of power, propulsion, spacecraft, robotics, rovers, mining and manufacturing, communications, navigation, habitats, life support and infrastructures are reviewed to identify possible technology areas. For example, better means for working in hazardous areas and handling hazardous waste are potential outcomes of this initiative. Methods to produce higher quality goods and improve America`s competitiveness in manufacturing will undoubtedly evolve from the need to produce products that must last many years in the harsh environments of space and planetary surfaces. Some ideas for technology transfer are covered in this paper.

Even though the currently intensive research efforts on high- temperature superconducting materials have not yet converged on a well specified practical material, the indications are that such a material may be quite brittle, anisotropic, and may contain many flaws such as microcracks and voids at grain boundaries. Consequently, practical applications of high temperature superconducting materials will require a very careful strength analysis based on fracture mechanics considerations. Because of the high sensitivity of the strength of such materials to the presence of defects, methods of quantitative non-destructive evaluation may be expected to play an important role in strength determinations. This proposal is concerned with the use of ultrasonic methods to detect and characterize isolated cracks, clusters of microcracks and microcracks distributed throughout the material. Particular attention has been, and will continue to be devoted to relating ultrasonic results to fracture mechanics considerations.

The Environmental Sciences Section (ESS) of the Savannah River Laboratory has recently acquired the computer hardware (Silicon Graphics Personal Iris Workstations) and software (Dynamic Graphics, Interactive Surface and Volume Modeling) to perform three dimensional analysis of hydrogeologic data. Three dimensional digital imaging of environmental data is a powerful technique that can be used to incorporate field, analytical, and modeling results from geologic, hydrologic, ecologic, and chemical studies into a comprehensive model for visualization and interpretation. This report covers the contamination of four different sites of the Savannah River Plant. Each section of this report has a computer graphic display of the concentration of contamination in the groundwater and/or sediments of each site.

This report summarizes the activities and accomplishments of an US Army technology security project designed to identify and develop effective policy guidelines for militarily critical technologies in specific Army systems and in broad generic technology areas of military interest, Individual systems analyses are documented in separate Weapons Systems Technical Assessments (WSTAs) and the general generic technology areas are evaluated in the Advanced Technology Assessment Reports (ATARs), However, specific details of these assessments are not addressed here, only recommendations regarding aspects of the defined approach, methodology, and format are provided and discussed.