The initial Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) groundwater quality assessment report for Waste Management Area S-SX (PNNL-11810) was issued in January 1998. The report stated a plan for conducting continued assessment would be developed after addressing Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) comments on initial findings in PNNL-11810. Comments from Ecology were received by US Department of Energy, Richland Operations Office (DOE-RL) on September 24, 1998. Shortly thereafter, Ecology and DOE began dispute resolution and related negotiations about tank farm vadose issues. This led to proposed new Tri-Party Agreement milestones covering a RCRA Facility Investigation-Corrective Measures Study (RFI/CMS) of the four single-shell tank farm waste management areas that were in assessment status (Waste Management Areas B-BX-BY, S-SX, T and TX-TY). The RCRA Facility Investigation includes both subsurface (vadose zone and groundwater) and surface (waste handling facilities and grounds) characterization. Many of the Ecology comments on PNNL-11810 are more appropriate for, and in many cases are superseded by, the RFI/CMS at Waste Management Area S-SX. The proposed Tri-Party Agreement milestone changes that specify the scope and schedule for the RFI/CMS work plans (Tri-Party Agreement change number M-45-98-0) were issued for public comment in February 1999. The Tri-Party Agreement narrative indicates …

A high-speed data link that would provide dramatically faster communication from downhole instruments to the surface and back again has the potential to revolutionize deep drilling for geothermal resources through Diagnostics-While-Drilling (DWD). Many aspects of the drilling process would significantly improve if downhole and surface data were acquired and processed in real-time at the surface, and used to guide the drilling operation. Such a closed-loop, driller-in-the-loop DWD system, would complete the loop between information and control, and greatly improve the performance of drilling systems. The main focus of this program is to demonstrate the value of real-time data for improving drilling. While high-rate transfer of down-hole data to the surface has been accomplished before, insufficient emphasis has been placed on utilization of the data to tune the drilling process to demonstrate the true merit of the concept. Consequently, there has been a lack of incentive on the part of industry to develop a simple, low-cost, effective high-speed data link. Demonstration of the benefits of DWD based on a high-speed data link will convince the drilling industry and stimulate the flow of private resources into the development of an economical high-speed data link for geothermal drilling applications. Such a downhole communication …

We present a unique modeling capability to understand the global distribution of trace gases and aerosols throughout both the troposphere and stratosphere. It includes the ability to simulate tropospheric chemistry that occurs both in the gas phase as well as on the surfaces of solid particles. We have used this capability to analyze observations from particular flight campaigns as well as averaged observed data. Results show the model to accurately simulate the complex chemistry occurring near the tropopause and throughout the troposphere and stratosphere.

This Sampling and Analysis (S and A) Plan was developed for the NORM Characterization Program, and describes the information to be gained through the program, how the required information is to be collected, and the anticipated form and content of the final data. The S and A Plan provides detailed procedures describing the work to be performed, how and why the work will be performed, and who will be responsible for conducting the various aspects of the work. The S and A Plan has been prepared with input from all parties involved with the program. Where appropriate, portions of the procedures described in the S and A Plan will be field tested by personnel of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) and the Grand Junction Project Office (GJPO), as well as representatives of the cosponsor organizations prior to their use in the field.

A methodology has been established to predict the effect of atmospheric corrosion on the reliability of plastic encapsulated microelectronic (PEM) devices. New experimental techniques were developed to directly characterize the Al/Au wirebond interface where corrosion primarily occurs. A deterministic empirical model describing wirebond degradation as a function of environmental conditions was generated. To demonstrate how this model can be used to determine corrosion effects on device reliability, a numerical simulation was performed on a three-lead voltage reference device. Surface reaction rate constants, environmental variables and the defect characteristics of the encapsulant were treated as distributed parameters. A Sandia-developed analytical framework (CRAX{trademark}) was used to include uncertainty in the analysis and directly calculate reliability.

Coffinite (USiO{sub 4}) has been found in numerous sedimentary and hydrothermal environments including those considered as natural analogues of nuclear waste repositories. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and analytical electron microscopy (AEM) studies have been conducted on a uraninite sample from a U-deposit in Canada. It is observed that the uraninite (UO{sub 2+x}) is replaced by coffinite (U[SiO{sub 4}].nH{sub 2}O) and the replacing coffinite coexists with quartz. The TEM study shows {alpha}-recoil damage, lattice distortion, and low-angle boundaries among neighboring uraninite domains. Coffinitization seems more closely associated with {alpha}-recoil-damaged uraninite areas. Electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) spectrum indicates that the ratio of U(+6)U(+4) in the uraninite is about 2/3, while the coffinite is dominated by U(+4). A thermodynamic calculation indicates that coffinitization can take place most likely at temperatures below 130 C if dissolved silica concentrations are limited by amorphous silica mineral phase. In a sufficiently high silica concentration environment, coffinite can form under the oxygen fugacity of 10{sup -65}-10{sup -55} atm. The equilibrium model, however, is not able to explain the coexistence of coffinite with quartz. A kinetic model that takes account of Ostwald processes is thus proposed. The kinetic model indicates that the presence of U(+6) in uraninite and the …

Parallel microscopic experimentation (the combinatorial approach often used in solid-state science) was applied to characterize atmospheric copper corrosion behavior. Specifically, this technique permitted relative sulfidation rates to be determined for copper containing different levels of point defects and impurities (In, Al, O, and D). Corrosion studies are inherently difficult because of complex interactions between material interfaces and the environment. The combinatorial approach was demonstrated using micron-scale Cu lines that were exposed to a humid air environment containing sub-ppm levels of H{sub 2}S. The relative rate of Cu{sub 2}S growth was determined by measuring the change in resistance of the line. The data suggest that vacancy trapping by In and Al impurities slow the sulfidation rate. Increased sulfidation rates were found for samples containing excess point defects or deuterium. Furthermore, the sulfidation rate of 14 {micro}m wide Cu lines was increased above that for planar films.

Completion of the Phase III evaluation and comparison of salt disposition alternatives was supported with enhanced computer models and analysis for each case on the ''short list'' of four options. SPEEDUP(TM) models and special purpose models describing mass and energy balances and flow rates were developed and used to predict performance and production characteristics for each of the options. Results from the computational analysis were a key part of the input used to select a primary and an alternate salt disposition alternative.

A dependence of elastic response on the stress-state of a thin film has been demonstrated using the interfacial force microscope (IFM). Indentation response was measured as a function of the applied biaxial stress-state for 100 nm thick Au films. An increase in measured elastic modulus with applied compressive stress, and a decrease with applied tensile stress was observed. Measurements of elastic modulus before and after applying stress were identical indicating that the observed change in response is not due to a permanent change in film properties.

The author describes four serious defects of a widely discuss pion exchange model for interquark forces: it doesn't solve the ``spin-orbit problem'' as advertised, it fails to describe the internal structure of baryon resonances, it leads to disastrous conclusions when extended to mesons, and it is not reasonably connected to the physics of heavy-light systems.

The purpose of this effort was to demonstrate that the SFT technique, when adapted to a DWPF canister nozzle, is capable of detecting leaks not meeting the Waste Acceptance Product Specifications (WAPS) acceptance criterion.

The Black Thunder Coal Mine (BTCM) near Gillette, Wyoming was used as a test bed to determine the feasibility of detecting explosion-induced geomagnetic disturbances with ground-based induction magnetometers. Two magnetic observatories were fielded at distances of 50 km and 64 km geomagnetically north from the northernmost edge of BTCM. Each observatory consisted of three separate but mutually orthogonal magnetometers, Global Positioning System (GPS) timing, battery and solar power, a data acquisition and storage system, and a three-axis seismometer. Explosions with yields of 1 to 3 kT of TNT equivalent occur approximately every three weeks at BTCM. We hypothesize that explosion-induced acoustic waves propagate upward and interact collisionally with the ionosphere to produce ionospheric electron density (and concomitant current density) perturbations which act as sources for geomagnetic disturbances. These disturbances propagate through an ionospheric Alfven waveguide that we postulate to be leaky (due to the imperfectly conducting lower ionospheric boundary). Consequently, wave energy may be observed on the ground. We observed transient pulses, known as Q-bursts, with pulse widths about 0.5 s and with spectral energy dominated by the Schumann resonances. These resonances appear to be excited in the earth-ionosphere cavity by Alfven solitons that may have been generated by the …

This document presents standard methods to be used in the calculation of air emissions from unmonitored sources.

This report focuses Sandia National Laboratories' effort to create high-temperature logging tools for geothermal applications not requiring heat-shielding. Tool electronics can operate up to 300 C with a few limiting components operating to 250 C. Second generation electronics are needed to increase measurement accuracy and extend the operating range to 300 and then 350 C are identified. Custom development of high-temperature batteries and assembling techniques are touched on. Outcomes of this work are discussed and new directions for developing high-temperature industry are suggested.

This report provides the results of a review conducted on existing operating specifications and safety requirements and provides a summary of applicable design constraints on the Single-Shell Tank (SST) System. The SST System is required to transition from the current waste storage mission to support the Tank Waste Remediation System (TWRS) waste retrieval mission described in the Tank Waste Remediation System Mission Analysis Report (Acree 1998). The SST System is also required to support the Project Hanford Management Contract (PHMC) portions of the Waste Feed Delivery (WFD) mission. In Phase 1 the SST System will be required to retrieve waste from selected SSTs (tanks 241-C-102 and 241-C-104) for transfer to the Double-Shell Tank (DST) System (tanks 241-AZ-101,241-AY-102). The SST System will include all the systems, structures and components required to safely store, retrieve, and transfer waste in support of the TWRS mission. Operational Specification Documents (OSDs) govern operation of the existing SST System components. However, the system will be highly modified to support the TWRS mission. Therefore OSD requirements may not apply to the new system's design. This document describes the review of existing SST OSDs and provides the rationale for selecting or rejecting requirements as constraints on the SST …

This document presents a groundwater monitoring plan, under Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA) regulatory requirements found in WAC 173-303-400, and by reference, requirements in 40 CFR 265.93 (d)(6) for the 216-A-29 Ditch (A-29 Ditch) in the Hanford Site's 200 East Area. The objectives of this monitoring plan are to determine whether any hazardous constituents are detectable in the groundwater beneath the ditch. The groundwater monitoring network described in this plan includes 10 RCRA-compliant wells to monitor the aquifer in the immediate vicinity of the A-29 Ditch. Groundwater assessment activities have been conducted at the A-29 Ditch, the result of elevated specific conductivity and total organic halogens (TOX). A groundwater assessment report (Votava 1995) found that no hazardous constituents had impacted groundwater and the site returned to interim-status indicator-parameter/detection monitoring. This plan describes the process and quality objectives for conducting the indicator-parameter program. The site will be sampled semiannually for indicator parameters including pH, specific conductance, TOX, and total organic carbon. Site-specific parameters include tritium and ICP metals. These constituents, as well as anions, alkalinity, and turbidity will be sampled annually. Groundwater elevations will be recorded semiannually.

The HANSF analysis tool is an integrated model considering phenomena inside a multi-canister overpack (MCO) spent nuclear fuel container such as fuel oxidation, convective and radiative heat transfer, and the potential for fission product release. This manual reflects the HANSF version 1.3.2, a revised version of 1.3.1. HANSF 1.3.2 was written to correct minor errors and to allow modeling of condensate flow on the MCO inner surface. HANSF 1.3.2 is intended for use on personal computers such as IBM-compatible machines with Intel processors running under Lahey TI or digital Visual FORTRAN, Version 6.0, but this does not preclude operation in other environments.

This paper summarizes recent Higgs searches in p{anti p} collisions at {radical}s = 1.8 TeV from the Tevatron using Run I data. Emphasis is given to a new result from the CDF collaboration in searching for neutral minimal SUSY Higgs bosons through the four jet reaction p{anti p} {yields} b{anti b}{phi} {yields} b{anti b}b{anti b}. Both the CDF and D0 experiments have also searched for standard model as well as other non-standard Higgs signatures in the mass region below ~ 140 GeV/c² with no evidence of new physics.

During this time period, experiments were performed to study the diffusion controlled uptake of quinoline and a coal asphaltene into porous carbon catalyst pellets. Cyclohexane and toluene were used as solvents for quinoline and the coal asphaltene respectively. The experiments were performed at 27 C and 75 C, at a pressure of 250 psi (inert gas) for the quinoline/cyclohexane system. For the coal asphaltene/toluene system, experiments were performed at 27 C, also at a pressure of 250 psi. These experiments were performed in a 20 cm{sup 3} microautoclave, the use of which is advantageous since it is economical from both a chemical procurement and waste disposal standpoint due to the small quantities of solvents and catalysts used. A C++ program was written to simulate data using a mathematical model which incorporated both diffusional and adsorption mechanisms. The simulation results showed that the mathematical model satisfactorily fitted the adsorptive diffusion of quinoline and the coal asphaltene onto a porous activated carbon. For the quinoline/cyclohexane system, the adsorption constant decreased with an increase in temperature. The adsorption constant for the coal asphaltene/toluene system at 27 C was found to be much higher than that of the quinoline/cyclohexane system at the same temperature. …

Interstitial Fluid Displacement (IFD) is a new and novel method for separating cesium from saltcake waste. Hydrologic modeling of liquid flow through porous saltcake suggests that the cesium, potassium and sodium hydroxide can be separated at high recovery and low volume using IFD.

Numerical simulations of groundwater flow at Yucca Mountain, Nevada are used to investigate how faults influence groundwater flow pathways and regional-scale macrodispersion. The 3-D model has a unique grid block discretization that facilitates the accurate representation of the complex geologic structure present in faulted formations. Each hydrogeologic layer is discretized into a single layer of irregular and dipping grid blocks, and faults are discretized such that they are laterally continuous and varied in displacement varies along strike. In addition, the presence of altered fault zones is explicitly modeled, as appropriate. Simulations show that upward head gradients can be readily explained by the geometry of hydrogeologic layers, the variability of layer permeabilities, and the presence of permeable fault zones or faults with displacement only, not necessarily by upwelling from a deep aquifer. Large-scale macrodispersion results from the vertical and lateral diversion of flow near the contact of high- and low-permeability layers at faults, and from upward flow within high-permeability fault zones. Conversely, large-scale channeling can occur as a result of groundwater flow into areas with minimal fault displacement. Contaminants originating at the water table can flow in a direction significantly different from that of the water table gradient, and isolated zones …

Three bounding accidents postdated for the K West Basin integrated water treatment system are evaluated against applicable risk evaluation guidelines. The accidents are a spray leak during fuel retrieval, spray leak during backflushing, and a hydrogen explosion. Event trees and accident probabilities are estimated. In all cases, the unmitigated dose consequences are below the risk evaluation guidelines.

This document provides the current work to date on the validation of the WSRC certified MCNP-4B, and is the last stage of the WSRC Validation Plan that was drafted to guide the validation effort.

The author describes a special class of meson-like {Lambda}{sub Q} excited states and present evidence supporting the similarity of their spin-independent spectra to those of mesons. He then examine spin-dependent forces in these baryons, showing that predicted effects of spin-orbit forces are small for them for the same reason they are small for the analogous mesons: a fortuitous cancellation between large spin-orbit forces due to one-gluon-exchange and equally large inverted spin-orbit forces due to Thomas precession in the confining potential. In addition to eliminating the baryon spin-orbit puzzle in these states, this solution provides a new perspective on spin-orbit forces in all baryons.