Effective detection of special nuclear materials (SNM) is essential for reducing the threat associated with stolen or improvised nuclear devices. Passive radiation detection technologies are primarily based on gamma-ray detection and subsequent isotope identification or neutron detection (specific to neutron sources and SNM). One major effort supported by the Department of Homeland Security in the area of advanced passive detection is handheld or portable neutron detectors for search and localization tasks in emergency response and interdiction settings. A successful SNM search detector will not only be able to confirm the presence of fissionable materials but also establish the location of the source in as short of time as possible while trying to minimize false alarms due to varying background or naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM). For instruments based on neutron detectors, this translates to detecting neutrons from spontaneous fission or alpha-n reactions and being able to determine the direction of the source (or localizing the source through subsequent measurements). Polyethylene-coated gallium arsenide detectors were studied because the detection scheme is based on measuring the signal in the gallium arsenide wafers from the electrical charge of the recoil protons produced from the scattering of neutrons from the hydrogen nucleus. The inherent …

Using the FLASH facility we have demonstrated high-resolution coherent diffractive imaging with single soft-X-ray free-electron laser pulses [1]. The intense focused FEL pulse gives a high resolution low-noise coherent diffraction pattern of an object before that object turns into a plasma and explodes. Our experiments are an important milestone in the development of single-particle diffractive imaging with future X-ray free-electron lasers [2, 3]. Our apparatus provides a new and unique tool at FLASH to perform imaging of biological specimens beyond conventional radiation damage resolution limits [2, 4] and to acquire images of ultrafast processes initiated by an FEL pulse or other laser pulse. Coherent diffractive imaging is an ideal method for high-resolution ultrafast imaging with an FEL. Since no optical element is required, the method can in principle be scaled to atomic resolution with short enough wavelength. Spatial and temporal coherence are necessary to ensure that the scattered light waves from all positions across the sample are correlated when they interfere at the detector, giving rise to a coherent diffraction pattern that can be phased and inverted to give a high-resolution image of the sample. In contrast to crystals, where scattering from the many unit cells constructively interfere to give …

Computer simulation is an indispensable tool in assisting the design, construction, and operation of accelerators. In particular, computer simulation complements analytical theories and experimental observations in understanding beam dynamics in accelerators. The ultimate function of computer simulation is to study mechanisms that limit the performance of frontier accelerators. There are four goals for the benchmarking of computer simulation codes, namely debugging, validation, comparison and verification: (1) Debugging--codes should calculate what they are supposed to calculate; (2) Validation--results generated by the codes should agree with established analytical results for specific cases; (3) Comparison--results from two sets of codes should agree with each other if the models used are the same; and (4) Verification--results from the codes should agree with experimental measurements. This is the summary of the joint session among working groups A, B, and D of the HI32006 Workshop on computer codes benchmarking.

Diffusion Tensor Magnetic Resonance Imaging (DTMRI)technique enables the measurement of diffusion parameters and therefore,informs on the structure of the biological tissue. This technique isapplied with success to the static organs such as brain. However, thediffusion measurement on the dynamically deformable organs such as thein-vivo heart is a complex problem that has however a great potential inthe measurement of cardiac health. In order to understand the behavior ofthe Magnetic Resonance (MR)signal in a deforming media, the Bloch-Torreyequation that leads the MR behavior is expressed in general curvilinearcoordinates. These coordinates enable to follow the heart geometry anddeformations through time. The equation is finally discretized andpresented in a numerical formulation using implicit methods, in order toget a stable scheme that can be applied to any smooth deformations.Diffusion process enables the link between the macroscopic behavior ofmolecules and themicroscopic structure in which they evolve. Themeasurement of diffusion in biological tissues is therefore of majorimportance in understanding the complex underlying structure that cannotbe studied directly. The Diffusion Tensor Magnetic ResonanceImaging(DTMRI) technique enables the measurement of diffusion parametersand therefore provides information on the structure of the biologicaltissue. This technique has been applied with success to static organssuch as the brain. However, diffusion measurement of dynamicallydeformable organs …

A large-area fast-neutron double-scatter directional detector and spectrometer is being constructed using l-meter-long plastic scintillator paddles with photomultiplier tubes at both ends. The scintillators detect fast neutrons by proton recoil and also gamma rays by Compton scattering. The paddles are arranged in two parallel planes so that neutrons can be distinguished from muons and gamma rays by time of flight between the planes. The signal pulses are digitized with a time resolution of one gigasample per second. The location of an event along each paddle can be determined from the relative amplitudes or timing of the signals at the ends. The angle of deflection of a neutron in the first plane can be estimated from the energy deposited by the recoil proton, combined with the scattered neutron time-of-flight energy. Each scattering angle can be back-projected as a cone, and many intersecting cones define the incident neutron direction from a distant point source. Moreover, the total energy of each neutron can be obtained, allowing some regions of a fission source spectrum to be distinguished from background generated by cosmic rays. Monte Carlo calculations will be compared with measurements.

As with all planned repositories for spent fuel, the critical period over which Yucca Mountain needs to provide isolation is the first hundreds to thousands of years after the fuel is emplaced, when it is at its most hazardous. Both the original and the proposed new EPA standards highlight the central importance of this performance period by focusing on repository behavior during the first 10,000 years. Archaeology has a lot to tell us about the behavior of materials and structures over this time period. There have been numerous studies of archaeological artifacts in conditions relevant to the groundwater saturated environments that are a feature of most international geological disposal concepts, but relatively few in arid environments like that of the Nevada desert. However, there is much information to be gleaned, not only from classic archaeological areas in the Middle East and around the Mediterranean but also, perhaps surprisingly to some, from Nevada itself. Our recent study evaluated archaeological materials from underground openings and shallow burial in arid environments relevant to Yucca Mountain, drawing conclusions about how their state and their environment of preservation could help to assess design and operational options for the high-level waste repository.

Dual-phase membranes consisting of stainless steel supports infiltrated with molten carbonate have been shown to be selective to CO{sub 2} at high temperatures (400-650 C). However, over time at high temperatures, the formation of iron oxides on the surface of the stainless steel supports render the membranes ineffective. This report details synthesis and characteristics of dual-phase carbonate membrane with an oxidation resistant perovskite type ceramic (lanthanum-strontium-cobaltite-iron; LSCF) support. Porous LSCF supports were prepared from its powder synthesized by the citrate method. Both steady state permeation and mercury porosimetry confirmed that the LSCF membrane sintered at 900 C has pores large enough to absorb molten carbonate, yet small enough to retain the molten carbonate under high pressure conditions. Results of XRD analysis have shown that LSCF and the molten carbonate mixture do not react with each other at temperatures below 700 C. Four-point method conductivity tests indicate that the support material has sufficiently high electronic conductivity for this application. Li-Na-K carbonate was coated to the porous LSCF support by a liquid infiltration method. Helium permeance of the support before and after infiltration of molten carbonate are on the order of 10{sup -6} and 10{sup -10} moles/m{sup 2} {center_dot} Pa {center_dot} s …

The LLNL Computational Nuclear Physics (CNP) Group announces the release of translated ENDF/BVI, ENDF/B-VII, JEFF-3.1, JENDL-3.3 and other neutron incident evaluated reaction data libraries to LLNL users.

The homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) engine is an attractive technology because of its high efficiency and low emissions. However, HCCI lacks a direct combustion trigger making control of combustion timing challenging, especially during transients. To aid in HCCI engine control we present a simple model of the HCCI combustion process valid over a range of intake pressures, intake temperatures, equivalence ratios, and engine speeds. The model provides an estimate of the combustion timing on a cycle-by-cycle basis. An ignition threshold, which is a function of the in-cylinder motored temperature and pressure is used to predict start of combustion. This model allows the synthesis of nonlinear control laws, which can be utilized for control of an HCCI engine during transients.

The work of Frommeyer on electrical conductivity measurements in pearlitic steels is reviewed to provide insight into microstructures developed during wi wire drawing. Electrical re conductivity measurements were made as a function of drawing strain (up to {var_epsilon} = 6.0) for wires with strength exceeding 3500MPa. The results show that electrical conductivity increases during wire wire-drawing to a maximum value, then decreases with further deformation finally reaching a steady state value that is equal to the original conductivity. The initial increase is the result of pearlite plate orientation in the direction of wire wire-drawing, which makes the path of conduction through the ferrite plates more accessible. At a critical strain the cementite plates begin to fragment and the electrical conductivity decreases to a steady state value that is the same as that observed prior to wire drawing. With increasing strain, the cementite particles are refined and the strength increases due to the reduction in inter inter-particle spacing. It is concluded that the electrical conductivity of the wires is solely dependent on the amount of iron carbides provided they are randomly distributed as plates or as particles. An estimate was made that indicates the carbide particle size is approximately 3-5 nm …

This award was for partial support for the renovation of space to house research laboratories and moveable scientific equipment for genomics/functional geonomics at New York University.

In today's world, the use of parallel programming and architectures is essential for simulating practical problems in engineering and related disciplines. Remarkable progress in CPU architecture, system scalability, and interconnect technology continues to provide new opportunities, as well as new challenges for both system architects and software developers. These trends are paralleled by progress in parallel algorithms, simulation techniques, and software integration from multiple disciplines. ParSim brings together researchers from both application disciplines and computer science and aims at fostering closer cooperation between these fields. Since its successful introduction in 2002, ParSim has established itself as an integral part of the EuroPVM/MPI conference series. In contrast to traditional conferences, emphasis is put on the presentation of up-to-date results with a short turn-around time. This offers a unique opportunity to present new aspects in this dynamic field and discuss them with a wide, interdisciplinary audience. The EuroPVM/MPI conference series, as one of the prime events in parallel computation, serves as an ideal surrounding for ParSim. This combination enables the participants to present and discuss their work within the scope of both the session and the host conference. This year, eleven papers from authors in nine countries were submitted to ParSim, and …

The objective of this project is to design, construct and field demonstrate a membrane system to recover natural gas liquids (NGL) and remove water from raw natural gas. An extended field test to demonstrate system performance under real-world high-pressure conditions is being conducted to convince industry users of the efficiency and reliability of the process. The system was designed and fabricated by Membrane Technology and Research, Inc. (MTR) and installed and operated at BP Amoco's Pascagoula, MS plant. The Gas Research Institute is partially supporting the field demonstration and BP-Amoco helped install the unit and provides onsite operators and utilities. The gas processed by the membrane system meets pipeline specifications for dew point and BTU value and can be delivered without further treatment to the pipeline. Based on data from prior membrane module tests, the process is likely to be significantly less expensive than glycol dehydration followed by propane refrigeration, the principal competitive technology. During the course of this project, MTR has sold 13 commercial units related to the field test technology, and by the end of this demonstration project the process will be ready for broader commercialization. A route to commercialization has been developed during this project and involves …

This months issue has the following articles: (1) Expanded Supercomputing Maximizes Scientific Discovery--Commentary by Dona Crawford; (2) Thunder's Power Delivers Breakthrough Science--Livermore's Thunder supercomputer allows researchers to model systems at scales never before possible. (3) Extracting Key Content from Images--A new system called the Image Content Engine is helping analysts find significant but hard-to-recognize details in overhead images. (4) Got Oxygen?--Oxygen, especially oxygen metabolism, was key to evolution, and a Livermore project helps find out why. (5) A Shocking New Form of Laserlike Light--According to research at Livermore, smashing a crystal with a shock wave can result in coherent light.

This report fulfills the FY 2006 Enhanced Surveillance Campaign Level 3 milestones for Task TSR 11.1 as defined in the execution plan [1, 2]. The purpose of this task is to reduce the cycle time necessary to complete analytical evaluations required for surveillance of reservoirs. The development of the digital autoradiography system supports this task. The digital autoradiography system is currently operational and ready for implementation in reservoir surveillance performed in the Materials Test Facility (MTF) at Savannah River Site (SRS). SRS requests design agency (Los Alamos National Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratory) concurrence for the implementation of this system and on the establishment, in conjunction with the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL), of the implementation requirements for this system. Stainless steel tritium reservoirs and pinch welded tubes, which have been exposed to tritium for a prolonged period, are destructively evaluated at the end of their service lives for a variety of reasons. One requirement of this evaluation is to assess the tritium diffusion into the reservoir material. The current method used to determine the geometry and depth of tritium penetration is autoradiography. This technique employs a photographic emulsion and has been effective for a number of years. The primary …

This report details redesign of a commercially available rotary microfilter to meet the operational and maintenance requirements for radioactive service. Personnel developed the design and coordinated procurement of two filters followed by testing of one unit. System testing examined the ability to rinse soluble material from the system, filtration performance using several insoluble solids loadings, effectiveness in washing sludge, amount of wear to parts and maintenance of the system including the insertion and removal of the filter stack, and the ability to flush solids from the system. The test program examined flushing the filter for soluble material by filling the system with a Rhodamine WT dye solution. Results showed that draining the system and rinsing with 50 gallons of water resulted in grater than 100X reduction of the dye concentration. Personnel determined filter performance using various amounts of insoluble sludge solids ranging from 0.06 to 15 weight percent (wt%) insoluble solids in a 3 molar (M) sodium simulated supernate. Through approximately 120 hours of start-and-stop (i.e., day shift) operation and various insoluble solids loadings, the filter produced filtration rates between 3 and 7 gallons per minute (gpm) (0.12-0.29 gpm/ft{sup 2}) for a 25-disk filter. Personnel washed approximately 80 gallons of …

This technical report presents the engineering research, process development and data accomplishments that have transpired to date in support of the development of Cost Effective Composite Drill Pipe (CDP). The report presents progress made from October 1, 2005 through September 30, 2006 and contains the following discussions: Qualification Testing; Prototype Development and Testing of ''Smart Design'' Configuration; Field Test Demonstration; Development of Ultra-Short Radius Composite Drill Pipe (USR-CDP); and Development of Smart USR-CDP.

Melanin production by S. algae BrY occurred during late/post-exponential growth in lactate-basal-salts liquid medium supplemented with tyrosine or phenylalanine. The antioxidant ascorbate inhibited melanin production, but not production of the melanin precursor, homogentisic acid. In the absence of ascorbate, melanin production was inhibited by the 4-hydroxyplenylpyruvate dioxygenase inhibitor, sulcotrione and Fe(II) (>0.2mM). These data support the hypothesis that pigment production by S. algae BrY was a result the conversion of tyrosine or phenylalanine to homogentisic acid which was excreted, auto-oxidized and self-polymerized to form pyomelanin. The inverse relationship between Fe(II) concentration and pyomelanin production has implications that pyomelanin may play a role in iron assimilation under Fe(II) limiting conditions.

This project had two primary objectives. The first was to understand the physical properties and behavior of select Hanford tank sludges under conditions that might exist during retrieval, treatment, packaging, and transportation for disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). The second objective was to develop a fundamental understanding of these sludge suspensions by correlating the macroscopic properties with particle interactions occurring at the colloidal scale. The specific tank wastes considered herein are contained in thirteen Hanford tanks including three double-shell tanks (DSTs) (AW-103, AW-105, and SY-102) and ten single-shell tanks (SSTs) (B-201 through B-204, T-201 through T-204, T-110, and T-111). At the outset of the project, these tanks were designated as potentially containing transuranic (TRU) process wastes that would be treated and disposed of in a manner different from the majority of the tank wastes.

Final report describing NEER research on Advanced Beta Dosimetry Techniques

This report supplies the information obtained during drilling, characterization, and installation of the new groundwater monitoring well. This document also provides a compilation of hydrogeologic and well construction information obtained during drilling, well development, and sample collection/analysis activities.

The main objective of this project is to measure heat of dissolution of CO{sub 2} in carefully selected mixed alkanolamine solvent systems, and provide such directly measured data that might be used for efficient design of CO{sub 2} capture processes, or for better understanding of thermodynamics of CO{sub 2}-alkanolamine systems. Carbon dioxide is one of the major greenhouse gases, and the need for stabilization of its composition in earth's atmosphere is vital for the future of mankind. Although technologies are available for capture and storage of CO{sub 2}, these technologies are far too expensive for economical commercialization. Reduction of cost would require research for refinement of the technology. For more economical CO{sub 2} capture and regeneration, there is a need for development of more efficient solvent systems. In this project we will extend the thermodynamic database by measuring heat of solution data of CO{sub 2} in mixed solvents made of MEA (monoethanolamine), MDEA (methyldiethanolamine), piperazine, and water. Mixed solvents of different compositions will be selected and in each case data will be measured at temperatures 40 and 80C and various partial pressures of CO{sub 2}. At the end of the project, observations, conclusions, and recommendations will be derived for the …

Along the remote shores of the Columbia River in southeast Washington state, a race is on. Fluor Hanford, a prime cleanup contractor to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) at the Hanford Site, is managing a massive, multi-faceted project to remove contaminants from the groundwater before they can reach the Columbia. Despite the daunting nature and size of the problem--about 80 square miles of aquifer under the site contains long-lived radionuclides and hazardous chemicals--significant progress is being made. Many groups are watching, speaking out, and helping. A large. passionate, diverse, and geographically dispersed community is united in its desire to protect the Columbia River--the eighth largest in the world--and have a voice in Hanford's future. Fluor Hanford and the DOE, along with the US. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) interact with all the stakeholders to make the best decisions. Together, they have made some remarkable strides in the battle against groundwater contamination under the site.

This report talks about Argonne National Laboratory summary site environmental report for calendar year 2004