For thirty years, dependence on oil has been a significant problem for the United States. Oil dependence is not simply a matter of how much oil we import. It is a syndrome, a combination of the vulnerability of the U.S. economy to higher oil prices and oil price shocks and a concentration of world oil supplies in a small group of oil producing states that are willing and able to use their market power to influence world oil prices. Although there are vitally important political and military dimensions to the oil dependence problem, this report focuses on its direct economic costs. These costs are the transfer of wealth from the United States to oil producing countries, the loss of economic potential due to oil prices elevated above competitive market levels, and disruption costs caused by sudden and large oil price movements. Several enhancements have been made to methods used in past studies to estimate these costs, and estimates of key parameters have been updated based on the most recent literature. It is estimated that oil dependence has cost the U.S. economy $3.6 trillion (constant 2000 dollars) since 1970, with the bulk of the losses occurring between 1979 and 1986. However, …

STAR-LM is a lead-cooled pool-type fast reactor concept operating under natural circulation of the coolant. The reactor core power is 400 MWt. The open-lattice core consists of fuel pins attached to the core support plate, (the does not consist of removable fuel assemblies). The coolant flows outside of the fuel pins. The fuel is transuranic nitride, fabricated from reprocessed LWR spent fuel. The cladding material is HT-9 stainless steel; the steady-state peak cladding temperature is 650 C. The coolant is single-phase liquid lead under atmospheric pressure; the core inlet and outlet temperatures are 438 C and 578 C, respectively. (The Pb coolant freezing and boiling temperatures are 327 C and 1749 C, respectively). The coolant is contained inside of a reactor vessel. The vessel material is Type 316 stainless steel. The reactor is autonomous meaning that the reactor power is self-regulated based on inherent reactivity feedbacks and no external power control (through control rods) is utilized. The shutdown (scram) control rods are used for startup and shutdown and to stop the fission reaction in case of an emergency. The heat from the reactor is transferred to the S-CO{sub 2} Brayton cycle in in-reactor heat exchangers (IRHX) located inside the reactor …

Parameters for continuing the design and specification of an experimental potassium test loop are identified in this report. Design and construction of a potassium test loop is part of the Phase II effort of the project ''Technology Development Program for an Advanced Potassium Rankine Power Conversion System''. This program is supported by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Design features for the potassium test loop and its instrumentation system, specific test articles, and engineered barriers for ensuring worker safety and protection of the environment are described along with safety and environmental protection requirements to be used during the design process. Information presented in the first portion of this report formed the basis to initiate the design phase of the program; however, the report is a living document that can be changed as necessary during the design process, reflecting modifications as additional design details are developed. Some portions of the report have parameters identified as ''to be determined'' (TBD), reflecting the early stage of the overall process. In cases where specific design values are presently unknown, the report attempts to document the quantities that remain to be defined in order to complete the design of the potassium test loop and supporting …

The objective of this research was to use a simple model of soil C and N dynamics to predict nutrient thresholds to ecosystem recovery on degraded soils at Fort Benning, Georgia, in the southeastern USA. The model calculates aboveground and belowground biomass, soil C inputs and dynamics, soil N stocks and availability, and plant N requirements. A threshold is crossed when predicted soil N supplies fall short of predicted N required to sustain biomass accrual at a specified recovery rate. Four factors were important to development of thresholds to recovery: (1) initial amounts of aboveground biomass, (2) initial soil C stocks (i.e., soil quality), (3) relative recovery rates of biomass, and (4) soil sand content. Thresholds to ecosystem recovery predicted by the model should not be interpreted independent of a specified recovery rate. Initial soil C stocks influenced the predicted patterns of recovery by both old field and forest ecosystems. Forests and old fields on soils with varying sand content had different predicted thresholds to recovery. Soil C stocks at barren sites on Fort Benning generally lie below predicted thresholds to 100% recovery of desired future ecosystem conditions defined on the basis of aboveground biomass (18000 versus 360 g m{sup …

The goal of modern high explosive slow heat cookoff modeling is to understand the level of mechanical violence. This requires understanding the coupled thermal-mechanical-chemical system that such an environment creates. Recent advances have improved our ability to predict the time to event, and we have been making progress on predicting the mechanical response. By adding surface tension to the product gas pores in the high explosive, we have been able to reduce the current model's tendency to overpressurize confinement vessels. We describe the model and demonstrate how it affects a LX-10 STEX experiment. Issues associated with current product gas equations of state are described and examined.

The Laser Inertial Fusion-based Energy (LIFE) project at LLNL includes development of hybrid fusion-fission systems for energy generation. These hybrid LIFE engines use high-energy neutrons from laser-based inertial confinement fusion to drive a subcritical blanket of fission fuel that surrounds the fusion chamber. The fission blanket contains TRISO fuel particles packed into pebbles in a flowing bed geometry cooled by a molten salt (flibe). LIFE engines using a thorium fuel cycle provide potential improvements in overall fuel cycle performance and resource utilization compared to using depleted uranium (DU) and may minimize waste repository and proliferation concerns. A preliminary engine design with an initial loading of 40 metric tons of thorium can maintain a power level of 2000 MW{sub th} for about 55 years, at which point the fuel reaches an average burnup level of about 75% FIMA. Acceptable performance was achieved without using any zero-flux environment 'cooling periods' to allow {sup 233}Pa to decay to {sup 233}U; thorium undergoes constant irradiation in this LIFE engine design to minimize proliferation risks and fuel inventory. Vast reductions in end-of-life (EOL) transuranic (TRU) inventories compared to those produced by a similar uranium system suggest reduced proliferation risks. Decay heat generation in discharge fuel …

The Department of Energy's National Atmospheric Release Advisory Center (NARAC) provides critical information during hazardous airborne releases as part of an integrated national preparedness and response strategy. Located at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, NARAC provides 24/7 tools and expert services to map the spread of hazardous material accidentally or intentionally released into the atmosphere. NARAC graphical products show affected areas and populations, potential casualties, and health effect or protective action guideline levels. LLNL experts produce quality-assured analyses based on field data to assist decision makers and responders. NARAC staff and collaborators conduct research and development into new science, tools, capabilities, and technologies in strategically important areas related to airborne transport and fate modeling and emergency response. This paper provides a brief overview of some of NARAC's activities, capabilities, and research and development.

This document describes the architectural design for the GENII-V2 software package. This document defines details of the overall structure of the software, the major software components, their data file interfaces, and specific mathematical models to be used. The design represents a translation of the requirements into a description of the software structure, software components, interfaces, and necessary data. The design focuses on the major components and data communication links that are key to the implementation of the software within the operating framework. The purpose of the GENII-V2 software package is to provide the capability to perform dose and risk assessments of environmental releases of radionuclides. The software also has the capability of calculating environmental accumulation and radiation doses from surface water, groundwater, and soil (buried waste) media when an input concentration of radionuclide in these media is provided. This report represents a detailed description of the capabilities of the software product with exact specifications of mathematical models that form the basis for the software implementation and testing efforts. This report also presents a detailed description of the overall structure of the software package, details of main components (implemented in the current phase of work), details of data communication files, and …

Description of apparatus and technique for detection of photomesons produced by the synchrotron.

It is well known that the activity, selectivity, and deactivation behavior of heterogeneous catalysts are strongly affected by a wide variety of parameters, including but not limited to nanoparticle size, shape, composition, support, pretreatment conditions, oxidation state, and electronic state. Enormous effort has been expended in an attempt to understand the role of these factors on catalytic behavior, but much still remains to be discovered. In this work, we have focused on deepening the present understanding of the role of nanoparticle shape, nanoparticle composition, and hot electrons on heterogeneous catalysis in the oxidation of carbon monoxide by molecular oxygen and nitric oxide. These reactions were chosen because they are important for environmental applications, such as in the catalytic converter, and because there is a wide range of experimental and theoretical insight from previous single crystal work as well as experimental data on nanoparticles obtained using new state-of-the-art techniques that aid greatly in the interpretation of results on complex nanoparticle systems. In particular, the studies presented in this work involve three types of samples: ~ 6.5 nm Rh nanoparticles of different shapes, ~ 15 nm Rh_1-xPd_x core-shell bimetallic polyhedra nanoparticles, and Rh ultra-thin film (~ 5 nm) catalytic nanodiodes. The colloidal …

Ferroelectric plasma sources in vacuum are known as sources of ablative plasma, formed due to surface discharge. In this paper, observations of a gas discharge mode of operation of the ferroelectric plasma sources (FPS) are reported. The gas discharge appears at pressures between approximately 20 and approximately 80 Torr. At pressures of 1-20 Torr, there is a transition from vacuum surface discharge to the gas discharge, when both modes coexist and the surface discharges sustain the gas discharge. At pressures between 20 and 80 Torr, the surface discharges are suppressed, and FPS operate in pure gas discharge mode, with the formation of almost uniform plasma along the entire surface of the ceramics between strips. The density of the expanding plasma is estimated to be about 1013 cm-3 at a distance of 5.5 mm from the surface. The power consumption of the discharge is comparatively low, making it useful for various applications. This paper also presents direct measurements of the yield of secondary electron emission from ferroelectric ceramics, which, at low energies of primary electrons, is high and dependent on the polarization of the ferroelectric material

The interactions of N2O with H-ZSM-5 and Fe-ZSM-5 have been investigated using infrared spectroscopy and temperature-programmed reaction. Fe-ZSM-5 samples with Fe/Al ratios of 0.17 and 0.33 were prepared by solid-state exchange. It was determined that most of the iron in the samples of Fe-ZSM-5 is in the form of isolated cations, which have exchanged with Bronsted acid H+ in H-ZSM-5. The infrared spectrum of N2O adsorbed on H-ZSM-5 at 298 K exhibits bands at 2226 and 1308 cm-1 associated with vibrations of the N-N and N-O bonds, respectively. The positions of these bands relative to those seen in the gas phase suggest that N2O adsorbs through the nitrogen end of the molecule. The heat of N2O adsorption in H-ZSM-5 is estimated to be 5 kcal/mol. In the case of Fe-ZSM-5, additional infrared bands are observed at 2282 and 1344 cm-1 due to the interactions of N2O with the iron cations. Here too, the directions of the shifts in the vibrational features relative to those for gas-phase N2O suggest that the molecule adsorbs through its nitrogen end. The heat of adsorption of N2O on the Fe sites is estimated to be 16 kcal/mol. The extent of N2O adsorption on Fe depends …

During the 2nd half of Year I, we continued the development of the microporous ceramic layer as a transition layer for the deposition of the carbon molecular sieve membrane on the stainless steel substrate offered by Pall Corp. Based upon the positive result from the feasibility study conducted in the 1st half of Year I, our activities in this period focused on eliminating the high pore size peak and the minimization of defect. A microporous ceramic layer with 40A pore size and <1% initial flow have been successfully prepared. Further, this modified membrane has demonstrated excellent thermal stability, <1% initial flow after the 5 thermal cycles. In addition we began the CMS layer deposition on the AccuSep with the ceramic transition layer. The CMS membranes fired at the low temperature range demonstrate an excellent hydrogen permeance, up to >5 m{sup 3}/m{sup 2}/hr/bar, with the selectivity of {approx}20 for H{sub 2}/N{sub 2}. The extremely high permeance is indicative of the extremely thin CMS membrane layer, which becomes possible as a result of the uniform and defect free transition layer. This could be an ideal membrane for hydrogen recovery applications where the hydrogen permeance is the primary concern. Presently we are actively …

In the National Ignition Facility (NIF), currently under design and construction at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), 192 high-power laser beamlines incorporating over 8,000 large optics, are focused onto a target smaller than a dime. The actual laser path will be contained within the Laser Target Area Building (LTAB), but the smaller adjacent building, the Optics Assembly Building, is where the optic modules are assembled and aligned. After the optics are finished in the OAB they must be transported and installed into the LTAB. While this is done strict cleanliness and handling conditions must be maintained. To maximize the efficiency of this process the optics are assembled into Line Replaceable Units (LRUs), which typically consist of a mechanical housing, laser optics, utilities, actuators and kinematic mounts. In this paper the Optical Transport and Material Handling designs that will be used to deliver the LRUs into the NIF laser bays are presented. Five types of delivery systems have been developed to deliver the LRUs to their locations in the LTAB. They are top loading, bottom loading, side loading, switchyard loading and target area loading. The first three operate in the laser bay of the LTAB and are transported between the OAB …

This project develops Fuel-Flexible Reburning (FFR), which combines conventional reburning and Advanced Reburning (AR) technologies with an innovative method of delivering coal as the reburning fuel. The FFR can be retrofit to existing boilers and can be configured in several ways depending on the boiler, coal characteristics, and NO{sub x} control requirements. Fly ash generated by the technology will be a saleable byproduct for use in the cement and construction industries. FFR can also reduce NO{sub x} by 60%-70%, achieving an emissions level of 0.15 lb/10{sup 6} Btu in many coal-fired boilers equipped with Low NO{sub x} Burners. Total process cost is expected to be one third to one half of that for Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR). Activities during reporting period included design, manufacture, assembly, and shake down of the coal gasifier and pilot-scale testing of the efficiency of coal gasification products in FFR. Tests were performed in a 300 kW Boiler Simulator Facility. Several coals with different volatiles content were tested. Data suggested that incremental increase in the efficiency of NO{sub x} reduction due to the gasification was more significant for less reactive coals with low volatiles content. Experimental results also suggested that the efficiency of NO{sub x} reduction …

The objective of this work was to develop predictive models for the Low Activity Waste (LAW) melter offgas flammability assessment and to conduct case studies in support of the on-going safety analysis efforts for the River Protection Project Waste Treatment Plant (RPPWTP). This required that Savannah River Technology Center (SRTC) personnel develop process models that are comprehensive enough to explicitly describe the effects of key melter operating variables such as total organic carbon (TOC) in the feed, melter air purge, and vapor space temperature on the offgas flammability.

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A new method to implement low-noise collision operators in particle-in-cell simulations is presented. The method is based on the fact that relevant collision operators can be included naturally in the Lagrangian formulation that exemplifies the particle-in-cell simulation method. Numerical simulations show that the momentum and energy conservation properties of the simulated plasma associated with the low-noise collision operator are improved as compared with standard collision algorithms based on random numbers.

This report summarizes the work done during the fifth quarter of the project. Effort was directed in two areas: (1) Further development of the model on the role of connectivity on ionic conductivity of porous bodies, including the role of grain boundaries and space charge region. (2) Fabrication of porous samaria-doped ceria (SDC) and investigation of the effect of thermal treatment on its conductivity. The model developed accounts for transport through three regions: (a) Transport through the bulk of the grain, RI, which includes parallel transport through space charge region. (b) Transport through the space charge region adjacent to the neck (grain boundary), RII. (c) Transport through the structural part of the neck (grain boundary), RIII. The work on the model development involves calculation RI, RII, RIII, and the sum of these three terms, which is the total resistance, as a function of the grain radius ranging between 0.5 and 5 microns and as a function of the relative neck size, described in terms of the angle theta, ranging between 5 and 45{sup o}. Three values of resistivity of the space charge region were chosen; space charge resistivity greater than grain resistivity, equal to grain resistivity, and lower than grain …

The purpose of this assumptions document is to provide general scope, strategy, technical basis, schedule and cost assumptions for the Monitored Geologic Repository (MGR) life cycle cost estimate and schedule update incorporating information from the Viability Assessment (VA), License Application Design Selection (LADS), 1999 Update to the Total System Life Cycle Cost (TSLCC) estimate and from other related and updated information. This document is intended to generally follow the assumptions outlined in the previous MGR cost estimates and as further prescribed by DOE guidance.

The present work is a part of Joint U.S./Russian Project with Weapons-Grade Plutonium Disposition in VVER Reactor and presents the neutronics calculations of kinetics parameters of VVER-1000 core with 3 introduced MOX LTAs. MOX LTA design has been studied in [1] for two options of MOX LTA: 100% plutonium and of ''island'' type. As a result, zoning i.e. fissile plutonium enrichments in different plutonium zones, has been defined. VVER-1000 core with 3 introduced MOX LTAs of chosen design has been calculated in [2]. In present work, the neutronics data for transient analysis codes (RELAP [3]) has been obtained using the codes chain of RRC ''Kurchatov Institute'' [5] that is to be used for exploitation neutronics calculations of VVER. Nowadays the 3D assembly-by-assembly code BIPR-7A and 2D pin-by-pin code PERMAK-A, both with the neutronics constants prepared by the cell code TVS-M, are the base elements of this chain. It should be reminded that in [6] TVS-M was used only for the constants calculations of MOX FAs. In current calculations the code TVS-M has been used both for UOX and MOX fuel constants. Besides, the volume of presented information has been increased and additional explications have been included. The results for the …

The following description and any attachments and references are provided to the Washington State Department of Health (WDOH), Division of Radiation Protection, Air Emissions & Defense Waste Section as a notice of construction (NOC) in accordance with Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 246-247, Radiation Protection--Air Emissions. The WAC 246-247-060, ''Applications, registration, and licensing'', states ''This section describes the information requirements for approval to construct, modify, and operate an emission unit. Any NOC requires the submittal of information listed in Appendix A,'' Appendix A (WAC 246-247-1 10) lists the requirements that must be addressed. The original NOC was submitted in May of 1999 as DOE/TU-99-34. Additionally, the following description, attachments and references are provided to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as an NOC, in accordance with Title 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 61, ''National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants.'' The information required for submittal to the EPA is specified in 40 CFR 61.07. The potential emissions from this activity are estimated to provide less than 0.1 millirem/year total effective dose equivalent (TEDE) to the hypothetical offsite maximally exposed individual (MEI), and commencement is needed within a short time frame. Therefore, this application is also intended to provide notification …

The OPUS utility program produces an output file that can be used for making a variety of plots from output produced by the ORIGEN-S code that computes reactor fuel depletion, activation and fission- product buildup, and the corresponding photon and neutron source spectra. Tables containing individual and total nuclide or element concentrations, in 14 different units, may be generated as a function of time. Three classes of plot data may be produced by OPUS: (1) dominant or selected isotopes or elements, (2) photon and neutron source spectra, and (3) comparisons of selected quantities (totals or individual nuclides) between different ORIGEN-S cases. The input is designed for ease of use with self-explanatory parameter names, free-form input, and commonly used default values. The formatted output data produced by OPUS is designed to be used directly by the PlotOPUS graphics-plotting program. PlotOPUS is an interactive Visual Basic program designed for Windows 9x, 2000, and NT computers. PlotOPUS reads the formatted output data file produced by OPUS, plots the data, and will generate Windows metafile (WMF), JPEG bitmap (JPG), or Windows bitmap (BMP) files for saving the plot images. Even though it is designed to interface with PlotOPUS, the formatted OPUS output file can …

The development of high order statistical analyses applied to measurements of the temporal evolution of fission chain-reactions is described. These statistics are derived via application of Bayes' rule to conditional probabilities describing a sequence of events in a fissile system beginning with the initiation of a chain-reaction by source neutrons and ending with counting events in a collection of neutron-sensitive detectors. Two types of initiating neutron sources are considered: (1) a directly observable source introduced by the experimenter (active initiation), and (2) a source that is intrinsic to the system and is not directly observable (passive initiation). The resulting statistics describe the temporal distribution of the population of prompt neutrons in terms of the time-delays between members of a collection (an n-tuplet) of correlated detector counts, that, in turn, may be collectively correlated with a detected active source neutron emission. These developments are a unification and extension of Rossi-a, pulsed neutron, and neutron noise methods, each of which measure the temporal distribution of pairs of correlated events, to produce a method that measures the temporal distribution of n-tuplets of correlated counts of arbitrary dimension n. In general the technique should expand present capabilities in the analysis of neutron counting measurements.