The US Department of Energy initiated an investigation at Argonne National Laboratory in 1982 to experimentally determine the thermal stability limits and degradation rates of toluene as a function of maximum cycle temperature. Following the design and construction of a dynamic test loop capable of closely simulating the thermodynamic conditions of typical organic Rankine-cycle (ORC) power systems, four test runs, totaling about 3900 h of test time and covering a temperature range of 600-677(degree)F, were completed. Both liquid and noncondensable-vapor (gaseous) samples were drawn periodically and analyzed using capillary-column gas chromatography, gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, and mass spectrometry. A computer program that can predict degradation in an ORC engine was developed. Experimental results indicate that, if oxygen can be excluded from the system, toluene is a stable fluid up to the maximum test temperature; the charge of toluene could be used for several years before replacement became necessary. (Additional data provided by Sundstrand Corp. from tests sponsored by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration indicate that toluene may be used at temperatures up to 750(degree)F.) Degradation products are benign; the main liquid degradation products are bibenzyls, and the main gaseous degradation products are hydrogen and methane. A cold trap to remove …

The goal of this program is the development of a molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) anode which is more tolerant of sulfur contaminants in the fuel than the current state-of-the-art nickel-based anode structures. This program addresses two different but related aspects of the sulfur contamination problem. The primary aspect is concerned with the development of a sulfur tolerant electrocatalyst for the fuel oxidation reaction. A secondary issue is the development of a sulfur tolerant water-gas-shift reaction catalyst and an investigation of potential steam reforming catalysts which also have some sulfur tolerant capabilities. These two aspects are being addressed as two separate tasks.

AMAX Research Development Center (AMAX R D) has been investigating methods for enhancing the reactivity and durability of the zinc ferrite desulfurization sorbent. Zinc ferrite sorbents are intended for use in desulfurization of hot coal gas in integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) or molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) applications. For the present program, the reactivity of the sorbent may be defined as its sulfur sorption capacity at the breakthrough point and at saturation in a bench-scale, fixed-bed reactor. Durability may be defined as the ability of the sorbent to maintain important physical characteristics such As size, strength, and specific surface area during 10 cycles of sulfidation and oxidation.

This paper addresses the problem of measuring and analyzing the performance of fine-grained parallel programs running on shared-memory multiprocessors. Such processors use locking (either directly in the application program, or indirectly in a subroutine library or the operating system) to serialize accesses to global variables. Given sufficiently high rates of locking, the chief factor preventing linear speedup (besides lack of adequate inherent parallelism in the application) is lock contention - the blocking of processes that are trying to acquire a lock currently held by another process.

In the 7-GeV Advanced Photon Source (APS) Conceptual Design Report (CDR), fifteen complete experimental beam lines were specified in order to establish a representative technical and cost base for the components involved. In order to optimize the composition of the insertion devices and the beam line, these funds are considered a ''Trust Fund.'' The present report evaluates the optimization for the distribution of these funds so that the short- and long-term research programs will be most productive, making the facility more attractive from the user's point of view. It is recommended that part of the "Trust Fund" be used for the construction of the insertion devices, the front-end components, and the first-optics, minimizing the cost to potential users of completing a beam line. In addition, the possibility of cost savings resulting from replication and standardization of high multiplicity components (such as IDs, front ends, and first-optics instrumentation) is addressed.

This report documents recent progress on ground-water monitoring projects for four Hanford Site facilities: the 300 Area Process Trenches, the 183-H Solar Evaporation Basins, the 200 Area Low-Level Burial Grounds, and the Nonradioactive Dangerous Waste (NRDW) Landfill. The existing ground-water monitoring projects for the first two facilities named in the paragraph above are currently being expanded by adding new wells to the networks. During the reporting period, sampling of the existing wells continued on a monthly basis, and the analytical results for samples collected from September through November 1986 are included and discussed in this document. 8 refs., 41 figs., 7 tabs.

Three aerial radiological surveys were conducted during the period 16 June through 15 July 1986 over the towns of Pocatello, Soda Springs, and Fort Hall, Idaho and the surrounding areas. The surveys were performed for the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by the United States Department of Energy's (DOE) Remote Sensing Laboratory (RSL), utilizing the Aerial Measuring System (AMS). This work was completed in cooperation with a study by the EPA to conduct a dose assessment of human radiation exposure for industrial sources in Pocatello and Soda Springs, Idaho. The aerial surveys were performed to document the natural terrestrial radiological environment of the three localities and to map the spatial extent and degree of contamination due to phosphate milling operations. The results of these surveys will be used for planning ground-based measurements in addition to being incorporated into the dose assessment document. 4 refs., 14 figs., 6 tabs.

Estimated kokanee (Oncorhynchus nerka) abundance in Lake Pend Oreille was 4.3 million during September 1986. This estimate was similar to 1985 and indicates continued suppression of the kokanee population since initial decline in the late 1960s. Atypically high survival of wild fry resulted in similar fry recruitment in 1986 as 1985, whereas hatchery-reared fry contributed only 8% to total fry recruitment as a result of low post-release survival (3%). Fry released into the Clark Fork River from Cabinet Gorge Hatchery had very low survival during emigration to Lake Pend Oreille, resulting from poor flow conditions and potentially high predation. Fry survival during emigration was twice as high during nighttime flows of 16,000 cfs than 7,800 cfs. Emigration also was faster during higher flows. Several marks were tested to differentially mark fry release groups to help determine impacts of flow and other factors on fry survival. Survival of fry marked with tetracycline and fluorescent dye was high (>99%) during the 10-week study. In contrast, survival of fry marked with fluorescent grit marks ranged from 5 to 93%, depending on application pressure and distance from the fry. Retention was high (>96%) for tetracycline and grit marks during the study, whereas dye marks …

This plan defines the actions needed to achieve detection-level monitoring compliance at the Hanford Site 200 Areas Low-Level Burial Grounds (LLBG) in accordance with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Compliance will be achieved through characterization of the hydrogeology and monitoring of the ground water beneath the LLBG located in the Hanford Site 200 Areas. 13 refs., 20 figs.

This report contains the test results and assessments of seismic fragility tests performed on a 6-inch diameter piping system. The test was funded by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and conducted by ETEC. The objective of the test was to investigate the ability of a representative nuclear piping system to withstand high level dynamic seismic and other loadings. Levels of loadings achieved during seismic testing were 20 to 30 times larger than normal elastic design evaluations to ASME Level D limits would permit. Based on failure data obtained during seismic and other dynamic testing, it was concluded that nuclear piping systems are inherently able to withstand much larger dynamic seismic loadings than permitted by current design practice criteria or predicted by the probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) methods and several proposed nonlinear methods of failure analysis.

Nominal predicted plasma conditions in a compact ignition tokamak are illustrated by transport simulations using experimentally calibrated plasma transport models. The range of uncertainty in these predictions is explored by using various models which have given almost equally good fits to experimental data. Using a transport model which best fits the data, thermonuclear ignition occurs in a Compact Ignition Tokamak design with major radius 1.32 m, plasma half-width 0.43 m, elongation 2.0, and toroidal field and plasma current ramped in six seconds from 1.7 to 10.4 T and 0.7 to 10 MA, respectively. Ignition is facilitated by 20 MW of heating deposited off the magnetic axis near the /sup 3/He minority cyclotron resonance layer. Under these conditions, sawtooth oscillations are small and have little impact on ignition. Tritium inventory is minimized by preconditioning most discharges with deuterium. Tritium is injected, in large frozen pellets, only after minority resonance preheating. Variations of the transport model, impurity influx, heating profile, and pellet ablation rates, have a large effect on ignition and on the maximum beta that can be achieved.

The Energy Management Curriculum Starter Kit was designed to help engineering educators develop and teach energy management courses. Montana State University and Oklahoma State University courses are embodied in the model curriculum given. The curricula offered at many other universities throughout the United States are also presented. The kit was designed specifically to train engineering students to be good energy managers. Courses at both the undergraduate and postgraduate level are presented.

This report sets forth the Department's findings and recommendations for ensuring the safe management and disposal of low-level radioactive waste (LLW) with concentrations of radionuclides that exceed the limits established by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for Class C LLW. Chapters are devoted to: Identification of Greater-Than Class-C Low-Level Waste; Regulatory Needs and Legislative Authorities; Proposed Actions to Ensure the Safe Management of Greater-Than-Class-C Low-Level Waste; System Considerations for Waste Disposal; Funding Options; Requirements for Implementation; and Schedule and Cost. Three Appendices are included: Public Law 99-240, Section 3(b); Greater-Than-Class-C Low-Level Waste Types and Quantities; and Descriptions of Systems Considerations for Waste Disposal. (LM)

A small, continuous liquid-fed mini-melter (LFMM) has been developed at Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) to aid in waste glass feed slurry development. The LFMM offers several advantages over testing in large-scale melters. The LFMM requires little lead time in preparing for a test run, and the labor and material requirements are low. Real-time melting behavior of liquid feed slurries can be investigated, and feed rates can be estimated for larger-scale melters. The glass produced is representative of that produced by a larger-scale melter, as well as representative of the processing operation itself. Glass produced by the LFMM may subsequently be analyzed for metallic and other secondary phase formation. In contrast to larger-scale melters, the LFMM may be easily and inexpensively installed in a hot cell because of its relatively small size and simple configuration, enabling testing of radioactive feeds. A total of six LFMM experimental runs were performed. Feeds were obtained which corresponded to PNL melter runs performed in larger PNL developmental joule-heated research melters. These nonradioactive liquid-fed ceramic melters are known as the High-Bay Ceramic Melter (HBCM), the Experimental Ceramic Melter (ECM), and the Pilot-Scale Ceramic Melter (PSCM). Preliminary results obtained with the limited testing are promising. Feeds processed …

We obtain spherically symmetric solutions for scalar fields with a non-minimal coupling xi absolute value of phi/sup 2/ R to gravity. We find, for fields of mass m, maximum masses and number of particles of order M/sub max/ approx. 0.73xi/sup 1/2/ M/sub Planck//sup 2//m, and N/sub max/ approx. 0.88xi/sup 1/2/ M/sub Planck//sup 2//m/sup 2/ respectively, for large positive xi. For large negative xi we find, M/sub max/ approx. 0.66 absolute value of xi/sup 1/2/ M/sub Planck//sup 2//m, and N/sub max/ approx. 0.72 absolute value of xi/sup 1/2/ M/sub Planck//sup 2//m/sup 2/.

We calculate analytically the probability distribution for peculiar velocities on scales from 10h/sup -1/ to 60h/sup -1/ Mpc with cosmic string loops as the dominant source of primordial gravitational perturbations. We consider a range of parameters ..beta..G..mu.. appropriate for both hot (HDM) and cold (CDM) dark matter scenarios. An ..cap omega.. = 1 CDM Universe is assumed with the loops randomly placed on a smooth background. It is shown how the effects can be estimated of loops breaking up and being born with a spectrum of sizes. It is found that to obtain large scale streaming velocities of at least 400 km/s it is necessary that either a large value for ..beta..G..mu.. or the effect of loop fissioning and production details be considerable. Specifically, for optimal CDM string parameters G..mu.. = 10/sup -6/, ..beta.. = 9, h = .5, and scales of 60h/sup -1/ Mpc, the parent size spectrum must be 36 times larger than the evolved daughter spectrum to achieve peculiar velocities of at least 400 km/s with a probability of 63%. With this scenario the microwave background dipole will be less than 800 km/s with only a 10% probability. The string induced velocity spectrum is relatively flat out …

We discuss the design and specifications of a 10-in. x 10-in. active area wire chamber. Several of these chambers will be combined with polyethylene converters to make a large volume detector intended for use as a high-energy detector displaying moderate energy resolution. We also discuss the amplifiers and discriminators that have been designed for these chambers. This report only concerns the wire chambers and electronics.

Five different neutron coincidence systems were evaluated and calibrated for high-mass PuO/sub 2/ samples. The samples were from 2 to 7.2 kg of PuO/sub 2/ in mass, with a large range of burnup. This report compares the equipment and the results, with an evaluation of deadtime and multiplication corrections.

The Severe Accident Risk Reduction Program (SARRP) has completed a rebaselining of the risks to the public from a particular pressurized water reactor with a subatmospheric containment (Surry, Unit 1). Emphasis was placed on determining the magnitude and character of the uncertainties, rather than focusing on a point estimate. The risk-reduction potential of a set of proposed safety option backfits was also studied, and their costs and benefits were also evaluated. It was found that the risks from internal events are generally lower than previously evaluated in the Reactor Safety Study (RSS). However, certain unresolved issues (such as direct containment heating) caused the top of the uncertainty band to appear at a level that is comparable with the RSS point estimate. None of the postulated safety options appears to be cost effective for the Surry power plant. This work supports the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's assessment of severe accidents in NUREG-1150.

This report describes the methodology used and results obtained in efforts to estimate the sodium aerosol concentrations at air intake ports of a liquid-metal cooled, fast-breeder nuclear reactor. An earlier version of this methodology has been previously discussed (Fields and Miller, 1985). A range of wind speeds from 2 to 10 m/s is assumed, and an effort is made to include building wake effects which, in many cases, dominate the dispersal of aerosols near buildings. For relatively small release rates, on the order of 1 to 10 kg/s, the plume rise is small and estimates of aerosol concentrations are derived using the methodology of Wilson and Britter (1982), which describes releases from surface vents. For release rates on the order of 100 kg/s much higher release velocities are expected, and plume rise is considered. An effective increase in release height is computed using the Split-H methodology with a parameterization suggested by Ramsdell (1983), and the release source strength is transformed to rooftop level. Evaluation of the acute release aerosol concentration is then based on the methodology for releases from a surface release of this transformed source strength. For a horizontal release, a methodology is developed to chart the plume path …

This report focuses on the nation's geoscience needs and recommends DOE activities to mitigate major problems that effect energy security. The report recommends new or redirected DOE geoscience research initiatives for oil and gas, coal, nuclear resources, structures and processes in the earth's crust, geothermal resources, oil shale, and waste disposal. In light of the current and near-term national energy requirements, federal budget constraints, and the diminished R and D efforts from the domestic energy industry, the Board recommends that DOE: assign highest geoscience research emphasis to shorter-term, energy priorities of the nation; particularly advanced oil and gas exploration and production technologies; establish in DOE an Office of Geoscience Research to develop and administer a strategic plan for geoscience research activities; establish oil and gas research centers within each of the six major oil and gas provinces of the United States to conduct and coordinate interdisciplinary problem-oriented research; increase oil and gas research funding by an initial annual increment of $50 million, primarily to support the regional research centers.

This report presents the results of post-seasonal analyses including timing and relative magnitude of the outmigration, travel time for marked hatchery releases, and survival in mid-Columbia and lower Snake River index reaches. Travel time of marked yearling and sub-yearling chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tsawytscha), sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka), and steelhead trout (Salmo gairdneri) is measured between specific sampling points in the system. Marked groups usually represent major hatchery production stocks. Survival estimates are computed for specific spring chinook and steelhead marked groups. Arrival time and duration of outmigration of the chinook, sockeye, coho (Oncorhynchus kisutch) and steelhead runs are reported at key sampling points. Hatchery and brand release information for 1986 is also listed.

One method used at Los Alamos for producing plutonium metal is to reduce the oxide with calcium metal in molten CaCl/sub 2/ at 850/sup 0/C. The solvent CaCl/sub 2/ from this reduction step is currently discarded as low-level radioactive waste because it is saturated with the reaction by-product, CaO. We have developed and demonstrated a molten salt technique for rechlorinating the CaO, thereby regenerating the CaCl/sub 2/ and incorporating solvent recycle into the batch PuO/sub 2/ reduction process. We discuss results from the process development experiments and present our plans for incorporating the technique into an advanced design for semicontinuous plutonium metal production.

This annual report, the eighth in a series, provides a brief description of fuel performance during 1985 in commercial nuclear power plants and an indication of trends. Brief summaries of fuel design changes, fuel surveillance programs, fuel operating experience, fuel problems, high-burnup fuel experience, and items of general significance are provided. References to additional, more detailed information and related NRC evaluations are included.