Six procedures, in stepwise form, that can be used for the determination of plutonium in several forms by controlled-potential coulometric titration are presented. (auth)

An investigation was conducted to establish an operating procedure for flushing water through a purification system demineralizer which was out of service for an extended period, and to determine the demineralizer serviceability. (J.R.D.)

Analysis of the proposed GCFR upper and lower plenum flow-through shields has been performed using both discrete ordinate (DOT) and Monte Carlo (MORSE) methods. Several shields having one change of direction in the coolant path (chevron) and two changes of direction (herringbone) were investigated. The shields were modeled as unit cells with periodic boundary conditions. From plenum fluence calculations and design constraints at the reactor vessel liner, it was determined that all the shield configurations analyzed should be adequate for the necessary radiation attenuation.

The primary objective of the project is to investigate the magnetic nature of the higher alcohol synthesis catalyst-Cu/Co supported on specific supports: chromia and titania with and without an alkali metal promoter, and examine the relations between catalytic and magnetic properties.

The shutdown system for the Clinch River Breeder Reactor (CRBR) includes two independent systems--a primary and a secondary system. The Secondary Control Rod System (SCRS) is a new design which is being developed by General Electric to be independent from the primary system in order to improve overall shutdown reliability by eliminating potential common-mode failures. The paper describes the status of the SCRS design and fabrication and testing activities. Design verification testing on the component level is largely complete. These component tests are covered with emphasis on design impact results. A prototype unit has been manufactured and system level tests in sodium have been initiated.

Design and calibration of a 15 channel multi-channel analyzer for analysis of energetic neutral particles escaping a hot plasma are discussed. Features of the analyzer include a frequency response from DC to 50 kHz, spatial resolution, mass resolution, and data acquisition and processing for 15 points on the energy distribution that are simultaneously recorded. Another feature of the system is the ability to radially scan the plasma. An rf ion source is used to provide ions and neutrals used for calibration of a reference single channel analyzer. This analyzer is, in turn, used to calibrate the multi-channel analyzer over the energy range 500 eV to 40 keV. A brief description of the data processing system is included. (RME)

Recent technical progress in fusion research has been sufficient to encourage the development of conceptual designs for fusion power systems. These design efforts suggest that more attention should be paid to the safety and environmental effects of the radioactivity induced in the structural materials by the fusion neutrons. In particular, radioactivity from neutron activation of the structural components of a fusion power system will be a concern for occupational exposure of personnel. Careful choice of structural materials can significantly reduce this exposure. We propose the Remote Maintenance Rating (RMR) as a numerical means of comparing materials and machine designs with respect to occupational exposures. The RMR is defined as the dose rate at the surface of a uniformly activated, thick, infinite slab with the same composition and density as the machine component. We used the RMR rating system to evaluate the suitability of several different iron-based alloys. The specific fusion power system design used in our evaluation was a conceptual design from the Mirror Advanced Reactor Study (MARS). We determined that HT-9 is significantly better in terms of radiological dose rates at early times than the other iron-based alloys (by a factor of 3 to 7). We also calculated the …

The 100-F-43 waste site is the portion of the former discharge spillway for the PNL Outfall formerly existing above the ordinary high water mark of the Columbia River. The spillway consisted of a concrete flume used to discharge waste effluents from the 100-F Experimental Animal Farm. The results of verification sampling show that residual contaminant concentrations do not preclude any future uses and allow for unrestricted use of shallow zone soils. The results also demonstrate that residual contaminant concentrations are protective of groundwater and the Columbia River.

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The authors wish to report their results on the photolysis of pyridine N-oxide in alcoholic solution. Both methanol and ethanol solutions of pyridine N-oxide were irradiated. The reaction mixture was analyzed by gas-liquid chromatography (GLC) using a 2.5% FFAP on Chrom G column and a Porapak Q column. In order to collect the products, the volume of the photolysis solution was reduced in vacuo and the resulting mixture was separated by preparative GLC.

Countercurrent two-phase flow and “flooding” phenomena in light water reactor systems are being investigated experimentally and analytically to improve reactor safety of current and future reactors. The aspects that will be better clarified are the effects of condensation and tube inclination on flooding in large diameter tubes. The current project aims to improve the level of understanding of flooding mechanisms and to develop an analysis model for more accurate evaluations of flooding in the pressurizer surge line of a Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR). Interest in flooding has recently increased because Countercurrent Flow Limitation (CCFL) in the AP600 pressurizer surge line can affect the vessel refill rate following a small break LOCA and because analysis of hypothetical severe accidents with the current flooding models in reactor safety codes shows that these models represent the largest uncertainty in analysis of steam generator tube creep rupture. During a hypothetical station blackout without auxiliary feedwater recovery, should the hot leg become voided, the pressurizer liquid will drain to the hot leg and flooding may occur in the surge line. The flooding model heavily influences the pressurizer emptying rate and the potential for surge line structural failure due to overheating and creep rupture. The air-water …

The initial objective of the Berkeley Structural Genomics Center was to obtain a near complete three-dimensional (3D) structural information of all soluble proteins of two minimal organisms, closely related pathogens Mycoplasma genitalium and M. pneumoniae. The former has fewer than 500 genes and the latter has fewer than 700 genes. A semiautomated structural genomics pipeline was set up from target selection, cloning, expression, purification, and ultimately structural determination. At the time of this writing, structural information of more than 93percent of all soluble proteins of M. genitalium is avail able. This chapter summarizes the approaches taken by the authors' center.

The 1607-F5 waste site is a former septic tank, tile field, and associated pipeline located within the 100-FR-1 Operable Unit that received sewage from the former 181-F Pumphouse. Lead, gamma-chlordane, and heptachlor epoxide were identified within or around the septic system at concentrations exceeding the direct exposure cleanup criteria. Multiple metal and pesticide constituents were also identified as exceeding the groundwater and river protection cleanup criteria. The results of verification sampling demonstrated that residual contaminant concentrations do not preclude any future uses and allow for unrestricted use of shallow zone soils. The results also showed that residual contaminant concentrations are protective of groundwater and the Columbia River.

We assess the theoretical uncertainties on the total charm cross section. We discuss the importance of the quark mass, the scale choice and the parton densities on the estimate of the uncertainty. We conclude that the uncertainty on the total charm cross section is difficult to quantify.

Elastic constants for tantalum single crystals have been calculated by Orlikowski, et al. [1] for a broad range of temperatures and pressures. These moduli can be utilized directly in continuum crystal simulations or dislocation dynamics calculations where the individual grains of the polycrystalline material are explicitly represented. For simulations on a larger size scale, the volume of material represented by the quadrature points of the simulation codes includes many grains, and average moduli are needed. Analytic bounding and averaging schemes exist, but since these do not account for nonuniform stress and strain within the interacting grains, the upper and lower bounds tend to diverge as the crystal anisotropy increases. Local deformation and stress equilibrium accommodate the anisotropic response of the individual grains. One method of including grain interactions in shear modulus averaging calculations is through a highly-descretized finite element model of a polycrystal volume. This virtual test sample (VTS) can be probed to determine the average response of the polycrystal. The desire to obtain isotropic moduli imposes attributes on the VTS. The grains should be equiax and the crystal orientation distribution function should be random. For these simulations, a cube, 300 {micro}m on a side, was discretized with 1 million …

Silica aerogel collector tiles have been employed for the collection of particles in low Earth orbit and, more recently, for the capture of cometary particles by NASA's Stardust mission. Reliable, reproducible methods for cutting these and future collector tiles from sample return missions are necessary to maximize the science output from the extremely valuable embedded particles. We present a means of macroscopic subdivision of collector tiles by generating large-scale cuts over several centimeters in silica aerogel with almost no material loss. The cut surfaces are smooth and optically clear allowing visual location of particles for analysis and extraction. This capability is complementary to the smaller-scale cutting capabilities previously described [Westphal (2004), Ishii (2005a, 2005b)] for removing individual impacts and particulate debris in tiny aerogel extractions. Macroscopic cuts enable division and storage or distribution of portions of aerogel tiles for immediate analysis of samples by certain techniques in situ or further extraction of samples suited for other methods of analysis.

Presentation outlines industry trends and statistics that show why now is the time to deploy alternative fuels and vehicles.

We perform linear stability calculations for horizontal fluid bilayers that can undergo a phase transformation, taking into account both buoyancy effects and thermocapillary effects in the presence of a vertical temperature gradient. We compare the familiar case of the stability of two immiscible fluids in a bilayer geometry with the less-studied case that the two fluids represent different phases of a single-component material, e.g., the water-steam system. The two cases differ in their interfacial boundary conditions: the condition that the interface is a material surface is replaced by the continuity of mass flux across the interface, together with an assumption of thermodynamic equilibrium that in the linearized equations represents the Clausius-Clapeyron relation relating the interfacial temperature and pressures. For the two-phase case, we find that the entropy difference between the phases plays a crucial role in determining the stability of the system. For small values of the entropy difference between the phases, the two-phase system can be linearly unstable to either heating from above or below. The instability is due to the Marangoni effect in combination with the effects of buoyancy (for heating from below). For larger values of the entropy difference the two-phase system is unstable only for heating …

Genome features of the Bacillus cereus group genomes (representative strains of Bacillus cereus, Bacillus anthracis and Bacillus thuringiensis sub spp israelensis) were analyzed and compared with the Bacillus subtilis genome. A core set of 1,381 protein families among the four Bacillus genomes, with an additional set of 933 families common to the B. cereus group, was identified. Differences in signal transduction pathways, membrane transporters, cell surface structures, cell wall, and S-layer proteins suggesting differences in their phenotype were identified. The B. cereus group has signal transduction systems including a tyrosine kinase related to two-component system histidine kinases from B. subtilis. A model for regulation of the stress responsive sigma factor sigmaB in the B. cereus group different from the well studied regulation in B. subtilis has been proposed. Despite a high degree of chromosomal synteny among these genomes, significant differences in cell wall and spore coat proteins that contribute to the survival and adaptation in specific hosts has been identified.

The 116-F-16 waste site is the former Pacific National Laboratories (PNL) Outfall, used to discharge waste effluents from the 100-F Experimental Animal Farm. The results of verification sampling show that residual contaminant concentrations do not preclude any future uses and allow for unrestricted use of shallow zone soils. The results also demonstrate that residual contaminant concentrations are protective of groundwater and the Columbia River.

This project focused on the use of Logistical Networking technology to address the challenges involved in rapid sharing of data from the the Center's gyrokinetic particle simulations, which can be on the order of terabytes per time step, among researchers at a number of geographically distributed locations. There is a great need to manage data on this scale in a flexible manner, with simulation code, file system, database and visualization functions requiring access. The project used distributed data management infrastructure based on Logistical Networking technology to address these issues in a way that maximized interoperability and achieved the levels of performance the required by the Center's application community. The work focused on the development and deployment of software tools and infrastructure for the storage and distribution of terascale datasets generated by simulations running at the National Center for Computational Science at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Uranium exists in several chemical forms in mining and mill tailings and in nuclear and weapons production wastes. Under appropriate conditions, microorganisms can affect the stability and mobility of U in wastes by altering the chemical speciation, solubility and sorption properties and thus could increase or decrease the concentrations of U in solution and the bioavailability. Dissolution or immobilization of U is brought about by direct enzymatic action or indirect nonenzymatic action of microorganisms. Although the physical, chemical, and geochemical processes affecting dissolution, precipitation, and mobilization of U have been extensively investigated, we have only limited information on the mechanisms of microbial transformations of various chemical forms of U in the presence of electron donors and acceptors.

The effect of resonant magnetic perturbations on heat transport in DIII-D H-mode plasmas has been calculated by combining the TRIP3D field-line tracing code with the E3D two-fluid transport code. Simulations show that the divertor heat flux distribution becomes non-axisymmetric because heat flux is efficiently guided to the divertor along the three-dimensional invariant manifolds of the magnetic field. Calculations demonstrate that heat flux is spread over a wider area of the divertor target, thereby reducing the peak heat flux delivered during steady-state operation. Filtered optical cameras have observed non-axisymmetric particle fluxes at the strike-point and Langmuir probes have observed non-axisymmetric floating potentials. On the other hand, the predicted magnitude of stochastic thermal transport is too large to match the pedestal plasma profiles measured by Thomson scattering and charge exchange recombination spectroscopy. The Braginskii thermal conductivity overestimates the expected heat transport in the pedestal because the mean free path is longer than estimates of the parallel thermal correlation length, and collisionless transport models are probably required for accurate description. However, even the collisionless estimates for electron thermal transport are too large by one to two orders of magnitude. Thus, it is likely that another mechanism such as rotational screening of resonant perturbations …

Addition of metal to plastic layers in some direct drive laser fusion targets is needed to reduce electron induced fuel preheat. A plasma polymerization coating system was constructed to produce a metal seeded polymer by adding an organometallic gas to the usual trans-2-butene and hydrogen feedstocks. Since organometallic gases are highly reactive and toxic, safety is a major concern in the design of a coating system. Our coating apparatus was designed with three levels of containment to assure protection of the operator. The gas handling system has redundant valves and was designed to fail safe. Several sensor controlled interlocks assure safe operating conditions. Waste materials are collected on a specially designed cold trap. Waste disposal is accomplished by heating the traps and purging volatile products through a reactor vessel. The design, operating procedure, and safety interlocks of this novel coating system are described.