The Pennsylvania State University program in advanced thermally stable coal-based jet fuels has five broad objectives: (1) Development of mechanisms of degradation and solids formation; (2) Quantitative measurement of growth of sub-micrometer and micrometer-sized particles suspended in fuels during thermal stressing; (3) Characterization of carbonaceous deposits by various instrumental and microscopic methods; (4) Elucidation of the role of additives in retarding the formation of carbonaceous solids; (5) Assessment of the potential of production of high yields of cycloalkanes by direct liquefaction of coal. Future high-Mach aircraft will place severe thermal demands on jet fuels, requiring the development of novel, hybrid fuel mixtures capable of withstanding temperatures in the range of 400--500 C. In the new aircraft, jet fuel will serve as both an energy source and a heat sink for cooling the airframe, engine, and system components. The ultimate development of such advanced fuels requires a thorough understanding of the thermal decomposition behavior of jet fuels under supercritical conditions. Considering that jet fuels consist of hundreds of compounds, this task must begin with a study of the thermal degradation behavior of select model compounds under supercritical conditions. The research performed by The Pennsylvania State University was focused on five major …

The largest volume waste stream associated with oil and gas production is produced water. A survey conducted by the American Petroleum Institute estimated that 20.9 billion barrels of produced water were disposed of in 1985 (Wakim 1987). Of this total, 91% was disposed of through disposal wells or was injected for enhanced oil recovery projects. Treatment and disposal of produced water represents a significant cost for operators. A relatively new technology, downhole oil/water separators (DOWS), has been developed to reduce the cost of handling produced water. DOWS separate oil and gas from produced water at the bottom of the well and reinject some of the produced water into another formation or another horizon within the same formation, while the oil and gas are pumped to the surface. Since much of the produced water is not pumped to the surface, treated, and pumped from the surface back into a deep formation, the cost of handling produced water is greatly reduced. When DOWS are used, additional oil may be recovered as well. In cases where surface processing or disposal capacity is a limiting factor for further production within a field, the use of DOWS to dispose of some of the produced water …

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The annual report includes an overview of the IEA Hydrogen Agreement, including its guiding principles. The Chairman's report section includes highlights of the agreement for 1998. Annex reports are given on various tasks: Task 10, Photoproduction of Hydrogen, Task 11, Integrated Systems, and Task 12, Metal Hydrides and Carbon for Hydrogen Storage. Lastly, a feature article by Karsten Wurr, E3M Material Consulting, GmbH, Hamburg Germany, is included titled 'Hydrogen in Material Science and Technology: State of the Art and New Tendencies'.

Flue gas desulfurization (FGD) scrubbing technologies create several types of by-products. This project focused primarily on by-product materials obtained from what are commonly called ''dry scrubbers'' which produce a dry, solid material consisting of excess sorbent, reaction product that contains sulfate and sulfite, and coal fly ash. Prior to this project, dry FGD by-products were generally treated as solid wastes and disposed in landfills. However, landfill sites are becoming scarce and tipping fees are constantly increasing; The major objective of this project was to develop beneficial uses, via recycling, capable of providing economic benefits to both the producer and the end user of the FGD by-product. It is equally important, however, that the environmental impacts be carefully assessed so that the new uses developed are not only technically feasible but socially acceptable. Specific objectives developed for this project were derived over an 18-month period during extensive discussions with personnel from industry, regulatory agencies and research institutions. These were stated as follows: Objective 1: To characterize the material generated by dry FGD processes. Objective 2: To demonstrate the utilization of dry FGD by-product as a soil amendment on agricultural lands and on abandoned and active surface coal mines in Ohio. Objective …

New flue gas desulfurization (FGD) scrubbing technologies create a dry, solid by-product material consisting of excess sorbent, reaction product that contains sulfate and sulfite, and coal fly ash. Generally, dry FGD by-products are treated as solid wastes and disposed in landfills. However, landfill sites are becoming scarce and tipping fees are constantly increasing. Provided the environmental impacts are socially and scientifically acceptable, beneficial uses via recycling can provide economic benefits to both the producer and the end user of the FGD. A study titled ''Land Application Uses for Dry Flue Gas Desulfurization By-Products'' was initiated in December, 1990 to develop and demonstrate large volume, beneficial uses of FGD by-products. Phase 1 and Phase 2 reports have been published by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), Palo Alto, CA. Phase 3 objectives were to demonstrate, using field studies, the beneficial uses of FGD by-products (1) as an amendment material on agricultural lands and on abandoned surface coal mine land, (2) as an engineering material for soil stabilization and raid repair, and (3) to assess the environmental and economic impacts of such beneficial uses. Application of dry FGD by-product to three soils in place of agricultural limestone increased alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) …

Through the National Governors' Association (NGA) project ''Critical Issues Related to Radioactive Waste and Materials Disposition Involving DOE Facilities'' NGA brings together Governors' policy advisors, state regulators, and DOE officials to examine critical issues related to the cleanup and operation of DOE nuclear weapons and research facilities. Topics explored through this project include: (1) Decisions involving disposal of mixed, low-level, and transuranic (TRU) waste and disposition of nuclear materials; (2) Decisions involving DOE budget requests and their effect on environmental cleanup and compliance at DOE facilities; (3) Strategies to treat mixed, low-level, and transuranic (TRU) waste and their effect on individual sites in the complex; (4) Changes to the FFCA site treatment plans as a result of proposals in the Department's Accelerating Cleanup: Paths to Closure plan and contractor integration analysis; (5) Interstate waste and materials shipments; and (6) Reforms to existing RCRA and CERCLA regulations/guidance to address regulatory overlap and risks posed by DOE wastes. The overarching theme of this project is to help the Department improve coordination of its major program decisions with Governors' offices and state regulators and to ensure such decisions reflect input from these key state officials and stakeholders. This report summarizes activities conducted during …

Technology roadmapping is a needs-driven technology planning process to help identify, select, and develop technology alternatives to satisfy a set of market needs. The DOE's Office of Power Technologies' Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) Program recently sponsored a technology roadmapping workshop for parabolic trough technology. The workshop was attended by an impressive cross section of industry and research experts. The goals of the workshop were to evaluate the market potential for trough power projects, develop a better understanding of the current state of the technology, and to develop a conceptual plan for advancing the state of parabolic trough technology. This report documents and extends the roadmap that was conceptually developed during the workshop.

The primary objective of this research project is to develop heavy noble gas (krypton, xenon, and radon) detectors for (1) long-term monitoring of transuranic waste, spent fuel, and other uranium and thorium bearing wastes and (2) alpha particle air monitors that discriminate between radon emissions and other alpha emitters. A University of Cincinnati/Argonne National Laboratory (UC/ANL) Team was assembled to complete this detector development project. DOE needs that are addressed by this project include improved long-term monitoring capability and improved air monitoring capability during remedial activities. Successful development and implementation of the proposed detection systems could significantly improve current capabilities with relatively simple and inexpensive equipment.

The SNS Project has had numerous DOE/SC reviews to validate the technical baseline, management approach, cost, schedule, and Conceptual Design Report. As a result, in FY 1999 the SNS received $130 million and approval from Congress to initiate Title 1 design and construction activities. Since this funding was less than requested for FY 1999 ($157 million) and validated in previous reviews, and because of improved costing information, the SNS Project team will reassess the cost and schedule baselines in an upcoming DOE review in January 1999. In preparation for this reassessment, the SNS has initiated a value engineering process to improve the design and to recover cost and contingency. Value engineering will continue throughout the life of the project, but the results described in this report are our initial efforts.

The effects of copper on Fischer-Tropsch activity, selectivity and water-gas shift activity were studied over a wide range of syngas conversion. Three catalyst compositions were prepared for this study: (a) 100Fe/4.6Si/1.4K, (b) 100Fe/4.6Si/0.10Cu/1.4K and (c) 100Fe/4.6Si/2.0Cu/1.4K. The results are reported in Task 2. The literature review for cobalt catalysts is approximately 90% complete. Due to the size of the document, it has been submitted as a separate report labeled Task 6.

This report is a compilation of evidentiary issues and rulings from the Senate impeachment trials of Judges Nixon, Hastings, Claiborne, Ritter, Louderback, and Swayne. A discourse on what evidentiary rules and principles are applicable in impeachment trials is appended.

Groundwater modeling scenarios were performed to support the Corrective Measures Study and Interim Action Plan for the southwest plume of the Burial Ground Complex/Mixed Waste Management Facility. The modeling scenarios were designed to provide data for an economic analysis of alternatives, and subsequently evaluate the effectiveness of the selected remedial technologies for tritium reduction to Fourmile Branch. Modeling scenarios assessed include no action, vertical barriers, pump, treat, and reinject; and vertical recirculation wells.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO provided information on the Small Business Administration's (SBA), the Department of Education's, the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD), the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA), and the Department of Agriculture's (USDA) abilities to reasonably estimate the cost of their loan programs, focusing on: (1) whether they used practices identified by the Credit Reform Task Force as being effective in making these estimates; and (2) the status of the agencies' efforts to ensure that computer systems used to estimate the cost of credit programs are year 2000 compliant."

We report on the design of the rf photoinjector of the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS). The rf photoinjector is required to produce a single 150 MeV bunch of {approximately}1 nC and {approximately}100 A peak current at a repetition rate of 120 Hz with a normalized rms transverse emittance of {approximately}1 {pi} mm-mrad. The design employs a 1.6-cell S-band rf gun with an optical spot size at the cathode of a radius of {approximately}1 mm and a pulse duration with an rms sigma of {approximately}3 ps. The peak rf field at the cathode is 150 MV/m with extraction 57 {degree} ahead of the rf peak. A solenoidal field near the cathode allows the compensation of the initial emittance growth by the end of the injection linac. Spatial and temporal shaping of the laser pulse striking the cathode will reduce the compensated emittance even further. Also, to minimize the contribution of the thermal emittance from the cathode surface, while at the same time optimizing the quantum efficiency (QE), the laser wavelength for a Cu cathode should be tunable around 260 nm. Following the injection linac the geometric emittance simply damps linearly with energy growth. PARMELA simulations show that this design will …

In the first year of this program, October 1, 1997 to September 30, 1998, the Institute of Gas Technology and its sub-contractors, Stimsonite Corporation and Superior Graphite Company have achieved the objectives to develop a low-cost molded bipolar plate and to design a conceptual mass production molding line. Specifically the authors have: identified low-cost materials for a moldable graphite blend separator plate; molded complex shape bipolar separator plates with fine details; met DOE target values for electrical, chemical, and physical properties; shown the molded plates comparable to machined graphite in single fuel cells; and designed a conceptual rapid manufacturing line to manufacture the plates. All of the objectives in the first year of the project have been accomplished. The DOE cost target of $10 per kW appears to be achievable with the low cost composite materials. All of the critical electrical, chemical, and physical properties of the molded separator plates have met or exceeded the DOE specifications. Performance and endurance tests of the molded plates in single cells have shown comparable performance to state-of-art machined graphite separator plates. During this quarter, October 1 to December 31, 1998, with technical approval from DOE and 3-month interim funding, the authors made a …

We have analyzed evaporation in high-level waste emplacement boreholes in unsaturated rock. Water dripping onto waste containers is assumed to spread and form a thin film on the container surface. Evaporation will occur due to decay heat and the difference in vapor pressure between water in a flat film and water held in rock pores with curved interfaces. They study evaporation in still air in the one-dimensional system shown in Figure 1. {delta} is the liquid film thickness and L + {delta} is the gap width. They assume motionless liquid-gas interfaces, ideal gases, constant total gas pressure, no gravitational effects, and local thermodynamic equilibrium between water liquid and vapor. Vapor pressure on the water film is described by Clapeyron equation. Vapor pressure in rock pores is described by Kelvin and Clapeyron equations. They solve the coupled energy conduction in liquid and vapor. Vapor pressure on the water film is described by Clapeyron equation. Vapor pressure in rock pores is described by Kelvin and Clapeyron equations. They solve the coupled energy (conduction in liquid and conduction and convection in gas) and mass (vapor-air binary diffusion) transport equations for quasi steady state to obtain the evaporative flux as a function of time.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the Department of Defense's (DOD) Biennial Financial Management Improvement Plan to determine whether the: (1) concept of operations included the critical elements necessary for producing sustainable financial management improvement over the long term; (2) transition plan provided a strategic-level road map from the current environment to DOD's planned future financial management environment; and (3) implementation of the department's future financial management environment is practical, cost-effective, and feasible."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) revised actuarial model for veterans' compensation benefits, focusing on whether: (1) VA's revised actuarial model complies with Statement of Federal Financial Accounting Standards (SFFAS) No. 5; and (2) future liability estimates can be improved."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO evaluated the surety bond requirements for home health agencies (HHA) participating in Medicare, focusing on: (1) analyzing the key features of surety bonds that affect their costs and effect; (2) examining the Florida Medicaid program's experience with a surety bond requirements for HHAs and its relevance to the Medicare surety bond requirement; (3) reviewing the rationale for the surety bond requirements the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) selected, the cost and availability of bonds, the benefits for Medicare, and the implications of substituting a government note for a surety bond as set forth in a Department of the Treasury regulation; and (4) drawing implications from the implementation of the HHA surety bond requirement for implementing a similar surety bond provision for durable medical equipment (DME) suppliers, comprehensive outpatient rehabilitation facilities (CORF), and rehabilitation agencies."

This is a multiyear experimental research program focused on improving relevant material properties of high-T{sub c} superconductors and on development of fabrication methods that can be transferred to industry for production of commercial conductors. The development of teaming relationships through agreements with industrial partners is a key element of this program. Recent results on Y-123 bicrystals and grain boundaries, flux dissipation, novel sheathed Bi-2223 tapes, AC losses in multifilament Bi-2223 conductors, and oxygen diffusion in Bi-2223 are discussed.

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A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Price Waterhouse Coopers LLP performed a technology and performance audit and management review of the Federal Election Commission (FEC), focusing on: (1) the overall effectiveness of FEC in meeting its statutory responsibilities; (2) the appropriateness and effectiveness of the FEC organizational structure, systems, and performance measures for accomplishing its mission; (3) the adequacy of the human resource programs for obtaining and maintaining adequate staff expertise and organizational capacity; (4) the adequacy of the FEC strategic information resources management plan as a tool to increase FEC efficiency and effectiveness through the use of data-processing systems; (5) the adequacy and completeness of internal management needs, as well as the reliability of information provided by these systems; and (6) regulated customer satisfaction with the products and services provided by FEC."