This report discusses income maintenance programs and various proposals to reform the system.

This project is Phase I of a multi-phased program for the design and development of Stirling engines for stationary power generation applications in the 500 to 3000 horsepower range. Phase I comprises the conceptual design and associated cost estimates of a stationary Stirling engine capable of being fueled by a variety of heat sources, with emphasis on coal firing, followed by the preparation of a plan for implementing the design, fabrication and testing of a demonstration engine by 1985. The main effort in Phase I is the generation of state-of-the-art conceptual designs having greatest potential for prototype testing in 1985. The conceptual designs include a heat transport system for integrating the engine heater head with such energy sources as conventional oil/gas combustors, fluidized bed and other coal combustors, and combustors using coal-derived liquid fuels, and low/medium BTU gases. The heat transport systems being investigated include forced convection with gases or liquids, heat pipes, and direct firing. Currently, the leading choice for the solid fuel combustion system is the atmospheric fluidized bed, with low BTU gasification still a viable alternative. Both systems will continue to be evaluated further, but with greater emphasis on FBC. To date, there appears no clear choice …

The design is analyzed for a parabolic trough solar process heat system for a cardboard corrugation fabrication facility in Texas. The program is briefly reviewed, including an analysis of the plant and process. The performance modeling for the system is discussed, and the solar system structural design, collector subsystem, heat transport and distribution subsystem are analyzed. The selection of the heat transfer fluid, and ullage and fluid maintenance are discussed, and the master control system and data acquisition system are described. Testing of environmental degradation of materials is briefly discussed. A brief preliminary cost analysis is included. (LEW)

This report discusses how the Federal Reserve (Fed) handles monetary policy, including background information about the execution of monetary policy, the recent and current stance of monetary policy, and current legislation and Congressional oversight that would affect the Fed's practices.

This report provides background information regarding the prison population in the United States that has been growing steadily for more than 30 years. The report presents correctional system statistics and discusses the federal government's involvement in offender reentry programs and the Second Chance Act (P.L. 110-199) that was enacted on April 9, 2008.

This report discusses the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) that receives virtually all of its funding through federal appropriations; overall, about 15% of public television and 10% of radio broadcasting funding comes from the federal appropriations that CPB distributes.

Report which provides background on drug trafficking in Mexico, identifies the major drug trafficking organizations, and analyzes the context, scope, and scale of the violence. It examines current trends of the violence, analyzes prospects for curbing violence in the future, and compares it with violence in Colombia.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Continued development and efficient performance of the nation's freight transportation system is vital to maintaining a strong U.S. economy and sustaining our nation's competitive position in the global economy. Yet, increasing congestion on our nation's roads and rail lines threatens to undermine the efficiency of our freight transportation system. Although the Department of Transportation (DOT) has taken some steps to enhance freight mobility, there is growing concern that additional action is needed. To assist the Congress in enhancing national freight mobility, GAO reviewed (1) factors that contribute to constrained freight mobility and their effects in areas with nationally significant freight flows, and (2) approaches to address freight mobility in those areas and the challenges decision makers face in implementing those approaches. GAO analyzed freight transportation data and interviewed stakeholders in four areas with large freight flows."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "As of September 30, 2012, the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) was managing assets totaling $63.2 billion in nonmortgage-related Troubled Asset Relief Programs (TARP). As of this date, Treasury had exited 4 of the 10 nonmortgage-related programs, and in December 2012 Treasury announced the exit from a fifth program--the American International Group (AIG) Investment Program. Exactly when Treasury will exit the remaining five programs remains uncertain. Treasury has identified several factors that will affect its decisions. For example,"

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "For each of the four phases of capital investments, USPS's conformance with leading practices varied. There are several practices within each of the phases. GAO assessed conformance as "substantial" if USPS's policy conformed to all or almost all elements of the practice, and as "partial" if USPS's policy conformed to some elements, or GAO identified cases in the five projects reviewed where the policies were not consistently applied."

This project is a detailed analysis of the lithology, stratigraphy, and structure of the New Albany Group in Illinois to determine those characteristics of lithology, thickness, regional distribution, vertical and lateral variability, and deformation that are most relevant to the occurrence of hydrocarbons. Research is reported for this quarter in the following areas: coordination of stratigraphic maps, mineralogic and petrographic characterization, physical properties of Devonian black shale, quantitative determination of major, minor, and trace elements in shales, inorganic/organic associations of trace elements in black shales, mode of occurrence and relative distribution of hydrocarbon phases in shale, and adsorption/desorption studies of gases through shales. 6 figures, 7 tables. (RWR)

This report describes studies of accidents involving high-level radioactive waste before sealing the waste into a repository. The report summarizes work done in this area during Fiscal Year 1978 and supplements previous work. Models of accident probability, severity, and consequences are refined and extended.

In February of 1986, the Department of Energy (DOE) will present to Congress a proposal to construct a Monitored Retrievable Storage facility (MRS) in Tennessee. This report is a listing of the comments received regarding the MRS plan.

Report that is divided into two segments. The first section provides the most recent information on the Fiscal Year 2011 continuing resolution (or CRs). The second segment focuses on: the history and recent trends, including the nature, scope, and duration of CRs during the past 35 years; CR types by duration; major substantive legislative provisions included in some CRs; and funding gaps.

The overall objectives for this project were: (1) to identify a suitable PdCu tri-metallic alloy membrane with high stability and commercially relevant hydrogen permeation in the presence of trace amounts of carbon monoxide and sulfur; and (2) to identify and synthesize a water gas shift catalyst with a high operating life that is sulfur and chlorine tolerant at low concentrations of these impurities. This work successfully achieved the first project objective to identify a suitable PdCu tri-metallic alloy membrane composition, Pd{sub 0.47}Cu{sub 0.52}G5{sub 0.01}, that was selected based on atomistic and thermodynamic modeling alone. The second objective was partially successful in that catalysts were identified and evaluated that can withstand sulfur in high concentrations and at high pressures, but a long operating life was not achieved at the end of the project. From the limited durability testing it appears that the best catalyst, Pt-Re/Ce{sub 0.333}Zr{sub 0.333}E4{sub 0.333}O{sub 2}, is unable to maintain a long operating life at space velocities of 200,000 h{sup -1}. The reasons for the low durability do not appear to be related to the high concentrations of H{sub 2}S, but rather due to the high operating pressure and the influence the pressure has on the WGS reaction …

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is cleaning up and/or monitoring large, dilute plumes contaminated by metals, such as uranium and chromium, whose mobility and solubility change with redox status. Field-scale experiments with acetate as the electron donor have stimulated metal-reducing bacteria to effectively remove uranium [U(VI)] from groundwater at the Uranium Mill Tailings Site in Rifle, Colorado. The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and a multidisciplinary team of national laboratory and academic collaborators has embarked on a research proposed for the Rifle site, the object of which is to gain a comprehensive and mechanistic understanding of the microbial factors and associated geochemistry controlling uranium mobility so that DOE can confidently remediate uranium plumes as well as support stewardship of uranium-contaminated sites. This Quality Assurance Project Plan provides the quality assurance requirements and processes that will be followed by the Rifle Integrated Field-Scale Subsurface Research Challenge Project.

The primary objective of this project was to develop oxidation methods appropriate for the conversion of agriculturally derived simple sugars to their corresponding diacids (aldaric acids) for use as biobased chemical building blocks for new biodegradable polymers and other materials. Principal target diacids were D-glucaric, meso-xylaric, D-mannaric and L-arabinaric acid, each to be prepared by nitric acid oxidation of the naturally occurring precursor carbohydrates (monosaccharides) D-glucose, D-xylose, D-mannose and L-arabinose, respectively, all from hydrolysis of naturally abundant plant polysaccharides. These conversions were to be designed for scale up to a level suitable for transfer first to a pilot plant scale, and then to an industrial plant scale. The core of the project involved a comprehensive study of the title oxidation employing a computer controlled reactor. The plan of action involved defining experimental parameters to allow for control of the oxidations with considerable precision and reproducibility. The prototype oxidations were typically run using ca. 0.75 molar amounts of carbohydrate, with a goal of eventually doubling the reaction size when appropriate reaction parameters were established. During the course of the funding period for this grant, the fundamentals of reaction control were established for oxidation of D-glucose, a critical component of the project …

The following is a synopsis of the major achievements attributed to the operation of the Weatherization Assistance Program Technical Assistance Center (WAPTAC) by the National Association for State Community Services Programs (NASCSP). During the past five years, the WAPTAC has developed into the premier source for information related to operating the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) at the state and local levels. The services provide through WAPTAC include both virtual technical support as well as hands-on training and instruction in classroom and in the field. The WAPTAC achieved several important milestones during its operation including the establishment of a national Weatherization Day now celebrated in most states, the implementation of a comprehensive Public Information Campaign (PIC) to raise the awareness of the Program among policy makers and the public, the training of more than 150 new state managers and staff as they assume their duties in state offices around the country, and the creation and support of a major virtual information source on the Internet being accessed by thousands of staff each month. The Weatherization Assistance Program Technical Assistance Center serves the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Weatherization and Intergovernmental Program as a valuable training and technical assistance resource for …

The Nature Conservancy participated in a Cooperative Agreement with the Department of Energy (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) to explore the compatibility of carbon sequestration in terrestrial ecosystems and the conservation of biodiversity. The title of the research project was 'Application and Development of Appropriate Tools and Technologies for Cost-Effective Carbon Sequestration'. The objectives of the project were to: (1) improve carbon offset estimates produced in both the planning and implementation phases of projects; (2) build valid and standardized approaches to estimate project carbon benefits at a reasonable cost; and (3) lay the groundwork for implementing cost-effective projects, providing new testing ground for biodiversity protection and restoration projects that store additional atmospheric carbon. This Final Technical Report discusses the results of the six tasks that The Nature Conservancy undertook to answer research needs while facilitating the development of real projects with measurable greenhouse gas reductions. The research described in this report occurred between July 1st 2001 and July 10th 2008. The specific tasks discussed include: Task 1: carbon inventory advancements; Task 2: emerging technologies for remote sensing of terrestrial carbon; Task 3: baseline method development; Task 4: third-party technical advisory panel meetings; Task 5: new project feasibility studies; and …

This report describes the progress of our research during the first 30 months (10/01/2004 to 03/31/2007) of the original three-year project cycle. The project was terminated early due to DOE budget cuts. This was a joint project between the Tertiary Oil Recovery Project (TORP) at the University of Kansas and the Idaho National Laboratory (INL). The objective was to evaluate the use of low-cost biosurfactants produced from agriculture process waste streams to improve oil recovery in fractured carbonate reservoirs through wettability mediation. Biosurfactant for this project was produced using Bacillus subtilis 21332 and purified potato starch as the growth medium. The INL team produced the biosurfactant and characterized it as surfactin. INL supplied surfactin as required for the tests at KU as well as providing other microbiological services. Interfacial tension (IFT) between Soltrol 130 and both potential benchmark chemical surfactants and crude surfactin was measured over a range of concentrations. The performance of the crude surfactin preparation in reducing IFT was greater than any of the synthetic compounds throughout the concentration range studied but at low concentrations, sodium laureth sulfate (SLS) was closest to the surfactin, and was used as the benchmark in subsequent studies. Core characterization was carried out …

The project ''Reinforcement of Aluminum Casting with Dissimilar Metal'' was a Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADAs) between Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Cummins Inc. This project, technologies have been developed to reinforce aluminum castings with steel insert. Defect-free bond between the steel insert and the aluminum casting has been consistently obtained. The push-out experiment indicated that the bond strength is higher than that of the Al-Fin method. Two patents have been granted to the project team that is comprised of Cummins Inc. and ORNL. This report contains four sections: the coating of the steel pins, the cast-in method, microstructure characterization, and the bond strength. The section of the coating of the steel pins contains coating material selection, electro-plating technique for plating Cu and Ni on steel, and diffusion bonding of the coatings to the steel. The section of cast-in method deals with factors that affecting the quality of the metallurgical bond between the coated steel and the aluminum castings. The results of microstructure characteristics of the bonding are presented in the microstructure characterization section. A push-out experiment and the results obtained using this method is described in the section of bond strength/mechanical property.

This project encompassed the design, development, and demonstration of integrated online optimization systems at Dynegy Midwest Generation's Baldwin Energy Complex (BEC) located in Baldwin, Illinois. The overall project objective was to improve coal-based generation's emission profile, efficiency, maintenance requirements and plant asset life in order to enhance the long-term viability of the United States abundant coal resources. Five separate but integrated optimization products were developed, addressing combustion, sootblowing, SCR operations, overall unit thermal performance, and plant-wide availability optimization. Optimization results are inherently unit-specific and cannot be known for a particular generating unit in advance. However, NeuCo believed that the following were reasonable targets for the completed, integrated set of products: Furnace NOx reduction improvement by 5%, Heat rate improvement by 1.5%, Increase of annual Available MWh by 1.5%, Commensurate reductions in greenhouse gases, mercury, and particulates; and Commensurate increases in profitability from lower costs, improved reliability, and greater commercial availability. The goal during Phase I was to establish each system and demonstrate their integration in unified plant optimization. Efforts during Phase I focused on: (1) developing, deploying, integrating, and testing prototypes for each of the five products; (2) identifying and addressing issues required for the products to integrate with plant …

It was proposed to investigate a new concept for the synthesis of molecular sieve hydrogen selective membranes. This concept is based on the use of exfoliated layered zeolite precursors in coating processes to make nanocomposite films with inorganic or polymeric matrices. We discovered that creating exfoliated zeolite layers was much more difficult than anticipated because the methods originally proposed (based on existing literature reports) were not successful in providing exfoliated layers while preserving their porous structure. Although the original goals of fabricating high-selectivity-high-flux membranes that are stable under conditions present in a water-gas-shift reactor and that are able to selectively permeate hydrogen over all other components of the mixtures present in these reactors were not accomplished fully, significant progress has been made as follows: (1) Proof-of-concept hydrogen-selective nanocomposite membranes have been fabricated; (2) Methods to exfoliate layered zeolite precursors preserving the layer structure were identified; and (3) Unexpectedly, membranes exhibiting high ideal selectivity for carbon dioxide over nitrogen at room temperature were produced. The findings listed above provide confidence that the proposed novel concept can eventually be realized.

We present a framework for de Sitter model building in type IIA string theory, illustrated with specific examples. We find metastable dS minima of the potential for moduli obtained from a compactification on a product of two Nil three-manifolds (which have negative scalar curvature) combined with orientifolds, branes, fractional Chern-Simons forms, and fluxes. As a discrete quantum number is taken large, the curvature, field strengths, inverse volume, and four dimensional string coupling become parametrically small, and the de Sitter Hubble scale can be tuned parametrically smaller than the scales of the moduli, KK, and winding mode masses. A subtle point in the construction is that although the curvature remains consistently weak, the circle fibers of the nilmanifolds become very small in this limit (though this is avoided in illustrative solutions at modest values of the parameters). In the simplest version of the construction, the heaviest moduli masses are parametrically of the same order as the lightest KK and winding masses. However, we provide a method for separating these marginally overlapping scales, and more generally the underlying supersymmetry of the model protects against large corrections to the low-energy moduli potential.