Reactor physics studies in the Engineering Mockup Critical (EMC) assembly of the Fast Test Reactor (FTR) facility are reported. The study included measurements of the neutron spectrum, Doppler effect, sodium-void worth, reaction rates, subassembly worths, material replacement worths, and FTR control, safety and shim rod worths. Each of these physics studies were made in a clean plutonium (low-Pu-240) fuel composition environment and a dirty plutonium (high-Pu-240) fuel composition environment. The fuel studies were in support of determining the attendant effects of operation and safety of utilizing Light Water Reactor (LWR) plutonium fuel in the FTR. Comparison of the measured and calculated results are presented.

The germanium-lithium argon scanning system (GLASS) was installed in EBR-II to monitor and analyze the gamma activity of the reactor cover gas and the reactor building air. GLASS has the capability to identify and measure 20 or more gamma peaks. Applied to the reactor cover gas, this capability has proven useful in identifying the source of fission-gas leakage from fuel elements. The gamma-peak data can clearly distinguish a carbide-fuel source from an oxide-fuel source and can often help distinguish and oxide-fuel source from a metallic-fuel source.

Quarterly report describing the research and management efforts of the program at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) on lithium/metal sulfide batteries during the period April-June 1976. These batteries are being developed for energy storage on utility networks and for electric-vehicle propulsion. The present cells, which operate at 400-4503C, are vertically oriented, prismatic cells with a central positive electrode of FeS or FeS2, two facing negative electrodes of lithium-aluminum alloy, and an electrolyte of molten LiCl-KCl.

The present cladding-relocation model was applied to L- and R-series test conditions in which the pin bundles were small. The results were consistent with the experimental observation and with SAS calculations. One of the key assumptions of this model was that total pressure drop over the voided channel could be supplied as a boundary condition for the vapor-momentum equation. The parametric study of the total pressure drop was carefully performed for the FFTF-type subassembly, and the oscillatory pressure effect to the streaming sodium vapor generated by the chugging of the lower level of liquid sodium was also investigated.

Report describing the formulation of a finite-element procedure for the implicit transient and static analysis of plate/shell-type structure sin three-dimensional space. It includes a development of the analysis, sample results, a summary, and related appendices.