Engineered surface barriers are recognized as a remedial alternative to the removal, treatment and disposal of near-surface contaminants at a variety of waste sites within the DOE complex. One issue impacting their acceptance by stakeholders the use of limited data to predict long-term performance. In 1994, a 2-ha multi-component barrier was constructed over an existing waste disposal site at Hanford using natural materials. Monitoring has been almost continuous for the last 15 yrs and has focused on barrier stability, vegetative cover, plant and animal intrusion, and the components of the water balance, including precipitation, runoff, storage, drainage, and percolation. The total precipitation received from October 1994 through August 2008 was 3311 mm on the northern half (formerly irrigated), and 2638 mm on the southern, non-irrigated half. Water storage in the fine-soil layer shows a cyclic pattern, increasing in the winter and decreasing in the spring and summer to a lower limit of around 100 mm, regardless of precipitation, in response to evapotranspiration. Topographic surveys show the barrier and side slopes to be stable and the pea-gravel admix has proven effective in minimizing erosion through the creation of a desert pavement during deflationary periods. Three runoff events have been observed but …

Annual monitoring in support of the Fluor Daniel Hanford Company (Fluor) Mitigation Action Plan (MAP) for Project L-325, Electrical Utility Upgrades was conducted in June 2009. MAP guidelines defined mitigation success for this project as 3000 established sagebrush transplants on a 4.5 ha mitigation site after five monitoring years. Annual monitoring results suggest that an estimated 2130 sagebrush transplants currently grow on the site. Additional activities in support of this project included gathering sagebrush seed and securing a local grower to produce between 2250 and 2500 10-in3 tublings for outplanting during the early winter months of FY2010. If the minimum number of seedlings grown for this planting meets quality specifications, and planting conditions are favorable, conservative survival estimates indicate the habitat mitigation goals outlined in the MAP will be met in FY2014.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) commitment to assuring the health and safety of its workers includes the conduct of epidemiologic surveillance activities that provide an early warning system for health problems among workers. The Illness and Injury Surveillance Program monitors illnesses and health conditions that result in an absence of workdays, occupational injuries and illnesses, and disabilities and deaths among current workers.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) commitment to assuring the health and safety of its workers includes the conduct of epidemiologic surveillance activities that provide an early warning system for health problems among workers. The Illness and Injury Surveillance Program monitors illnesses and health conditions that result in an absence of workdays, occupational injuries and illnesses, and disabilities and deaths among current workers.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) commitment to assuring the health and safety of its workers includes the conduct of epidemiologic surveillance activities that provide an early warning system for health problems among workers. The Illness and Injury Surveillance Program monitors illnesses and health conditions that result in an absence of workdays, occupational injuries and illnesses, and disabilities and deaths among current workers.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) commitment to assuring the health and safety of its workers includes the conduct of epidemiologic surveillance activities that provide an early warning system for health problems among workers. The Illness and Injury Surveillance Program monitors illnesses and health conditions that result in an absence of workdays, occupational injuries and illnesses, and disabilities and deaths among current workers.

The U. S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Environmental Management (EM) has the responsibility for cleaning up 60 sites in 22 states that were associated with the legacy of the nation's nuclear weapons program and other research and development activities. These sites are unique and many of the technologies needed to successfully disposition the associated wastes have yet to be developed or would require significant re-engineering to be adapted for future EM cleanup efforts. In 2008, the DOE-EM Engineering and Technology Program (EM-22) released the Engineering and Technology Roadmap in response to Congressional direction and the need to focus on longer term activities required for the completion of the aforementioned cleanup program. One of the strategic initiatives included in the Roadmap was to enhance long term performance monitoring as defined by 'Develop and deploy cost effective long-term strategies and technologies to monitor closure sites (including soil, groundwater, and surface water) with multiple contaminants (organics, metals and radionuclides) to verify integrated long-term cleanup performance'. To support this long-term monitoring (LTM) strategic initiative, EM 22 and the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) organized and held an interactive symposia, known as the 2009 DOE-EM Long-Term Monitoring Technical Forum, to define and prioritize …

This document details the results of revegetation and mitigation monitoring conducted in 2009, including 25 revegetation/restoration projects, one revegetation/mitigation project, and three bat mitigation projects.

The National Compact Stellarator Experiment (NCSX) was a collaborative effort between ORNL and PPPL. PPPL provided the assembly techniques with guidance from ORNL to meet design criteria. The individual vacuum vessel segments, modular coils, trim coils, and toroidal field coils components were delivered to the Field Period Assembly (FPA) crew who then would complete the component assemblies and then assemble the final three field period assemblies, each consisting of two sets of three modular coils assembled over a 120o vacuum vessel segment with the trim coils and toroidal field coils providing the outer layer. The requirements for positioning the modular coils were found to be most demanding. The assembly tolerances required for accurate positioning of the field coil windings in order to generate sufficiently accurate magnetic fields strained state of the art techniques in metrology and alignment and required constant monitoring of assembly steps with laser trackers, measurement arms, and photogrammetry. The FPA activities were being performed concurrently while engineering challenges were being resolved. For example, it was determined that high friction electrically isolated shims were needed between the modular coil interface joints and low distortion welding was required in the nose region of those joints. This took months of …

Experiments and calculations were conducted with a 0.13 mm fine wire thermocouple within a naturally-aspirated Gill radiation shield to assess and improve the accuracy of air temperature measurements without the use of mechanical aspiration, wind speed or radiation measurements. It was found that this thermocouple measured the air temperature with root-mean-square errors of 0.35 K within the Gill shield without correction. A linear temperature correction was evaluated based on the difference between the interior plate and thermocouple temperatures. This correction was found to be relatively insensitive to shield design and yielded an error of 0.16 K for combined day and night observations. The correction was reliable in the daytime when the wind speed usually exceeds 1 m s{sup -1} but occasionally performed poorly at night during very light winds. Inspection of the standard deviation in the thermocouple wire temperature identified these periods but did not unambiguously locate the most serious events. However, estimates of sensor accuracy during these periods is complicated by the much larger sampling volume of the mechanically-aspirated sensor compared with the naturally-aspirated sensor and the presence of significant near surface temperature gradients. The root-mean-square errors therefore are upper limits to the aspiration error since they include intrinsic …

This paper describes an immersed boundary method (IBM) that facilitates the explicit resolution of complex terrain within the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. Two different interpolation methods, trilinear and inverse distance weighting, are used at the core of the IBM algorithm. Functional aspects of the algorithm's implementation and the accuracy of results are considered. Simulations of flow over a three-dimensional hill with shallow terrain slopes are preformed with both WRF's native terrain-following coordinate and with both IB methods. Comparisons of flow fields from the three simulations show excellent agreement, indicating that both IB methods produce accurate results. However, when ease of implementation is considered, inverse distance weighting is superior. Furthermore, inverse distance weighting is shown to be more adept at handling highly complex urban terrain, where the trilinear interpolation algorithm breaks down. This capability is demonstrated by using the inverse distance weighting core of the IBM to model atmospheric flow in downtown Oklahoma City.

The purpose of this report is to provide a concise but comprehensive overview of Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Climate Research Facility instrumentation status. The report is divided into the following five sections: (1) new instrumentation in the process of being acquired and deployed, (2) field campaigns, (3) existing instrumentation and progress on improvements or upgrades, (4) proposed future instrumentation, and (5) Small Business Innovation Research instrument development.

The solubility of actinides in the +3 oxidation state is an important input into the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) performance assessment (PA) models that calculate potential actinide release from the WIPP repository. In this context, the solubility of neodymium(III) was determined as a function of pH, carbonate concentration, and WIPP brine composition. Additionally, we conducted a literature review on the solubility of +3 actinides under WIPP-related conditions. Neodymium(III) was used as a redox-invariant analog for the +3 oxidation state of americium and plutonium, which is the oxidation state that accounts for over 90% of the potential release from the WIPP through the dissolved brine release (DBR) mechanism, based on current WIPP performance assessment assumptions. These solubility data extend past studies to brine compositions that are more WIPP-relevant and cover a broader range of experimental conditions than past studies.

Autoignition chemistry is central to predictive modeling of many advanced engine designs that combine high efficiency and low inherent pollutant emissions. This chemistry, and especially its pressure dependence, is poorly known for fuels derived from heavy petroleum and for biofuels, both of which are becoming increasingly prominent in the nation's fuel stream. We have investigated the pressure dependence of key ignition reactions for a series of molecules representative of non-traditional and alternative fuels. These investigations combined experimental characterization of hydroxyl radical production in well-controlled photolytically initiated oxidation and a hybrid modeling strategy that linked detailed quantum chemistry and computational kinetics of critical reactions with rate-equation models of the global chemical system. Comprehensive mechanisms for autoignition generally ignore the pressure dependence of branching fractions in the important alkyl + O{sub 2} reaction systems; however we have demonstrated that pressure-dependent 'formally direct' pathways persist at in-cylinder pressures.

The Stockpile Stewardship Program (SSP) is a single, highly integrated technical program for maintaining the surety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile. The SSP uses past nuclear test data along with current and future non-nuclear test data, computational modeling and simulation, and experimental facilities to advance understanding of nuclear weapons. It includes stockpile surveillance, experimental research, development and engineering (D&E) programs, and an appropriately scaled production capability to support stockpile requirements. This integrated national program requires the continued use of current facilities and programs along with new experimental facilities and computational enhancements to support these programs. The Advanced Simulation and Computing Program (ASC) is a cornerstone of the SSP, providing simulation capabilities and computational resources to support the annual stockpile assessment and certification, to study advanced nuclear weapons design and manufacturing processes, to analyze accident scenarios and weapons aging, and to provide the tools to enable stockpile Life Extension Programs (LEPs) and the resolution of Significant Finding Investigations (SFIs). This requires a balanced resource, including technical staff, hardware, simulation software, and computer science solutions. In its first decade, the ASC strategy focused on demonstrating simulation capabilities of unprecedented scale in three spatial dimensions. In its second decade, ASC is …

This report describes the background and framework for both organizing the discussion and providing information on the potential for nuclear energy R&D to develop alternative nuclear fuel cycles that would address the issues with the current implementations of nuclear power, including nuclear waste disposal, proliferation risk, safety, security, economics, and sustainability. The disposition of used fuel is the cause of many of the concerns, and the possible approaches to used fuel management identify a number of basic technology areas that need to be considered. The basic science in each of the technology areas is discussed, emphasizing what science is currently available, where scientific knowledge may be insufficient, and especially to identify specific areas where transformational discoveries may allow achievement of performance goals not currently attainable. These discussions lead to the wide range of technical options that have been the basis for past and current research and development on advanced nuclear fuel cycles in the United States. The results of this work are then briefly reviewed to show the extent to which such approaches are capable of addressing the issues with nuclear power, the potential for moving further, and the inherent limitations.

This report was prepared to talk about Air Replacement Testing for the 9975 Primary Containment Vessel with Food Pack and Hex Can Configurations.

We have carried out 2D simulations of three dense plasma focus (DPF) devices using the ALEGRA-HEDP code and validated the results against experiments. The three devices included two Mather-type machines described by Bernard et. al. and the Tallboy device currently in operation at NSTec in North Las Vegas. We present simulation results and compare to detailed plasma measurements for one Bernard device and to current and neutron yields for all three. We also describe a new ALEGRA capability to import data from particle-in-cell calculations of initial gas breakdown, which will allow the first ever simulations of DPF operation from the beginning of the voltage discharge to the pinch phase for arbitrary operating conditions and without assumptions about the early sheath structure. The next step in understanding DPF pinch physics must be three-dimensional modeling of conditions going into the pinch, and we have just launched our first 3D simulation of the best-diagnosed Bernard device.

Much of the complexity in current AFCI proposals is driven by the need to separate the minor actinides from the lanthanides. Partitioning and recycling Am, but not Cm, would allow for significant simplification because Am has redox chemistry that may be exploited while Cm does not. Here, we have explored methods based on higher oxidation states of Am (AmV and AmVI) to partition Am from the lanthanides. In a separate but related approach we have also initiated an investigation of the utility of TRUEX Am extraction from thiocyanate solution. The stripping of loaded TRUEX by Am oxidation or SCN- has not yet proved successful; however, the partitioning of inextractable AmV by TRUEX shows promise.

This report addresses the analysis of the reactivity of RadPro solution with cotton rags.

We extend our earlier model for Rayleigh-Taylor and Richtmyer-Meshkov instabilities to the more general class of hydrodynamic instabilities driven by a time-dependent acceleration g(t) . Explicit analytic solutions for linear as well as nonlinear amplitudes are obtained for several g(t)'s by solving a Schroedinger-like equation d{sup 2}{eta}/dt{sup 2} - g(t)kA{eta} = 0 where A is the Atwood number and k is the wavenumber of the perturbation amplitude {eta}(t). In our model a simple transformation k {yields} k{sub L} and A {yields} A{sub L} connects the linear to the nonlinear amplitudes: {eta}{sup nonlinear} (k,A) {approx} (1/k{sub L})ln{eta}{sup linear} (k{sub L}, A{sub L}). The model is found to be in very good agreement with direct numerical simulations. Bubble amplitudes for a variety of accelerations are seen to scale with s defined by s = {integral} {radical}g(t)dt, while spike amplitudes prefer scaling with displacement {Delta}x = {integral}[{integral}g(t)dt]dt.

Electron-beam studies of extraterrestrial materials with significantly improved spatial resolution, energy resolution and sensitivity are enabled using a 300 keV SuperSTEM scanning transmission electron microscope with a monochromator and two spherical aberration correctors. The improved technical capabilities enable analyses previously not possible. Mineral structures can be directly imaged and analyzed with single-atomic-column resolution, liquids and implanted gases can be detected, and UV-VIS optical properties can be measured. Detection limits for minor/trace elements in thin (<100 nm thick) specimens are improved such that quantitative measurements of some extend to the sub-500 ppm level. Electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) can be carried out with 0.10-0.20 eV energy resolution and atomic-scale spatial resolution such that variations in oxidation state from one atomic column to another can be detected. Petrographic mapping is extended down to the atomic scale using energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and energy-filtered transmission electron microscopy (EFTEM) imaging. Technical capabilities and examples of the applications of SuperSTEM to extraterrestrial materials are presented, including the UV spectral properties and organic carbon K-edge fine structure of carbonaceous matter in interplanetary dust particles (IDPs), x-ray elemental maps showing the nanometer-scale distribution of carbon within GEMS (glass with embedded metal and sulfides), the first detection and quantification …

The quantum anomaly that breaks the U(1) axial symmetry of massless multi-flavored QCD leaves behind a discrete flavor-singlet chiral invariance. With massive quarks, this residual symmetry has a close connection with the strong CP-violating parameter theta. One result is that if the lightest quarks are degenerate, then a first order transition will occur when theta passes through pi. The resulting framework helps clarify when the rooting prescription for extrapolating in the number of flavors is valid.

This LDRD was a Sandia Fellowship that supported Andrea Hsu's PhD research at Texas A&M University and her work as a visitor at Sandia's Combustion Research Facility. The research project at Texas A&M University is concerned with the experimental characterization of hypersonic (Mach>5) flowfields using experimental diagnostics. This effort is part of a Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) and is a collaboration between the Chemistry and Aerospace Engineering departments. Hypersonic flight conditions often lead to a non-thermochemical equilibrium (NTE) state of air, where the timescale of reaching a single (equilibrium) Boltzmann temperature is much longer than the timescale of the flow. Certain molecular modes, such as vibrational modes, may be much more excited than the translational or rotational modes of the molecule, leading to thermal-nonequilibrium. A nontrivial amount of energy is therefore contained within the vibrational mode, and this energy cascades into the flow as thermal energy, affecting flow properties through vibrational-vibrational (V-V) and vibrational-translational (V-T) energy exchanges between the flow species. The research is a fundamental experimental study of these NTE systems and involves the application of advanced laser and optical diagnostics towards hypersonic flowfields. The research is broken down into two main categories: the application and adaptation of …