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This report is one of a set of three documents that have collectively identified and recommended research and development capabilities that will be required to advance nuclear energy in the next 20 to 50 years. The first report, Nuclear Energy for the Future: Required Research and Development Capabilities—An Industry Perspective, was produced by Battelle Memorial Institute at the request of the Assistant Secretary of Nuclear Energy. That report, drawn from input by industry, academia, and Department of Energy laboratories, can be found in Appendix 5.1. This Idaho National Laboratory report maps the nuclear-specific capabilities from the Battelle report onto facility requirements, identifying options from the set of national laboratory, university, industry, and international facilities. It also identifies significant gaps in the required facility capabilities. The third document, Executive Recommendations for Nuclear R&D Capabilities, is a letter report containing a set of recommendations made by a team of senior executives representing nuclear vendors, utilities, academia, and the national laboratories (at Battelle’s request). That third report can be found in Appendix 5.2. The three reports should be considered as set in order to have a more complete picture. The basis of this report was drawn from three sources: previous Department of Energy …

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Summarizes work done to extend the electrochemical performance and methane reforming submodels to include the effects of pressurization and to demonstrate this new modeling capability by simulating large stacks operating on methane-rich fuel under pressurized and non-pressurized conditions. Pressurized operation boosts electrochemical performance, alters the kinetics of methane reforming, and effects the equilibrium composition of methane fuels. This work developed constitutive submodels that couple the electrochemistry, reforming, and pressurization to yield an increased capability of the modeling tool for prediction of SOFC stack performance.

A two-day training workshop was held in Xalapa, Mexico from March 10-11 2009 with the goal of training end users from the southern Gulf of Mexico states of Campeche and Veracruz in the use of tools to support coastal resource management decision-making. The workshop was held at the computer laboratory of the Institute de Ecologia, A.C. (INECOL). This report summarizes the results of that workshop and is a deliverable to our NASA client.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) FMCSA commissioned the Wireless Roadside Inspection (WRI) Program to validate technologies and methodologies that can improve safety through inspections using wireless technologies that convey real-time identification of commercial vehicles, drivers, and carriers, as well as information about the condition of the vehicles and their drivers. It is hypothesized that these inspections will: -- Increase safety -- Decrease the number of unsafe commercial vehicles on the road; -- Increase efficiency -- Speed up the inspection process, enabling more inspections to occur, at least on par with the number of weight inspections; -- Improve effectiveness -- Reduce the probability of drivers bypassing CMV inspection stations and increase the likelihood that fleets will attempt to meet the safety regulations; and -- Benefit industry -- Reduce fleet costs, provide good return-on-investment, minimize wait times, and level the playing field. The WRI Program is defined in three phases which are: Phase 1: Proof of Concept Test (POC) Testing of commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) or near-COTS technology to validate the wireless inspection concept. Phase 2: Pilot Test Safety technology maturation and back office system integration Phase 3: Field Operational Test Multi-vehicle testing over a multi-state instrumented corridor This report focuses …

Chloride stress corrosion cracking (SCC) is a plausible corrosion mechanism for the stainless steel 3013 containers during their lifetime for plutonium material storage if sufficient electrolyte is present within the container. Contributing factors for SCC, such as fabrication and welding residual stresses, are present in the 3013 cans. Convenience and inner cans from both Hanford and SRS are made by a flow form process, which cold works the stainless steel during fabrication. Additionally, the inner cans also are sealed at the can top with a closure weld to the sealing plug. Only SRS and Hanford were tested since moisture levels were significant for SCC. As part of the 3013 corrosion plan for FY09, testing in a boiling magnesium chloride solution was performed on actual 3013 convenience and inner cans to determine if the residual stresses were sufficient for the initiation and propagation of SCC. Additional testing in a 40% calcium chloride solution was also performed on 304L stainless steel SCC coupons, i.e. stressed teardrop-shaped samples (teardrops), and an inner can welded top to provide comparative results and to assess the effect of residual stresses in a less aggressive environment. The testing performed under this task consisted of 3013 inner and …

The Raman lidar at the ARM Climate Research Facility (ACRF) Southern Great Plains (SGP) Central Facility (SGPRL) is an active, ground-based laser remote sensing instrument that measures height and time resolved profiles of water vapor mixing ratio and several cloud- and aerosol-related quantities. The system is a non-commercial custom-built instrument developed by Sandia National Laboratories specifically for the ARM Program. It is fully computer automated, and will run unattended for many days following a brief (~5-minute) startup period. The self-contained system (requiring only external electrical power) is housed in a climate-controlled 8’x8’x20’ standard shipping container.

This report presents the 2008 groundwater monitoring results collected by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Legacy Management (LM) at the Project Shoal Area (PSA) Subsurface Corrective Action Unit (CAU) 447 located in Churchill County, Nevada. Responsibility for the environmental site restoration of the PSA was transferred from the DOE Office of Environmental Management to LM on October 1, 2006. The environmental restoration process and corrective action strategy for CAU 447 are conducted in accordance with the Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order (FFACO 1996, as amended February 2008) entered into by DOE, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the State of Nevada. The corrective action strategy for the site includes proof of concept monitoring in support of site closure. This report summarizes investigation activities associated with CAU 447 that were conducted at the site during 2008. This is the second groundwater monitoring report prepared by LM for the PSA

This report presents the 2008 groundwater monitoring results collected by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Legacy Management (LM) for the Central Nevada Test Area (CNTA) Subsurface Corrective Action Unit (CAU) 443. Responsibility for the environmental site restoration of the CNTA was transferred from the DOE Office of Environmental Management (DOE-EM) to DOE-LM on October 1, 2006. The environmental restoration process and corrective action strategy for CAU 443 are conducted in accordance with the Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order (FFACO 2005) entered into by DOE, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the State of Nevada. The corrective action strategy for the site includes proof-of-concept monitoring in support of site closure. This report summarizes investigation activities associated with CAU 443 that were conducted at the site during fiscal year 2008. This is the second groundwater monitoring report prepared by DOE-LM for the CNTA.

The project objective is to study structure-property relations in solid solutions of nitrides and oxides with surrogate elements to simulate the behavior of fuels of inert matrix fuels of interest to the Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative (AFCI), with emphasis in zirconium-based materials. Work with actual fuels will be carried out in parallel in collaboration with Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). Three key aspects will be explored: microstructure characterization through measurement of global texture evolution and local crystallographic variations using Electron Backscattering Diffraction (EBSD); determination of mechanical properties, including fracture toughness, quasi-static compression strength, and hardness, as functions of load and temperature, and, finally, development of structure-property relations to describe mechanical behavior of the fuels based on experimental data. Materials tested will be characterized to identify the mechanisms of deformation and fracture and their relationship to microstructure and its evolution. New aspects of this research are the inclusion of crystallographic information into the evaluation of fuel performance and the incorporation of statistical variations of microstructural variables into simplified models of mechanical behavior of fuels that account explicitly for these variations. The work is expected to provide insight into processing conditions leading to better fuel performance and structural reliability during manufacturing and …

The purpose of this research is to provide a fundamental computational investigation into the possible integration of experimental activities with the Advanced Test Reactor Critical (ATR-C) facility with the development of benchmark experiments. Criticality benchmarks performed in the ATR-C could provide integral data for key matrix and structural materials used in nuclear systems. Results would then be utilized in the improvement of nuclear data libraries and as a means for analytical methods validation. It is proposed that experiments consisting of well-characterized quantities of materials be placed in the Northwest flux trap position of the ATR-C. The reactivity worth of the material could be determined and computationally analyzed through comprehensive benchmark activities including uncertainty analyses. Experiments were modeled in the available benchmark model of the ATR using MCNP5 with the ENDF/B-VII.0 cross section library. A single bar (9.5 cm long, 0.5 cm wide, and 121.92 cm high) of each material could provide sufficient reactivity difference in the core geometry for computational modeling and analysis. However, to provide increased opportunity for the validation of computational models, additional bars of material placed in the flux trap would increase the effective reactivity up to a limit of 1$ insertion. For simplicity in assembly manufacture, …

Analysis of compression wave propagation through a high-permeability layer in a homogeneous poroelastic medium predicts a peak of reflection in the low-frequency end of the spectrum. An explicit formula expresses the resonant frequency through the elastic moduli of the solid skeleton, the permeability of the reservoir rock, the fluid viscosity and compressibility, and the reservoir thickness. This result is obtained through a low-frequency asymptotic analysis of the Biot's model of poroelasticity. A new physical interpretation of some coefficients of the classical poroelasticity is a result of the derivation of the main equations from the Hooke's law, momentum and mass balance equations, and the Darcy's law. The velocity of wave propagation, the attenuation factor, and the wave number, are expressed in the form of power series with respect to a small dimensionless parameter. The latter is equal to the product of the kinematic reservoir fluid mobility, an imaginary unit, and the frequency of the signal. Retaining only the leading terms of the series leads to explicit and relatively simple expressions for the reflection and transmission coefficients for a planar wave crossing an interface between two permeable media, as well as wave reflection from a thin highly-permeable layer (a lens). The practical …

Tensions between the energy and water sectors occur when demand for electric power is high and water supply levels are low. There are several regions of the country, such as the western and southwestern states, where the confluence of energy and water is always strained due to population growth. However, for much of the country, this tension occurs at particular times of year (e.g., summer) or when a region is suffering from drought conditions. This report discusses prior work on the interdependencies between energy and water. It identifies the types of power plants that are most likely to be susceptible to water shortages, the regions of the country where this is most likely to occur, and policy options that can be applied in both the energy and water sectors to address the issue. The policy options are designed to be applied in the near term, applicable to all areas of the country, and to ease the tension between the energy and water sectors by addressing peak power demand or decreased water supply.

Because of past military operations, lack of upkeep and looting there are now enormous radioactive waste problems in Iraq. These waste problems include destroyed nuclear facilities, uncharacterized radioactive wastes, liquid radioactive waste in underground tanks, wastes related to the production of yellow cake, sealed radioactive sources, activated metals and contaminated metals that must be constantly guarded. Iraq currently lacks the trained personnel, regulatory and physical infrastructure to safely and securely manage these facilities and wastes. In 2005 the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) agreed to organize an international cooperative program to assist Iraq with these issues. Soon after, the Iraq Nuclear Facility Dismantlement and Disposal Program (the NDs Program) was initiated by the U.S. Department of State (DOS) to support the IAEA and assist the Government of Iraq (GOI) in eliminating the threats from poorly controlled radioactive materials. The Iraq NDs Program is providing support for the IAEA plus training, consultation and limited equipment to the GOI. The GOI owns the problems and will be responsible for implementation of the Iraq NDs Program. Sandia National Laboratories (Sandia) is a part of the DOS's team implementing the Iraq NDs Program. This report documents Sandia's support of the Iraq NDs Program, which …

Wide-angle surveys have been an engine for new discoveries throughout the modern history of astronomy, and have been among the most highly cited and scientifically productive observing facilities in recent years. This trend is likely to continue over the next decade, as many of the most important questions in astrophysics are best tackled with massive surveys, often in synergy with each other and in tandem with the more traditional observatories. We argue that these surveys are most productive and have the greatest impact when the data from the surveys are made public in a timely manner. The rise of the 'survey astronomer' is a substantial change in the demographics of our field; one of the most important challenges of the next decade is to find ways to recognize the intellectual contributions of those who work on the infrastructure of surveys (hardware, software, survey planning and operations, and databases/data distribution), and to make career paths to allow them to thrive.

The U.S. Department of Energy?s Wind Powering America Program is committed to educating state-level policymakers and other stakeholders about the economic, CO2 emissions, and water conservation impacts of wind power. This analysis highlights the expected impacts of 1000 MW of wind power in Tennessee. Although construction and operation of 1000 MW of wind power is a significant effort, seven states have already reached the 1000-MW mark. We forecast the cumulative economic benefits from 1000 MW of development in Tennessee to be $1.2 billion, annual CO2 reductions are estimated at 2.4 million tons, and annual water savings are 1,321 million gallons.

In this work, we establish an on-line optimization framework to exploit detailed weather forecast information in the operation of integrated energy systems, such as buildings and photovoltaic/wind hybrid systems. We first discuss how the use of traditional reactive operation strategies that neglect the future evolution of the ambient conditions can translate in high operating costs. To overcome this problem, we propose the use of a supervisory dynamic optimization strategy that can lead to more proactive and cost-effective operations. The strategy is based on the solution of a receding-horizon stochastic dynamic optimization problem. This permits the direct incorporation of economic objectives, statistical forecast information, and operational constraints. To obtain the weather forecast information, we employ a state-of-the-art forecasting model initialized with real meteorological data. The statistical ambient information is obtained from a set of realizations generated by the weather model executed in an operational setting. We present proof-of-concept simulation studies to demonstrate that the proposed framework can lead to significant savings (more than 18% reduction) in operating costs.

General definitions of horizontal and vertical amplitudes for linear coupled motion are developed from the normal form of the one-turn matrix. This leads to the identification of conditions on the matrix that give rise to the linear coupling sum and difference resonances. The correspondence with the standard hamiltonian treatment of the resonances is discussed.

The U.S. Department of Energy?s Wind Powering America Program is committed to educating state-level policymakers and other stakeholders about the economic, CO2 emissions, and water conservation impacts of wind power. This analysis highlights the expected impacts of 1000 MW of wind power in Massachusetts. Although construction and operation of 1000 MW of wind power is a significant effort, seven states have already reached the 1000-MW mark. We forecast the cumulative economic benefits from 1000 MW of development in Massachusetts to be $1.4 billion, annual CO2 reductions are estimated at 2.6 million tons, and annual water savings are 1,293 million gallons.

Global Solar's CIGS manufacturing cost has decreased by increased automation, higher materials utilization, and greater capacity with higher rates in all tools.

Many existing proposals either lack sufficient concreteness to make carbon capture and geological sequestration (CCGS) operational or fail to focus on a comprehensive, long term framework for its regulation, thus failing to account adequately for the urgency of the issue, the need to develop immediate experience with large scale demonstration projects, or the financial and other incentives required to launch early demonstration projects. We aim to help fill this void by proposing a roadmap to commercial deployment of CCGS in the United States.This roadmap focuses on the legal and financial incentives necessary for rapid demonstration of geological sequestration in the absence of national restrictions on CO2 emissions. It weaves together existing federal programs and financing opportunities into a set of recommendations for achieving commercial viability of geological sequestration.