A dual carbon-nitrogen biological model of the upper ocean has been developed, which has successfully allowed predictions of fluxes of carbon between atmosphere and the deep ocean to made. Regarding studying the carbon cycle in the ocean, the modelling has highlighted the need for a good understanding of the interactions between the carbon and nitrogen cycles, and also the importance of zooplankton grazing and levels of overwintering biological stocks. Problems have been encountered with the accuracy of prediction of the partial pressure of carbon dioxide in the surface ocean, and the sensitivity of the model to zooplankton parameters, and those parameters which effect overwintering stocks (e.g. mortality parameters). The model has recently been incorporated into a physical General Circulation Model of the Atlantic Ocean. Future work will involve assessing the performance of the biological model in General Circulation Models, and making necessary refinements in order to improve its predictive ability. 1 ref., 1 fig.

The objective of this project is to evaluate and demonstrate a cost effective emission control technology for acid rain precursors, oxides of nitrogen (NO{sub x}) and sulfur (SO{sub x}), on two coal fired utility boilers in Illinois. The units selected are representative of pre-NSPS design practices: tangential and cyclone fired. A third unit, wall fired, is on hold'' because of funding limitations. The specific objectives are to demonstrate reductions of 60 percent in NO{sub x} and 50 percent in SO{sub x} emissions, by a combination of two developed technologies, gas reburning (GR) and sorbent injection (SI). With GR, about 80--85 percent of the coal fuel is fired in the primary combustion zone. The balance of this fuel is added downstream as natural gas to create a slightly fuel rich environment in which NO{sub x} is converted to N{sub 2}. The combustion process is completed by overfire air addition. SO{sub x} emissions are reduced by injecting dry sorbents (usually calcium based) into the upper furnace. The sorbents trap SO{sub x} as solid sulfates that are collected in the particulate control device.

This research uses several techniques to measure the concentration of catalyst sites and determine their stoichiometry for the catalyzed gasification of carbon. Both alkali and alkaline earth oxides are effective catalysts for accelerating the gasification rate of coal chars, but only a fraction of the catalyst appears to be in a form that is effective for gasification, and the composition of that catalyst is not established. Transient techniques, with {sup 13}C labeling, are being used to study the surface processes, to measure the concentration of active sites, and to determine the specific reaction rates. We have used secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) for both high surface area samples of carbon/alkali carbonate mixtures and for model carbon surfaces with deposited alkali atoms. SIMS provides a direct measure of surface composition. The combination of these results can provide knowledge of catalyst dispersion and composition, and thus indicate the way to optimally utilize carbon gasification catalysts.

The gasification of coal char by hydrogen is much slower than in steam or carbon dioxide; moreover, hydrogasification rate in pure hydrogen decreases sharply with conversion for most carbons. To overcome this kinetic behavior, the oxidation of the char prior to and during hydrogasification has been investigated as a means of enhancing hydro gasification rate. Kinetic rate studies under well-characterized conditions have been complemented by careful surface analyses to characterize oxygen on the char surface prior to and during hydrogasification.

Samples from three time-series sediment traps deployed in the Santa Monica Basin off the California coast were analyzed to study the flux and scavenging of uranium and thorium series isotopes. Variations of uranium and thorium series isotopes fluxes in the water column were obtained by integrating these time-series deployment results. Mass and radionuclide fluxes measured from bottom sediment traps compare favorably with fluxed determined from sediment core data. This agreement suggests that the near-bottom sediment traps are capable of collecting settling particles representative of the surface sediment. The phase distributions of {sup 234}Th in the water column were calculated by an inverse method using sediment trap data, which help to study the variations of {sup 234}Th scavenging in the water column. Scavenging and radioactive decay of {sup 234}Th are the two principal processes for balancing {sup 234}Th budget in the water column. The residence times of dissolved and particulate {sup 234}Th were determined by a {sup 234}Th scavenging model.

During safety rod tests in K-reactor prior to startup, one safety rod could not be lifted because the button'' broke off and became lodged in the mechanism. Examination of the failed latch assembly along with other assemblies from both K-Area and L-Area revealed several missing buttons as well as severely deformed jaw hanger extensions.'' We participated in the investigation of the damage by request of the Reactor Restart Section. Based on our study of the latch mechanism, the modifications to the safety rod extension,'' and the operating history of the machine, this memorandum describes the causes of the observed damage with experimental evidence and calculations to support the findings. 3 refs.

A briefing report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the quality of life and retention in the military, focusing on: (1) military personnel's overall intentions to stay or leave the military; (2) military personnel's levels of satisfaction and dissatisfaction with the military; (3) factors that affect dissatisfaction and intent to leave the military; and (4) factors that affect satisfaction and intentions to stay in the military."

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the budgetary implications of selected program reforms discussed in its work but not yet implemented or enacted."

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO evaluated the role the Department of Defense (DOD) training is playing in implementing best practices in weapon system programs, focusing on the: (1) contribution DOD training makes to program offices' ability to apply best practices; (2) different methods used by DOD and leading commercial firms in training on best practices; and (3) strategic approaches that underlie DOD's and leading commercial firms' training methods for best practices."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO examined the extent to which the Department of Defense (DOD) has applied the Government Performance and Results Act's outcome-oriented principles to the Chemical and Biological (CB) Defense Program, focusing on whether: (1) CB Defense Program goals are explicit and measurable; (2) the CB Defense Program has performance measures that assess outcomes and impacts rather than outputs and activities; and (3) organizations executing the CB Defense research, development, testing, and evaluation (RDT&E) activities have incorporated Results Act principles in their program planning and evaluation."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO examined the coordination of federal research and development (R&D) efforts to develop nonmedical technology related to chemical and biological (CB) defense, focusing on: (1) federal programs that conduct nonmedical CB defense-related R&D; and (2) the existing mechanisms for coordinating these programs."

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on: (1) the environment within which railroad rates have been set since 1990; (2) how railroad rates have changed since 1990; (3) how railroad service quality has changed since 1990; and (4) actions taken by the Surface Transportation Board and others to address railroad service quality problems."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC) complaint caseload, focusing on: (1) trends in the size of inventories and the age of cases in inventory at various stages of the EEO complaint process; (2) trends in the number of complaints filed by federal employees and the time taken by agencies and EEOC to process them; and (3) implications of these trends and how future caseloads may be affected by EEOC's regulatory changes to the complaint process."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) proposal to restructure its regional operations, focusing on: (1) FTC's rationale for proposing the regional restructuring; (2) the process FTC followed in developing its restructuring proposal; (3) factors FTC used and could have used in deciding how to restructure; (4) other options to the proposed restructuring identified in prior FTC studies or by Boston and Denver regional officials; and (5) the views of selected stakeholders regarding the impact the proposed restructuring could have in the areas covered by the Boston and Denver regional offices."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Federal Housing Administration's (FHA) appraisal process, focusing on: (1) how well the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is monitoring the performance of the appraisers on its roster and implementing procedures for addressing consumers' complaints about FHA appraisals; (2) the extent to which HUD is holding appraisers accountable for poor-quality FHA appraisals; (3) the extent to which HUD is holding lenders responsible for the quality of the FHA appraisals they use; and (4) how HUD ensures that appraisers on its roster are qualified to perform FHA appraisals."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) efforts to ensure that its National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) is year 2000 compliant."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the Department of Defense's (DOD) on-hand and on-order inventory, focusing on whether DOD: (1) had on-hand inventory exceeding current requirements as of September 30, 1996, and 1997; and (2) was buying inventory for which it had no current requirements as of those same dates."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the assessments levied on the commercial maritime industry."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed selected operational practices of the National Gambling Impact Study Commission (NGISC), focusing on: (1) whether NGISC is subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and, if so, whether NGISC followed FACA with respect to three specific meetings; (2) what contracting procedures were used in NGISC's award of three major contracts; (3) why NGISC contracted for legal counsel instead of using government legal support; (4) whether NGISC attempted to interfere with the work of one of its contractors; (5) how Regent University employees were involved in NGISC activities; (6) whether NGISC has paid for relocating any staff; and (7) whether NGISC employees are allowed to work at a location other than the NGISC office."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) controls over seized drugs and firearms, focusing on whether the FBI: (1) put in place physical safeguards that if operated effectively would help control access to and use of drug and firearm evidence; and (2) maintained adequate accountability over such evidence."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the planning and budgeting difficulties faced by District of Columbia (DC) Courts during fiscal year (FY) 1998."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed how the social security number (SSN) is used, focusing on: (1) federal laws and regulations requiring or restricting SSN use; (2) how extensively the private and public sectors use SSNs for purposes not required by federal law; and (3) what businesses and governments believe the impact would be if federal laws limiting the use of SSNs were passed."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the equipment readiness in active duty Army units, focusing on whether the active duty units: (1) have the equipment required to conduct their wartime missions; (2) are keeping their equipment in good condition; and (3) can sustain the equipment in a two major theater war as required by the National Military Strategy."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the effectiveness of the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Weed and Seed Program, focusing on how: (1) the program is managed by DOJ's Executive Office for Weed and Seed (EOWS); (2) EOWS monitors local Weed and Seed sites to ensure that grant requirements are met; (3) EOWS determines when sites have become self-sustaining; and (4) EOWS and selected sites are measuring program results."