Plastic crystal behavior is observed in semiconducting CsPb and NaSn at high temperature (600 and 500 C, respectively). This behavior is associated with M{sub 4}{sup 4{minus}} or A{sub 4}M{sub 4} structural units orientationally disordering about 50 C below the melting point where translational disorder sets in. This orientational disorder is different in the two phases, exhibiting jump reorientations in CsPb and a more isotropic behavior in NaSn. In other Zintl compounds such as KPb, there is a single melting point where orientational and translational disorder sets in simultaneously; the classification of the different Zintl compounds into these two different kinds of behavior will require calorimetry or neutron diffraction below the melting point. (DLC)

The computer code FLOWTRAN-TF is used to analyze hypothetical hydraulic accidents for the nuclear reactor at the Savannah River Site. During a hypothetical Large Break Loss-of-Coolant Accident (LOCA), reactor assemblies would contain a two-phase mixture of air and water which flows downward. Reactor assemblies consist of nested, ribbed annuli. Longitudinal ribs divide each annulus into four subchannels. For accident conditions, air and water can flow past ribs from one subchannel to another. For FLOWTRAN-TF to compute the size of those flows, it is necessary to know the local void fraction in the region of the rib. Measurements have previously been made of length-average void fraction in a ribbed annulus. However, no direct measurements were available of local void fraction. Due to the lack of data, a test was designed to measure local void fraction at the rib. One question addressed by the test was whether void fraction at the rib is solely a function of azimuthal-average void fraction or a function of additional variables such as pressure boundary conditions. This report provides a discussion of this test.

Minimum critical fissile concentrations are calculated for U-233, U-235, Pu-239, and Am-242m mixed homogeneously with hydrogen at temperatures to 15,000K. Minimum critical masses of the same mixtures in a 1000 liter sphere are also calculated. It is shown that propellent efficiencies of a gas core fizzler engine using Am-242m as fuel would exceed those in a solid core engine as small as 1000L operating at 100 atmospheres pressure. The same would be true for Pu-239 and possibly U-233 at pressures of 1000 atm. or at larger volumes.

This report discusses whether the events that occur in the universe evolve deterministicly or randomly or both. (LSP).

Space Nuclear Reactor Systems, especially those used for propulsion, often have expected operation run times much shorter than those for land-based nuclear power plants. This produces substantially different radionuclide inventories to be considered in the safety analyses of space nuclear systems. This presentation describes an analysis utilizing ORIGEN2 and DKPOWER to provide comparisons among representative land-based and space systems. These comparisons enable early, conceptual considerations of safety issues and features in the preliminary design phases of operational systems, test facilities, and operations by identifying differences between the requirements for space systems and the established practice for land-based power systems. Early indications are that separation distance is much more effective as a safety measure for space nuclear systems than for power reactors because greater decay of the radionuclide activity occurs during the time to transport the inventory a given distance. In addition, the inventories of long-lived actinides are very low for space reactor systems.

The computer code FLOWTRAN-TF is used to analyze hypothetical hydraulic accidents for the nuclear reactor at the Savannah River Site. During a hypothetical Large Break Loss-of-Coolant Accident (LOCA), reactor assemblies would contain a two-phase mixture of air and water which flows downward. Reactor assemblies consist of nested, ribbed annuli. Longitudinal ribs divide each annulus into four subchannels. For accident conditions, air and water can flow past ribs from one subchannel to another. For FLOWTRAN-TF to compute the size of those flows, it is necessary to know the local void fraction in the region of the rib. Measurements have previously been made of length-average void fraction in a ribbed annulus. However, no direct measurements were available of local void fraction. Due to the lack of data, a test was designed to measure local void fraction at the rib. One question addressed by the test was whether void fraction at the rib is solely a function of azimuthal-average void fraction or a function of additional variables such as pressure boundary conditions. This report provides a discussion of this test.

Plastic crystal behavior is observed in semiconducting CsPb and NaSn at high temperature (600 and 500 C, respectively). This behavior is associated with M{sub 4}{sup 4{minus}} or A{sub 4}M{sub 4} structural units orientationally disordering about 50 C below the melting point where translational disorder sets in. This orientational disorder is different in the two phases, exhibiting jump reorientations in CsPb and a more isotropic behavior in NaSn. In other Zintl compounds such as KPb, there is a single melting point where orientational and translational disorder sets in simultaneously; the classification of the different Zintl compounds into these two different kinds of behavior will require calorimetry or neutron diffraction below the melting point. (DLC)

Interagency panels evaluating nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP) development options have consistently recognized the need for constructing a major new ground test facility to support fuel element and engine testing. This paper summarizes the requirements, configuration, and baseline performance of some of the major subsystems designed to support a proposed ground test complex for evaluating nuclear thermal propulsion fuel elements and engines being developed for the Space Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (SNTP) program. Some preliminary results of evaluating this facility for use in testing other NTP concepts are also summarized.

This report discusses whether the events that occur in the universe evolve deterministicly or randomly or both. (LSP).