This report documents a creep analysis to estimate the maximum acceptable temperature for spent aluminum clad nuclear fuels in dry storage.

This thesis presents a transient heat transfer analysis to model the heat transfer in the Pd/k packed column, and the impact of adding metallic foam.

This report discusses the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations bill, which includes funding for agencies and programs in four separate federal departments as well as numerous smaller agencies and diverse programs.

Wastewaters from coal-conversion processes contain phenolic compounds in appreciable concentrations. These compounds need to be removed so that the water can be discharged or re-used. Catalytic oxidation in supercritical water is one potential means of treating coal-conversion wastewaters, and this project examined the reactions of phenol over different heterogeneous oxidation catalysts in supercritical water. More specifically, the authors examined the oxidation of phenol over a commercial catalyst and over bulk MnO{sub 2}, bulk TiO{sub 2}, and CuO supported on Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}. They used phenol as the model pollutant because it is ubiquitous in coal-conversion wastewaters and there is a large database for non-catalytic supercritical water oxidation (SCWO) with which they can contrast results from catalytic SCWO. The overall objective of this research project is to obtain the reaction engineering information required to evaluate the utility of catalytic supercritical water oxidation for treating wastes arising from coal conversion processes. All four materials were active for catalytic supercritical water oxidation. Indeed, all four materials produced phenol conversions and CO{sub 2} yields in excess of those obtained from purely homogeneous, uncatalyzed oxidation reactions. The commercial catalyst was so active that the authors could not reliably measure reaction rates that were not limited …

This document provides the detailed accident analysis to support HNF-3553, Annex B, Spent Nuclear Fuel Project Final Safety Analysis Report, ''Cold Vacuum Drying Facility Final Safety Analysis Report (FSAR).'' All assumptions, parameters and models used to provide the analysis of the design basis accidents are documented to support the conclusions in the FSAR.

This report describes the methodology used in conducting the Cold Vacuum Drying Facility (CVDF) hazard Analysis to support the CVDF Final Safety Analysis Report and documents the results. The hazard analysis was performed in accordance with DOE-STD-3009-94, ''Preparation Guide for US. Department of Energy Nonreactor Nuclear Facility Safety Analysis Reports,'' and implements the requirements of DOE Order 5480.23, ''Nuclear Safety Analysis Reports.''

This criticality evaluation is for Spent N Reactor fuel unloaded from the existing canisters in both KE and KW Basins, and loaded into multiple canister overpack (MCO) containers with specially built baskets containing a maximum of either 54 Mark IV or 48 Mark IA fuel assemblies. The criticality evaluations include loading baskets into the cask-MCO, operation at the Cold Vacuum Drying Facility,a nd storage in the Canister Storage Building. Many conservatisms have been built into this analysis, the primary one being the selection of the K{sub eff} = 0.95 criticality safety limit. This revision incorporates the analyses for the sampling/weld station in the Canister Storage Building and additional analysis of the MCO during the draining at CVDF. Additional discussion of the scrap basket model was added to show why the addition of copper divider plates was not included in the models.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Department of Defense's (DOD) management of identical repairable parts used by more than one DOD component, focusing on: (1) DOD's progress in correcting problems in the management of identical parts; and (2) opportunities to improve management of these parts."

In August 1999, a workshop was held at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory to discuss the effects of crust ingestion on mixer pump performance in Hanford Waste Tank 241-SY-101. The main purpose of the workshop was to evaluate the potential for crust ingestion to degrade mixing and/or damage the mixer pump. The need for a previously determined 12-inch separation between the top of the mixer pump inlet and the crust base was evaluated. Participants included a representative from the pump manufacturer, an internationally known expert in centrifugal pump theory, Hanford scientists and engineers, and operational specialists representing relevant fields of expertise. The workshop focused on developing an understanding of the pump design, addressing the physics of entrainment of solids and gases into the pump, and assessing the effects of solids and gases on pump performance. The major conclusions are summarized as follows: (1) Entrainment of a moderate amount of solids or gas from the crust should not damage the pump or reduce its lifetime, though mixing effectiveness will be somewhat reduced. (2) Air binding should not damage the pump. Vibrations due to ingestion of gas, solids, and objects potentially could cause radial loads that might reduce the lifetime of bearings and …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the Food Stamp Program, focusing on: (1) the measures used by the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to assess states' requests for waivers to the work requirement for able-bodied adults without dependents; (2) how states have used the waiver provision; and (3) whether USDA and states considered the availability of employment in adjacent areas when deciding which areas to include in a waiver."

The objective of the current work was to investigate the oxidation reactivity of fly ash carbons, using thermogravimetric analysis techniques. Good measures of the oxidation reactivity of fly ash carbon were the critical temperature (T{sub cr}) and the late burnout temperature (T{sub late}). The lower the critical temperature of the fly ash carbon, the more reactive the sample. By contrast, the higher T{sub late}, the less reactive the fly ash carbon. The difference between T{sub cr} and T{sub late} provided information about the reactivity distribution and was mainly dependent on fly ash carbon content (Loss-On-Ignition (LOI)). Fly ash carbons having different origins, some from lower rank coals and some from higher rank coals had slightly different reactivities. Class C fly ash carbons from low rank coals were more reactive than the typical class F fly ash carbons from higher rank coals. The reactivity parameters did not, however, provide any additional ability to predict the suitability of a given ash for use in concrete.

This report describes an irradiation test designed to investigate the suitability of uranium as a graphite isotope ratio method (GIRM) low fluence indicator. GIRM is a demonstrated concept that gives a graphite-moderated reactor's lifetime production based on measuring changes in the isotopic ratio of elements known to exist in trace quantities within reactor-grade graphite. Appendix I of this report provides a tutorial on the GIRM concept.

This document will be a useful reference for those engaged in groundwater protection and management. This document presents a great deal of detail while still addressing the larger issues.

Dr. Kirk Yeager and Mr. Marvin Banks from Energetic Material Research and Technology Center (EMRTC) evaluated the Savannah River Site (SRS) efforts in the Dry Sludge program. They evaluated four program areas: energetic material formation, stability, initiation, and propagation. The panel evaluation included a site visit (July 13, 1999 and July 14, 1999) as well as a review of various reports and presentations by researchers involved in the program.

The results to date on the treatability study of the PSVE system at the MetLab of the Savannah River Site (SRS) indicate the technology is performing well. Well concentrations are decreasing and contour maps of the vadose zone soil gas plume show a decrease in the extent of the plume. In the 18 months of operation approximately 200 pounds of chlorinated organic contaminants have been removed by natural barometric pumping of wells fitted with BaroBall valves (low pressure check valves). The mass removal estimates are approximate since the flow rates are estimated, the concentration data is based on exponential fits of a limited data set, and the concentration data is normalized to the average CO2.The concentration values presented in this report should be taken as the general trend or order of magnitude of concentration until longer-term data is collected. These trends are of exponentially decreasing concentration showing the same characteristics as the concentration trends at the SRS Miscellaneous Chemical Basin after three years of PSVE (Riha et. al., 1999).

Since late 1997, the floating crust layer in Hanford Tank 241-SY-101 (SY-101) has grown about two meters by gas accumulation. To reverse crust growth and reduce its retained gas volume, the waste in SY-101 will be diluted by transferring at least 300,000 gal of waste out of the tank and replacing it with water. In the fall of 1999, approximately 100,000 gal of this waste will be transferred into Tank SY-102; within a few days of that initial transfer, approximately 100,000 gal of water will be added to SY-101. This initial back-dilution is being planned to ensure that the base of the floating crust layer will be lifted away from the mixer pump inlet with minimal effect on the crust itself. The concern is that the added water will pool under the crust, so the resulting fluid mixture will be too light to lift the crust away from the mixer pump and dissolution at the crust base could cause unwanted gas release. To ensure sufficient mixing to prevent such stratification, water will be added near the tank bottom either through an existing sparge ring on the base of the mixer pump or through the dilution line at the inlet of …

This report describes research performed by the University of Florida during Phase 2 of this subcontract. First, to study CIGS, researchers adapted a contactless, nondestructive technique previously developed for measuring photogenerated excess carrier lifetimes in SOI wafers. This dual-beam optical modulation (DBOM) technique was used to investigate the differences between three alternative methods of depositing CdS (conventional chemical-bath deposition [CBD], metal-organic chemical vapor deposition [MOCVD], and sputtering). Second, a critical assessment of the Cu-In-Se thermochemical and phase diagram data using standard CALPHAD procedures is being performed. The outcome of this research will produce useful information on equilibrium vapor compositions (required annealing ambients, Sex fluxes from effusion cells), phase diagrams (conditions for melt-assisted growth), chemical potentials (driving forces for diffusion and chemical reactions), and consistent solution models (extents of solid solutions and extending phase diagrams). Third, an integrated facility to fabricate CIS PV devices was established that includes migration-enhanced epitaxy (MEE) for deposition of CIS, a rapid thermal processing furnace for absorber film formation, sputtering of ZnO, CBD or MOCVD of CdS, metallization, and pattern definition.

The authors studied the properties of mixed lanthanide-alumino-borosilicate glasses. Fifty-five glasses were designed to augment a previous, Phase I, study by systematically varying the composition of Ln{sub 2}O{sub 3} and the concentrations of Ln{sub 2}O{sub 3}, SiO{sub 2}, B{sub 2}O{sub 3}, Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}, and SrO in glass. These glasses were designed and fabricated at the Savannah River Technology Center and tested at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. The properties measured include the high-temperature viscosity ({eta}) as a function of temperature (T) and the liquidus temperature (T{sub L}) of Phase II test glasses.

Photovoltaics International, LLC (PVI), is improving the manufacturing of the Powergrid{trademark} under the Photovoltaic Manufacturing Technology (PVMaT) program in five basic areas: development of an advanced, state-of-the-art lens extrusion system; development of an advanced, state-of-the-art module side extrusion system; development of a second generation automated receiver assembly station; development of low-cost roll-formed steel panel frame members; and development of an automated module assembly process with low usage of volatile organic compounds and hazardous materials. The results of the program were as follows: (1) Manufacturing improvements have led to dramatic improvements in performance, quality, durability and cost. (2) The first ever ethylene vinyl acetate encapsulation system for photovoltaic concentrators was developed, thereby eliminating volatile organic compounds and hazardous materials in the encapsulation process. (3) An in-house extrusion system was developed that produces the highest quality cell assemblies at low labor cost. (4) An advanced automated cell assembly station was developed that produces quality cell assemblies at low labor cost. (5) Solvents have been eliminated in the module assembly eliminating volatile organic compounds and hazardous materials. (6) Roll formed steel panel frame members have been introduced to production that have dramatically reduced cost. (7) A snap-together module assembly has been developed that …

The primary objectives of this project are to learn how to plan and execute the Technology Scanning and Assessment (TSA) approach by conducting a project and to be able to provide the approach as a capability to the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (ChNPP) and potentially elsewhere. A secondary objective is to learn specifics about decommissioning and in particular about radiological surveying to be performed prior to decommissioning to help ChNPP decision makers. TSA is a multi-faceted capability that monitors and analyzes scientific, technical, regulatory, and business factors and trends for decision makers and company leaders. It is a management tool where information is systematically gathered, analyzed, and used in business planning and decision making. It helps managers by organizing the flow of critical information and provides managers with information they can act upon. The focus of this TSA project is on radiological surveying with the target being ChNPP's Unit 1. This reactor was stopped on November 30, 1996. At this time, Ukraine failed to have a regulatory basis to provide guidelines for nuclear site decommissioning. This situation has not changed as of today. A number of documents have been prepared to become a basis for a combined study of the …

The Hanford Site 200 Area Effluent Treatment Facility (ETF) processes contaminated liquids derived from Hanford Site facilities. The clean water generated by these processes is occasionally enriched in tritium and is discharged to the 200 Area State Approved Land Disposal Site (SALDS). Groundwater monitoring for tritium and other constituents is required by the state-issued permit at 21 wells surrounding the facility. During FY 1999, average tritium activities in most wells declined from average activities in 1998. The exception was deep well 69948-77C, where tritium results were at an all-time high (77,000 pCi/L) as a result of the delayed penetration of effluent deeper into the aquifer. Of the 12 constituents with permit enforcement limits, which are monitored in SALDS proximal wells, all were within limits during FY 1999. Water level measurements in nearby wells indicate that a small hydraulic mound exists around the SALDS facility as a result of discharges. This feature is directing groundwater flow radially outward a short distance before the regional northeasterly flow predominates. Evaluation of this condition indicates that the network is currently adequate for tracking potential effects of the SALDS on the groundwater. Recommendations include the discontinuation of ammonia, benzene, tetrahydrofuran, and acetone from the regular …

The engineering viability of disposal of aluminum-clad, aluminum-based spent nuclear fuel in a geologic repository requires a thermal analysis to provide the temperature history of the waste form.

This work is performed in collaboration with RL37WT31-C and ID77WT31-B. During the first two years of radioactive operation of the DWPF process, several areas for improvement in melter design have been identified. The continuing scope of this task is to address performance limitations and deficiencies identified by the user. SRS will design and test several configurations of the melter pour spout and associated equipment to improve consistency of performance and recommend design improvements.

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