Inorganic analysis of solid, liquid and gaseous samples from the Paraho Semiworks Retort was completed using a multitechnique approach. The data were statistically analyzed to determine both the precision of each method and to see how closely the various techniques compared. The data were also used to determine the redistribution of 31 trace and major elements in the various effluents, including the offgas for the Paraho Retort operating in the direct mode. The computed mass balances show that approximately 1% or greater fractions of the As, Co, Hg, N, Ni, S and Se are released during retorting and redistributed to the product shale oil, retort water or product offgas. The fraction for these seven elements ranged from almost 1% for Co and Ni to 50 to 60% for Hg and N. Approximately 20% of the S and 5% of the As and Se are released. The mass balance redistribution during retorting for Al, Fe, Mg, V and Zn was observed to be no greater than .05%. These redistribution figures are generally in agreement with previous mass balance studies made for a limited number of elements on laboratory or smaller scale pilot retorts. 7 tables.

The flash-steam conversion cycle is most suitable for electric power production at the SSGF. However, large-scale development of the SSGF may require use of makeup water supplements to injected brine for a viable reservoir pressure maintenance program. Since steam condensate will probably be required to satisfy power plant cooling needs, local surface waters have been evaluated for their potential use as sources of injection makeup. It was found that direct injection of untreated makeup water is not feasible because of high suspended solids loading and potential incompatability problems. However, mixtures of ambient temperature makeup water and higher temperature (80 to 90/sup 0/C) brine effluent, in a 1:4 mass ratio, are potentially injectable following processing by reaction clarification and granular media filtration.

The EQ3/EQ6 software package contains two computer codes (EQ3 and EQ6) and data files which form a useful tool in modeling precipitation from geothermal fluids caused by heating or cooling. The data files contain information on 140 aqueous species and nearly 150 minerals, and permit calculations over the temperature interval 0 to 350/sup 0/C. Assumption of homogeneous thermodynamic equilibrium in aqueous solution permits calculation of the driving forces for precipitation as measured by the affinity (log Q/K) for each such reaction. Further assumption of precipitation and heterogeneous equilibrium for any mineral whose affinity would otherwise exceed a value of zero permits determination of the identity of the precipitates, their masses and volumes, and the temperature ranges in which they form. The EQ3/EQ6 capability was used to determine the effects of temperature increase on formation of precipitates form Salton Sea water.

The economic performance of Trombe wall and direct gain passive solar heating designs are evaluated using the LASL/UNM solar economic performance code. Both designs are integrated into a ranch style tract home concept thereby facilitating intra-regional comparison. The economic performance of these systems is evaluated for 15 sites in the Northwest region. Space heating loads have been locally specified. System sizes have been optimized against the natural gas and electric resistance heating alternatives, the current price and future escalation of which is established for each locale. Sensitivity analysis is conducted to determine the maximum competitive add-on costs for each system under a specified set of energy price, solar performance and economic conditions.

Historically, the Department of Energy and its predecessors have used and supported the development of systems safety programs, practices, and principles, finding them by and large adequate, effective, and managerially efficient. Today, attempts are bing made to resolve increasingly complex environmental, safety, and health problems by turning to increasingly complex and detailed regulation as the primary governmental answer. It is increasingly doubtful that such an approach will provide management of these issues and problems that is either effective or efficient. Challenge is issued to those in systems safety to develop and apply systems safety principles and practices more broadly to total operational systems and not just to hardware and to environmental and health protection and not just to safety, so that the total universe of environmental, safety, and health can be managed effectively and efficiently with encouragement of innovation and creativity, using a relatively brief and concise, but adequate, regulatory base.

Fluid pressure oscillations resulting from tidal strain reflect hydrologic and elastic properties of a reservoir. Precise measurement and interpretation of these pressure fluctuations has the potential of being a useful quantitative reservoir engineering tool. Interpretations of reservoir response to tides have been to date of a qualitative nature. This is primarily due to the lack of resolving power of the spectral analysis techniques applied in the data interpretation. We have developed a procedure, based on the statistical nature of the noise in the signal, that overcomes most of these problems. The method quantifies the spectral resolution in terms of an absolute confidence level in both amplitude and phase of the spectral estimate. Analysis of one week of data from a well in the Salton Sea KGRA is presented.

This study demonstrates the feasibility of using high LET particle radiators to determine the thermal neutron dose by reaction particle registration in low background polycarbonate foils using electrochemical etching. When used in conjunction with the already proven fast neutron recoil particle track registration technique, a viable fast and thermal neutron dosimeter is realized with the advantages of being: non-fading, insensitive to low LET radiation reactions, inexpensive in both processing and materials, useable over a wide dose range, a permanant record and good reproducibility, highly sensitive, and tissue equivalent and a dose equivalent response over a wide range. Most importantly, it finally provides a simple and reliable dosimeter for both the fast and thermal neutron components.

Polymer coated spherical targets have been irradiated by the Shiva laser system in an effort to compress the contained 10 mg/cc DT fuel to super liquid densities. Glass microspheres of 140 ..mu..m ID and 5 ..mu..m wall thickness with polymer coatings 15 ..mu..m to 100 ..mu..m thick have been irradiated with laser pulses of 4 kilojoules in 200 psec FWHM. Target performance was diagnosed with neutron yield measurements, radiochemistry, Argon line imaging, and x-ray imaging techniques. Ball in plate targets achieved greater implosion symmetry than free-standing ball targets. With yields of 10/sup 7/ to 10/sup 8/ neutrons, targets reached DT fuel compressions of several times liquid density.