An indirect method of laser-based equation of state studies, which utilizes shock waves generated by laser-accelerated projectiles rather than ablation shocks from direct laser irradiation of the sample under investigation, is proposed and examined theoretically. We derive simple formulas for the minimum thickness and maximum speed of laser-accelerated disks, comparing them with results of Nd-laser experiments conducted by the Naval Research Laboratory. Our calculations indicate that disks can be accelerated to velocities above 10/sup 7/ cm/s using a wide choice of laser parameters (pulse duration, energy, intensity, wavelength, etc.). The use of shorter wavelengths, e.g., a KrF(0.25 ..mu..m) laser rather than Nd (1.06 ..mu..m), allows thicker disks to be accelerated and faster velocities to be attained, approximately in the ratio (lambda/sub L/(Nd)/lambda/sub L/(KrF))/sup 1/3/ approx. = 1.6. One-dimensional Lasnex computer calculations indicate that the laser-accelerated disk constitutes a useful flyer plate even while disassembling under the force of the laser ablation shock. The calculations predict that the shockwave the projectile disk generates in a second (impact) disk located a suitable distance away has a greater amplitude than the laser shock and is considerably more steady, exhibiting little decay in propagating through the second disk.

Indoor air quality has attracted increasing attention during the past few yars. Pollutants generated from combustion, building materials, and human activities may reach significant levels in the indoor environment to produce adverse health effects. This report deals with the classes of pollutants and their sources, and the significance of reported levels, possible health effects, and control strategies in relation to tightly sealed and passive solar construction techniques. In tightly sealed homes, residential air-to-air heat exchangers, whose design and performance are discussed, offer one method of improving air quality at reasonable cost. It is recommended that further research be implemented to identify hazardous concentrations of pollutants and set standards to minimize health impacts in the search for new energy innovations.

Highlights of research progress accomplished in the Life Sciences Division during the year ending December 1980 are summarized. Reports from the following groups are included: Toxicology, Biophysics, Genetics; Environmental Pathology, Organic Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences. Individual abstracts have been prepared for 46 items for inclusion in the Energy Data Base. (RJC)

Tests performed during 1980 to determine the part-load characteristics of a pressurized fluidized-bed combustor for a combined-cycle power plant and to examine its behavior during load changing are discussed. Part-load operation was achieved by varying the bed temperature by amounts between 200 to 300/sup 0/F and the bed depth from between 9 and 10 ft at rates varying between 0.2 ft/min and 0.5 ft/min. The performance at part-load steady-state conditions and during transient conditions is reported with information on combustion efficiency (99% at full-load with 9 ft bed depth and 1650/sup 0/F bed temperature; 95% with 4 ft depth and 1390/sup 0/F); sulfur retention (95/sup 0/ at full load to 80% at low bed depth and low bed temperature); sulfur emissions (no definitive results); NO/sub x/ emissions (tendency for increase as bed temperature was reduced); alkali emissions (no bed temperature effect detected); and heat transfer. It was demonstrated that load can be altered in a rapid and controlled manner by changing combinations of bed depth temperature and pressure. The most important practical change was the reduction in O/sub 2/ concentration which occurred when the bed height was increased at a rapid rate. The extra energy required to reheat the incoming …

Several waste form options have been or are being developed for the immobilization of high-level wastes. The final selection of a waste form must take into consideration both waste form product as well as process factors. Crystallization behavior has an important role in nuclear waste form technology. For glass or vitreous waste forms, crystallization is generally controlled to a minimum by appropriate glass formulation and heat treatment schedules. With glass ceramic waste forms, crystallization is essential to convert glass products to highly crystalline waste forms with a minimum residual glass content. In the case of ceramic waste forms, additives and controlled sintering schedules are used to contain the radionuclides in specific tailored crystalline phases.

To reduce or eliminate biofouling by microorganisms it has been suggested that the seawater entering the heat exchanger be sterilized (or at least sanitized) by uv radiation at 253.7 nm. The feasibility of applying this technology to OTEC is examined. Trivial calculations based on the Lambert-Beer equation and reasonable assumptions about seawater quality and the intensity of irradiation obtainable from a uv lamp suggest seawater may be transparent enough to a collimated beam of uv light to deliver effective germicidal doses to nearly 150 cm under some conditions. However, the practical limit on the depth of effective radiation from commercial lamps is severely restricted by many factors including the natural divergence of light, absorption and scattering in the media, intensity of radiation from the light source and so forth. Even under very favorable conditions a common design allowing uv light to penetrate 30 cm of water would have to permit the water at that distance to be in contact with the light for 20 seconds or so to deliver the germicidal effect of high quality sanitization but not necessarily sterilization. Macro-fouling, which may be more severe than micro-fouling, will not be affected by uv radiation (presuming an absence of symbiotic …

Most uranium stream-sediment anomalies, probably all the major airborne radiometric highs, and areas of very low U/Th ratios calculated from ground scintillometer measurements appear to reflect an alluvial sand veneer rich in heavy minerals (principally monazite and zircon). In the most extensive exposure of the Castalia pluton at a quarry north of site D-15, quartz and quartz-feldspar veins are anomalous in both uranium (+25 ppM) and U/Th (+1.0). The area having most potential occurs in the northeasternmost portion of the Castalia SW Quadrangle. In the pegmatite-rich mixed zone of the Castalia pluton, U concentrations of up to 35.7 ppM and a U/Th ratio of 2.45 are found. Less than 0.5 miles north of this occurrence, stream-sediment sample site NCFR 048 contains 26.6 ppM U and only 11 ppM Th, 13 ppM Hf, 50 ppM Ce, and 25.3 ppM Dy. It is believed that this is one of the higher U concentrations in which so little Th, Hf, Ce, or Dy is present.

MIDAS, the Master Information and Data Acquisition System, is a computerized system being implemented on FFTF to control the work released to the plant. The purpose of this system is to demonstrate the safety enhancement provided for LMFBRs when the operator has instant recall to the status of all work released to the plant, the interrelationships between functional equipment groups in the plant, and the relationships of equipment to safety functions.

Photograph used for a story in the Daily Oklahoman newspaper. Caption: "Shattuck police dispatcher Ed Hamilton stands near the razed site of farm house he owned in which Glantz held regular gambling games in the early 1960s."

Photograph used for a story in the Oklahoma Times newspaper. Caption: "Tom Herron"

Photograph used for a story in the Daily Oklahoman newspaper. Caption: "Harrah Future Farmers of America member Dwayne Lee splashes his way through a state fairgrounds parking lot Tuesday after showers dumped about a half-inch of rain on the Oklahoma City area."

Photograph used for a story in the Oklahoma Times newspaper. Caption: "Arthur Horn."

Production of synthetic natural gas from gasification of biomass results in the generation of a high-strength wastewater that is difficult to treat by conventional means. This study investigated the use of wet air oxidation (WAO) as a treatment method for these wastewaters. A literature review was conducted to identify the suitability of WAO for the treatment of high-strength industrial wastewaters and to determine typical operating conditions for such treatment. Data presented in the literature showed that WAO should be suitable for treatment. Data presented in the literature showed that WAO should be suitable for treatment of biomass gasification wastewaters (BGW), and a laboratory treatability study was designed. BGW, having an initial chemical oxygen demand (COD) of 30,800 mg/1 and initial color of 183,000 APHA units, was treated in a laboratory autoclave for 20, 40, 60, 120, and 180 min at temperatures and pressures of 150/sup 0/C, 5.1 MPa (750 psi); 200/sup 0/C, 6.9 MPa (1000 psi); 250/sup 0/C, 10.3 MPa (1500 psi); and 300/sup 0/C, 13.8 MPa (2000 psi). Maximum COD removals of 0% for the 150/sup 0/C, 5.2 MPa (750 psi) runs; 40% for the 200/sup 0/C, 6.9 MPa (1000 psi) runs, 55% for the 250/sup 0/C, 10.3 MPa …

The load-following capability of fluidized bed combustion-augmented compressed air energy storage systems was evaluated. The results are presented in two parts. The first part is an Executive Summary which provides a concise overview of all major elements of the study including the conclusions, and, second, a detailed technical report describing the part-load and load following capability of both the pressurized fluid bed combustor and the entire pressurized fluid bed combustor/compressed air energy storage system. The specific tasks in this investigation were to: define the steady-state, part-load operation of the CAES open-bed PFBC; estimate the steady-state, part-load performance of the PFBC/CAES system and evaluate any possible operational constraints; simulate the performance of the PFBC/CAES system during transient operation and assess the load following capability of the system; and establish a start-up procedure for the open-bed PFBC and evaluate the impact of this procedure. The conclusions are encouraging and indicate that the open-bed PFBC/CAES power plant should provide good part-load and transient performance, and should have no major equipment-related constraints, specifically, no major problems associated with the performance or design of either the open-end PFBC or the PFBC/CAES power plant in steady-state, part-load operation are envisioned. The open-bed PFBC/CAES power plant would …

Since the LLNL one-dimensional coupled transport and chemical kinetics model of the troposphere and stratosphere was originally developed in 1972 (Chang et al., 1974), there have been many changes to the model's representation of atmospheric physical and chemical processes. A brief description is given of the current LLNL one-dimensional coupled transport and chemical kinetics model of the troposphere and stratosphere.

A tube array subjected to crossflow may become unstable by either one or both of the two basic mechanisms: velocity mechanism and displacement mechanism. The significance of these two mechanisms depends on the mass-damping parameter. The velocity mechanism is dominant for tube arrays with a low mass-damping parameter, and the displacement mechanism is dominant for tube arrays with a high mass-damping parameter. This report presents an experimental and analytical investigation of tube rows in liquid crossflow. The main objective is to verify a mathematical model and the transition between the two mechanisms at the intermediate values of mass-damping parameter. Tests of two tube rows are conducted to determine the critical flow velocity as a function of system damping. Experimental and analytical results are found to be in good agreement.

Ford, Bacon and Davis Utah Inc. has reevaluated the Lowman site in order to revise the December 1977 engineering assessment of the problems resulting from the existence of radioactive sands and residues at Lowman, Idaho. This engineering assessment has included the preparation of topographic maps, the performance of core drillings and radiometric measurements sufficient to determine areas and volumes of radioactive sands and residues and radiation exposure of individuals and nearby populations, and investigations of site hydrology and meteorology, and the evaluation and costing of alternative corrective actions. Radon gas released from the 191,000 tons of radioactive sands, residues, and contaminated soils at the Lowman site constitutes the most significant environmental impact, although windblown radioactive sands and external gamma radiation also are factors.

As part of the assessment of the potential radiological consequences of the proposed Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), this report evaluates the post-closure radiation dose commitments associated with a possible breach event which involves dissolution of the repository by groundwaters and subsequent transport of the nuclear waste through an aquifer to a well assumed to exist at a point 3 miles downstream from the repository. The concentrations of uranium and plutonium isotopes at the well are based on the nuclear waste inventory presently proposed for WIPP and basic assumptions concerning the transport of waste as well as treatment to reduce the salinity of the water. The concentrations of U-233, Pu-239, and Pu-240, all radionuclides originally emplaced as waste in the repository, would exceed current EPA drinking water limits. The concentrations of U-234, U-235, and U-236, all decay products of plutonium isotopes originally emplaced as waste, would be well below current EPA drinking water limits. The 50-year dose commitments from one year of drinking treated water contaminated with U-233 or Pu-239 and Pu-240 were found to be comparable to a one-year dose from natural background. The 50-year dose commitments from one year of drinking milk would be no more than about …

This report presents results of a Hydrogeochemical and Stream Sediment Reconnaissance (HSSR) of the Survey Pass NTMS quadrangle, Alaska. In addition to this abbreviated data release, more complete data are available to the public in machine-readable form through the Grand Junction Office Information System at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Presented in this data release are location data, field analyses, and laboratory analyses of several different sample media. For the sake of brevity, many field site observations have not been included in this volume. These data are, however, available on the magnetic tape. Appendix A describes the sample media and summarizes the analytical results for each medium. The data were subdivided by one of the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) sorting programs of Zinkl and others (1981a) into stream sediment samples. For the group which contains a sufficient number of observations, statistical tables, tables of raw data, and 1:1000000 scale maps of pertinent elements have been included in this report. In addition, maps showing results of multivariate statistical analyses have been included. Further information about the HSSR program in general, or about the LANL portion of the program in particular, can be obtained in quarterly or semiannual program progress reports on …

Differential sensitivity theory is applied to a nonlinear, three-dimensional space- and time-dependent description of the thermal-hydraulic conservation equations. The resulting sensitivity equations, which are derived using adjoint functions, can be readily utilized for input parameter sensitivity analysis of large or long-running thermal-hydraulic computer codes without any prior engineering judgement. The procedure for applying this sensitivity theory is illustrated using several classical analytical problems.

A cursory analysis of the stress history of wind turbine blades indicates that a single stress level at each wind speed does not adequately describe the blade stress history. A statistical description is required. Blade stress data collected from the DOE/ALCOA Low Cost experimental turbines indicate that the Rayleigh probability density function adequately describes the distribution of vibratory stresses at each wind speed. The Rayleigh probability density function allows the distribution of vibratory stresses to be described by the RMS of the stress vs. time signal. With the RMS stress level described for all wind speeds, the complete stress history of the turbine blades is known. Miner's linear cumulative damage rule is used as a basis for summing the fatigue damage over all operating conditions. An analytical expression is derived to predict blade fatigue life.

Activities in five major areas were undertaken during the WRIP: experiments using PNL-developed bend-over-sheave fatigue test machines to generate data on which to base a model for predicting large-diameter rope performance from that of small-diameter ropes; bend-over-sheave fatigue testing to determine differences in rope failure rates at varying rope loads; analyses to determine how wire ropes actually fail; development of a load sensor to record and quantity operational loads on drag and hoist ropes; and technology transfer activities to disseminate useful program findings to coal mine operators. Data obtained during the 6-year program support are included. High loads on wire ropes are damaging. As an adjunct, however, potentially useful countermeasures to high loads were identified. Large-diameter rope bend-over-sheave performance can be predicted from small-diameter rope test behavior, over some ranges.

This report is the first of three parts in which Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory metallographers exhibit a consolidated set of illustrations of inclusions that are seen in plutonium metal as a consequence of inherent and tramp impurities, alloy additions, and thermal or mechanical treatments. This part includes illustrations of nonmetallic and intermetallic inclusions characteristic of major impurity elements as an aid to identifying unknowns. It also describes historical aspects of the increased purity of laboratory plutonium samples, and it gives the composition of the etchant solutions and describes the etching procedure used in the preparation of each illustrated sample. 25 figures.

Reports and summaries are presented for the following: high-level waste process development; alternative waste forms; TMI zeolite vitrification demonstration program; nuclear waste materials characterization center; TRU waste immobilization; TRU waste decontamination; krypton implantation; thermal outgassing; iodine-129 fixation; NWVP off-gas analysis; monitoring and physical characterization of unsaturated zone transport; well-logging instrumentation development; verification instrument development; mobility of organic complexes of radionuclides in soils; handbook of methods to decrease the generation of low-level waste; waste management system studies; waste management safety studies; assessment of effectiveness of geologic isolation systems; waste/rock interactions technology program; high-level waste form preparation; development of backfill materials; development of structural engineered barriers; disposal charge analysis; and analysis of spent fuel policy implementation.