Approach. Previously, using conventional and cryoTEM techniques, surface physicochemistry assays, NMR structural analysis, etc., we showed that the structure and composition of Shewanella's lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and capsular polysaccharide (PS) significantly determined overall cell surface physicochemistry. In our study a strong correlation between such macroscopic parameters as surface electronegativity, hydrophobicity or hydrophilicity, and bacterial adhesion to hematite was observed. Rough LPS strains exhibited more than an order higher affinity and maximal sorption capacity to hematite when compared to encapsulated strains. These general trends, however, characterize bacterial adhesion only as a bulk process, being unable to reveal finer mechanisms taking place at the level of an individual cell. Cell surface physicochemical and structural heterogeneity suggests much more complex interactions at the bacterial-mineral interface than predicted by such approaches operating within macroscopic parameters.

NO3 cancrinite and NO3 sodalite haves been found as a common sodium alumino-silicate forming in strongly caustic and alkaline aqueous solutions associated with radioactive High Level Waste (HLW) stored in many underground tanks and also in nuclear waste treatment facilities such as the Savannah River Site (SRS). The appearance of these phases have created very expensive problems in waste treatment plants by fouling process evaporators in the SRS waste processing facility. Therefore, in order to prevent their formation an assessment of the relative stability, formation kinetics, and the ion-exchange characteristics of these two phases in HLW solutions needs to be investigated. The goals of this project are to: (1) Develop a robust equilibrium thermodynamic framework to accurately describe the formation of NO3 cancrinite and NO3 sodalite. (2) Provide quantification and characterization of the solid precipitation rates through long-term batch kinetic experiments and novel analytical techniques. (3) Investigate the partitioning and ion exchange properties of these zeolitic phases with respect to radionuclides and RCRA metal species. This also includes compositional and structural characterization of ion exchanged solids elucidate the exchange properties of these phases.

This document is the final report for the Compressed Air Energy Storage Monitoring to Support Refrigerated-Mined Rock Cavern Technology (CAES Monitoring to Support RMRCT) (DE-FC26-01NT40868) project to have been conducted by CAES Development Co., along with Sandia National Laboratories. This document provides a final report covering tasks 1.0 and subtasks 2.1, 2.2, and 2.5 of task 2.0 of the Statement of Project Objectives and constitutes the final project deliverable. The proposed work was to have provided physical measurements and analyses of large-scale rock mass response to pressure cycling. The goal was to develop proof-of-concept data for a previously developed and DOE sponsored technology (RMRCT or Refrigerated-Mined Rock Cavern Technology). In the RMRCT concept, a room and pillar mine developed in rock serves as a pressure vessel. That vessel will need to contain pressure of about 1370 psi (and cycle down to 300 psi). The measurements gathered in this study would have provided a means to determine directly rock mass response during cyclic loading on the same scale, under similar pressure conditions. The CAES project has been delayed due to national economic unrest in the energy sector.

This is the extended second Semiannual Technical Report for DOE Cooperative Agreement No: DE-FC26-02NT41580. The goal of this project is to systematically assess the sensitivity of furnace operational conditions to burner air and fuel flows in coal fired utility boilers. Our approach is to utilize existing baseline furnace models that have been constructed using Reaction Engineering International's (REI) computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software. Using CFD analyses provides the ability to carry out a carefully controlled virtual experiment to characterize the sensitivity of NOx emissions, unburned carbon (UBC), furnace exit CO (FECO), furnace exit temperature (FEGT), and waterwall deposition to burner flow controls. The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) is providing co-funding for this program, and instrument and controls experts from EPRI's Instrument and Controls (I&C) Center are active participants in this project. This program contains multiple tasks and good progress is being made on all fronts.

This paper describes a proposed international qualification standard for photovoltaic (PV) systems generating electricity from concentrated sunlight. The standard's purpose is to provide stress tests and procedures to identify any component weaknesses in a system. If no weaknesses are identified during qualification, both the manufacturer and the customer can expect a more reliable product. In 2002, we began developing the standard, under the auspices of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), that would describe testing procedures for concentrator PV systems using reflecting (mirrors) or refractive (lenses) optics for focusing sunlight onto solar cells. The initial draft of the IEC standard was based on the first concentrator PV qualification standard published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in the United States in 2001. Well-developed U.S. concentrator technologies use refractive optics, and the IEEE standard needed improvement for testing systems with reflective optics. Furthermore, with record III-V solar cell efficiencies above 37%, concentrator PV developers around the world would like to incorporate such cells into their next generation of technologies. The paper will highlight significant differences between the proposed IEC standard and the earlier IEEE standard.

Background/Objective: The purpose of this study is to testthe extent that individual lipoprotein responses to diet can beattributed to genes in the presence of divergent exercise levels.Design:Twenty-eight pairs of male monozygotic twins (one mostly sedentary, theother running an average of 50 km/week more than the sedentary twin) wentfrom a 6-week 40 percent fat diet to a 6-week 20 percent fat diet in acrossover design. The diets reduced fat primarily by reducing saturatedand polyunsaturated fat (both from 14 percent to 4 percent), whileincreasing carbohydrate intake from 45 percent to 65 percent. Results:Despite the twins' differences in physical activity, the dietarymanipulation produced significantly correlated changes (P<0.05) in thetwin's total cholesterol (r=0.56), low-density lipoprotein(LDL)-cholesterol (r=0.70), large, buoyant LDL (Sf7-12, r=0.52), apo A-I(r=0.49), Lp(a) (r=0.49), electrophoresis measurements of LDL-I (LDLsbetween 26 and 28.5 nm diameter, r=0.48), LDL-IIB (25.2-24.6 nm, r=0.54),LDL-IV (22-24.1 nm, r=0.50), and body weights (r=0.41). Replacing fatswith carbohydrates significantly decreased the size and ultracentrifugeflotation rate of the major LDL, the LDL mass concentrations of Sf7-12,LDL-I, high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol and apo A-I, andsignificantly increased LDL-IIIA (24.7-25.5 nm diameter) and Lp(a).Conclusions: Even in the presence of extreme exercise difference, genessignificantly affect changes in LDL, apo A-I, Lp(a) and body weight whendietary fats are replaced …

Indoor temperature is one of the fundamental characteristics of the indoor environment. It can be controlled with different accuracy depending on the building and its HVAC system. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the potential benefits of improved temperature control, and apply the information for a cost-benefit analyses. The indoor temperature affects several human responses, including thermal comfort, perceived air quality, sick building syndrome symptoms and performance in work. In this study we focused on the effects of temperature on performance in work. We collected and analyzed the literature relating the performance in work and temperature. The results of multiple studies are relatively consistent and show an average relationship of 2% decrement in work performance per degree C when the temperature is above 25 C. Less data were available on the performance in low temperatures. However, studies show a strong effect on manual tasks with temperatures below thermal neutrality as soon as the temperature of hands decreased due to control of blood flow. When the estimated productivity decrement from elevated temperatures was applied to data from a study of night-time ventilative cooling, the estimated value of productivity improvements were 32 to 120 times greater than the cost of …

This Corrective Action Investigation Plan (CAIP) contains project-specific information for conducting site investigation activities at Corrective Action Unit (CAU) 151: Septic Systems and Discharge Area, Nevada Test Site, Nevada. Information presented in this CAIP includes facility descriptions, environmental sample collection objectives, and criteria for the selection and evaluation of environmental corrective action alternatives. Corrective Action Unit 151 is located in Areas 2, 12, 18, and 20 of the Nevada Test Site, which is 65 miles northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada. Corrective Action Unit 151 is comprised of the nine Corrective Action Sites (CAS) listed below: (1) 02-05-01, UE-2ce Pond; (2) 12-03-01, Sewage Lagoons (6); (3) 12-04-01, Septic Tanks; (4) 12-04-02, Septic Tanks; (5) 12-04-03, Septic Tank; (6) 12-47-01, Wastewater Pond; (7) 18-03-01, Sewage Lagoon; (8) 18-99-09, Sewer Line (Exposed); and (9) 20-19-02, Photochemical Drain. The CASs within CAU 151 are discharge and collection systems. Corrective Action Site 02-05-01 is located in Area 2 and is a well-water collection pond used as a part of the Nash test. Corrective Action Sites 12-03-01, 12-04-01, 12-04-02, 12-04-03, and 12-47-01 are located in Area 12 and are comprised of sewage lagoons, septic tanks, associated piping, and two sumps. The features are a part of …

This Corrective Action Investigation Plan (CAIP) contains project-specific information including facility descriptions, environmental sample collection objectives, and criteria for conducting site investigation activities at Corrective Action Unit (CAU) 551, Area 12 muckpiles, Nevada Test Site (NTS), Nevada. This CAIP has been developed in accordance with the ''Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order'' (FFACO) (1996) that was agreed to by the State of Nevada, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and the U.S. Department of Defense. Corrective Action Unit 551 is located in Area 12 of the NTS, which is approximately 110 miles (mi) northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada (Figure 1-1). Area 12 is approximately 40 miles beyond the main gate to the NTS. Corrective Action Unit 551 is comprised of the four Corrective Action Sites (CASs) shown on Figure 1-1 and listed below: (1) 12-01-09, Aboveground Storage Tank and Stain; (2) 12-06-05, Muckpile; (3) 12-06-07, Muckpile; and (4) 12-06-08, Muckpile. Corrective Action Site 12-01-09 is located in Area 12 and consists of an above ground storage tank (AST) and associated stain. Corrective Action Site 12-06-05 is located in Area 12 and consists of a muckpile associated with the U12 B-Tunnel. Corrective Action Site 12-06-07 is located in Area 12 and …

This Corrective Action Investigation Plan (CAIP) contains project-specific information including facility descriptions, environmental sample collection objectives, and criteria for conducting site investigation activities at Corrective Action Unit (CAU) 551, Area 12 muckpiles, Nevada Test Site (NTS), Nevada. This CAIP has been developed in accordance with the ''Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order'' (FFACO) (1996) that was agreed to by the State of Nevada, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and the U.S. Department of Defense. Corrective Action Unit 551 is located in Area 12 of the NTS, which is approximately 110 miles (mi) northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada (Figure 1-1). Area 12 is approximately 40 miles beyond the main gate to the NTS. Corrective Action Unit 551 is comprised of the four Corrective Action Sites (CASs) shown on Figure 1-1 and listed below: (1) 12-01-09, Aboveground Storage Tank and Stain; (2) 12-06-05, Muckpile; (3) 12-06-07, Muckpile; and (4) 12-06-08, Muckpile. Corrective Action Site 12-01-09 is located in Area 12 and consists of an above ground storage tank (AST) and associated stain. Corrective Action Site 12-06-05 is located in Area 12 and consists of a muckpile associated with the U12 B-Tunnel. Corrective Action Site 12-06-07 is located in Area 12 and …

The Oregon Department of Transportation (Oregon DOT) maintains more than 120 coastal bridges; many are reinforced concrete structures over 15 m (50 ft) in length. Twelve of these bridges are historic structures. Oregon DOT is concerned about the ongoing deterioration of these bridges, rising maintenance and repair costs, and the need to protect Oregon’s large investment in coastal bridges. Over 80,000 m2 (850,000 ft2) of coastal bridge surface have been repaired and protected from further chloride-induced corrosion damage by using conductive coating anodes. Most of the anode area is thermal-sprayed (TS) Zn. Other anode materials include TS Ti, Zn-hydrogel, and conductive carbon paint. TS Zn anodes are estimated to have a service life exceeding 25 years but exhibit increasing anode polarization with age. Catalyzed TS Ti anodes develop no significant anode polarization and have exhibited stable long-term performance over 8 years of service. Galvanic Zn-hydrogel anodes produce a stable protection current with no evidence of aging effects over 6 years of service. The conductive carbon paint anode operates at a low anode current density and consumption rate with a low rate of acidification at the anode-concrete interface, which has contributed to a stable protection current over 17 years of service.

In light of the TMI-2 accident, in which the reactor vessel lower head survived the attack by molten core material, the in-vessel retention strategy was suggested to benefit from cooling the debris through a gap between the lower head and the core material. The GAMMA 1D (Gap Apparatus Mitigating Melt Attack One Dimensional) tests were conducted to investigate the critical heat flux (CHF) in narrow gaps with varying surface orientations. The CHF in an inclined gap, especially in case of the downward-facing narrow gap, is dictated by bubble behavior because the departing bubbles are squeezed. The orientation angle affects the bubble layer and escape of the bubbles from the narrow gap. The test parameters include gap sizes of 1, 2, 5 and 10 mm and the open periphery, and the orientation angles range from the fully downward-facing (180o) to the vertical (90o) position. The 15 ×35 mm copper test section was electrically heated by the thin film resistor on the back. The heater assembly was installed to the tip of the rotating arm in the heated water pool at the atmospheric pressure. The bubble behavior was photographed utilizing a high-speed camera through the Pyrex glass spacer. It was observed that …

The critical time step needed for explicit time integration of laminated shell finite element models is presented. Each layer is restricted to be orthotropic when viewed from a properly oriented material coordinate system. Mindlin shell theory is used in determining the laminated response that includes the effects of transverse shear. The effects of the membrane-bending coupling matrix from the laminate material model are included. Such a coupling matrix arises even in the case of non-symmetric lay-ups of differing isotropic layers. Single point integration is assumed to be used in determining a uniform strain response from the element. Using a technique based upon one from the literature, reduced eigenvalue problems are established to determine the remaining non-zero frequencies. It is shown that the eigenvalue problem arising from the inplane normal and shear stresses is decoupled from that arising from the transverse shear stresses. A verification example is presented where the exact and approximate results are compared.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Risk Management Agency (RMA) administers the federal crop insurance program in partnership with insurance companies who share in the risk of loss or gain. In 2002, American Growers Insurance Company (American Growers), at the time, the largest participant in the program, was placed under regulatory control by the state of Nebraska. To ensure that policyholders were protected and that farmers' claims were paid, RMA agreed to fund the dissolution of American Growers. To date, RMA has spent about $40 million. GAO was asked to determine (1) what factors led to the failure of American Growers, (2) whether RMA procedures were adequate to monitor companies' financial condition, and (3) how effectively and efficiently RMA handled the dissolution of American Growers."

The objective of this report is to assess in men whether exercise affects the estimated age-related increase in adiposity, and contrariwise, whether age affects the estimated exercise-related decrease in adiposity. Cross-sectional analyses of 64,911 male runners who provided data on their body mass index (97.6 percent), waist (91.1 percent), hip (47.1 percent), and chest circumferences (77.9 percent). Between 18 to 55 years old, the decline in BMI with weekly distance run (slope+-SE) was significantly greater in men 25-55 years old (slope+-:-0.036+-0.001 kg/m2 per km/wk) than in younger men (-0.020+-0.002 kg/m 2 per km/wk). Declines in waist circumference with running distance were also significantly greater in older than younger men (P&lt;10-9 for trend),i.e., the slopes decreased progressively from -0.035+-0.004 cm per km/wk in 18-25 year old men to -0.097+-0.003 cm per km/wk in 50-55 year old men. Increases in BMI with age were greater for men who ran under 16km/wk than for longer distance runners. Waist circumference increased with age at all running levels, but the increase appeared to diminish by running further (0.259+-0.015 cm per year if running&lt;8 km/wk and 0.154+-0.003 cm per year for&gt;16 km/wk). In men over 50 years old, BMI declined -0.038+-0.001 kg/m2 per km/wk run when …

News release promoting the use of DART transit options to help reduce air pollution.

This report highlights trends and data found in the State Department’s annual Patterns of Global Terrorism report, (Patterns 2003) and addresses selected issues relating to its content.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "More than a decade after the 1991 Persian Gulf War, there is continued interest in the federal response to the health concerns of Gulf War veterans. Gulf War veterans' reports of unexplained illnesses and possible exposures to various health hazards have prompted numerous federal research projects on Gulf War illnesses. This research has been funded primarily by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the Department of Defense (DOD), and the Department of Health and Human Services. GAO is reporting on (1) the status of research and investigations on Gulf War illnesses, (2) the efforts that have been made by VA and DOD to monitor cancer incidence among Gulf War veterans, and (3) VA's communication and collaboration with the Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses (RAC)."

An enhanced in-vessel core catcher is being designed and evaluated as part of a joint United States (U.S.) - Korean International Nuclear Engineering Research Initiative (INERI) investigating methods to insure In-Vessel Retention (IVR) of core materials that may relocate under severe accident conditions in advanced reactors. To reduce cost and simplify manufacture and installation, this new core catcher design consists of several interlocking sections that are machined to fit together when inserted into the lower head. If needed, the core catcher can be manufactured with holes to accommodate lower head penetrations. Each section of the core catcher consists of two material layers with an option to add a third layer (if deemed necessary): a base material, which has the capability to support and contain the mass of core materials that may relocate during a severe accident; an oxide coating material on top of the base material, which resists interactions with high-temperature core materials; and an optional coating on the bottom side of the base material to prevent any potential oxidation of the base material during the lifetime of the reactor. This paper summarizes the status of core catcher design and evaluation efforts, including analyses, materials interaction tests, and prototypic testing …

This report presents the conclusions, observations, and recommendations of the Independent Technology Review Group (ITRG) regarding design features and important technology uncertainties associated with very-high-temperature nuclear system concepts for the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP). The ITRG performed its reviews during the period November 2003 through April 2004.

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This study presents results obtained for four hybrid designs of the Northern Power Systems (NPS) 9.2-meter prototype version of the ERS-100 wind turbine rotor blade. The ERS-100 wind turbine rotor blade was designed and developed by TPI composites. The baseline design uses e-glass unidirectional fibers in combination with {+-}45-degree and random mat layers for the skin and spar cap. This project involves developing structural finite element models of the baseline design and carbon hybrid designs with and without twist-bend coupling. All designs were evaluated for a unit load condition and two extreme wind conditions. The unit load condition was used to evaluate the static deflection, twist and twist-coupling parameter. Maximum deflections and strains were determined for the extreme wind conditions. Linear and nonlinear buckling loads were determined for a tip load condition. The results indicate that carbon fibers can be used to produce twist-coupled designs with comparable deflections, strains and buckling loads to the e-glass baseline.

During the period July 1, 2000-March 31, 2004, Allegheny Energy Supply Co., LLC (Allegheny) conducted an extensive demonstration of woody biomass cofiring at its Willow Island and Albright Generating Stations. This demonstration, cofunded by USDOE and Allegheny, and supported by the Biomass Interest Group (BIG) of EPRI, evaluated the impacts of sawdust cofiring in both cyclone boilers and tangentially-fired pulverized coal boilers. The cofiring in the cyclone boiler--Willow Island Generating Station Unit No.2--evaluated the impacts of sawdust alone, and sawdust blended with tire-derived fuel. The biomass was blended with the coal on its way to the combustion system. The cofiring in the pulverized coal boiler--Albright Generating Station--evaluated the impact of cofiring on emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NO{sub x}) when the sawdust was injected separately into the furnace. The demonstration of woody biomass cofiring involved design, construction, and testing at each site. The results addressed impacts associated with operational issues--capacity, efficiency, and operability--as well as formation and control of airborne emissions such as NO{sub x}, sulfur dioxide (SO{sub 2}2), opacity, and mercury. The results of this extensive program are detailed in this report.

The FAA's Airworthiness Assurance NDI Validation Center, in conjunction with the Commercial Aircraft Composite Repair Committee, developed a set of composite reference standards to be used in NDT equipment calibration for accomplishment of damage assessment and post-repair inspection of all commercial aircraft composites. In this program, a series of NDI tests on a matrix of composite aircraft structures and prototype reference standards were completed in order to minimize the number of standards needed to carry out composite inspections on aircraft. Two tasks, related to composite laminates and non-metallic composite honeycomb configurations, were addressed. A suite of 64 honeycomb panels, representing the bounding conditions of honeycomb construction on aircraft, was inspected using a wide array of NDI techniques. An analysis of the resulting data determined the variables that play a key role in setting up NDT equipment. This has resulted in a set of minimum honeycomb NDI reference standards that include these key variables. A sequence of subsequent tests determined that this minimum honeycomb reference standard set is able to fully support inspections over the full range of honeycomb construction scenarios found on commercial aircraft. In the solid composite laminate arena, G11 Phenolic was identified as a good generic solid laminate …