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The 2000 U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) Environmental Management (EM) Waste and Materials Disposition “Transportation Challenges” report is provided as an update to or status report on the transportation “barriers” analysis conducted in October 1999 and published in November 1999 as the National Transportation Program (NTP) Transportation Challenges “Problems Tied to Disposition Pathways.” Much of the programmatic information concerning the “barriers” or, more accurately, “issues,” has not changed since the first publication; however, efforts to resolve the issues have progressed to varying degrees over the last year. This report provides a current status of efforts to eliminate or mitigate the issues, and includes new issues identified since the original analyses were conducted. Resolving these issues will increase the probability of successful waste and materials disposition and decrease the likelihood of delays due to inadequate transportation resources or infrastructure. The issues addressed in this report generally affect more than one site and more than one waste or material stream.

The continued strength of American's economy depends on the availability of affordable energy, which has long been provided by the Nations rich supplies of fossil fuels. Forecasts indicate that fossil fuels will continue to meet much of the demand for economical electricity and transportation fuels for decades to come. It is projected that natural gas, oil, and coal will supply nearly 90% of US energy in 2020, with coal fueling around 50% of the electricity. It is essential to develop ways to achieve the objectives for a cleaner environment while using these low-cost, high-value fuels. A national commitment to improved technologies--for use in the US and abroad--is the solution. The Coal and Power Systems program is responding to this commitment by offering energy solutions to advance the clean, efficient, and affordable use of the Nations abundant fossil fuel resources. These solutions include: (1) Vision 21--A multi-product, pollution-free energy plant--producing electricity, fuels, and/or industry heat--could extract 80% or more of the energy value of coal and 85% or more of the energy value of natural gas; (2) Central Power Systems--Breakthrough turbines and revolutionary new gasification technologies that burn less coal and gas to obtain energy, while reducing emissions; (3) Distributed Generation--Fuel …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) is an independent, nonpartisan agency in the legislative branch. GAO provides Congress with the best information available to help members make informed oversight, policy, and funding decisions. GAO meets Congress' information needs by (1) evaluating how government programs and policies are working, (2) auditing agency operations to determine whether federal funds are being spent efficiently and effectively, (3) investigating allegations of illegal and improper activities, and (4) issuing legal decisions and opinions. Most GAO work is done at the request of committees or members, but some reports are self-initiated or done in response to congressional mandates included in public laws or committee reports. GAO's annual index is a two-volume set. The first volume--Abstracts of Reports and Testimony: Fiscal Year 2000--contains summaries of 878 publicly released reports and testimony listed alphabetically by division or staff office. Classified reports, correspondence, and legal publications are not included. The second volume--Indexes for Reports and Testimony: Fiscal Year 2000--contains several indexes to help you locate reports and testimony by issue category, subject matter, title, or GAO witness. The annual index is also available in electronic …

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This report describes a DOE Accelerated Site Technology Deployment project being conducted at Brookhaven National Laboratory to deploy innovative, radiological, in situ analytical techniques. The technologies are being deployed in support of efforts to characterize the Brookhaven Graphite Research Reactor (BGRR) facility, which is currently undergoing decontamination and decommissioning. This report focuses on the deployment of the Canberra Industries In Situ Object Counting System (ISOCS) and assesses its data comparability to baseline methods of sampling and laboratory analysis. The battery-operated, field deployable gamma spectrometer provides traditional spectra of counts as a function of gamma energy. The spectra are then converted to radionuclide concentration by applying innovative efficiency calculations using monte carlo statistical methods and pre-defined geometry templates in the analysis software. Measurement of gamma emitting radionuclides has been accomplished during characterization of several BGRR components including the Pile Fan Sump, Above Ground Ducts, contaminated cooling fans, and graphite pile internals. Cs-137 is the predominant gamma-emitting radionuclide identified, with smaller quantities of Co-60 and Am-241 detected. The Project used the Multi-Agency Radiation Survey and Site Investigation Manual guidance and the Data Quality Objectives process to provide direction for survey planning and data quality assessment. Analytical results have been used to calculate …

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An effort is underway at Sandia National Laboratories to develop a library of algorithms to search for potential interactions between surfaces represented by analytic and discretized topological entities. This effort is also developing algorithms to determine forces due to these interactions for transient dynamics applications. This document describes the Application Programming Interface (API) for the ACME (Algorithms for Contact in a Multiphysics Environment) library.

An effort is underway at Sandia National Laboratories to develop a library of algorithms to search for potential interactions between surfaces represented by analytic and discretized topological entities. This effort is also developing algorithms to determine forces due to these interactions for transient dynamics applications. This document describes the Application Programming Interface (API) for the ACME (Algorithms for Contact in a Multiphysics Environment) library.

The principal objective of the project is to develop an acoustic probe for determining the volume fraction of particles in a flowing suspension. This will include testing the theory of acoustic wave propagation in suspensions and demonstrating the application of the probe by installing it on a flow loop through which a suspension is flowing and determining the particle volume fraction. The signal from the probe must be processed such that the noise arising from the presence of the gas bubbles, if present in the system, is removed to yield an accurate estimate of the particle volume fraction. Once the probe is developed and tested successfully at Syracuse University, it is to be installed and tested in the flow loop at Oak Ridge National Laboratories for surrogate slurries for the Hanford Nuclear site. Particular attention is to be given to testing suspensions with low particle volume fractions since slurries to be transported in nuclear waste processing will have low particle volume fractions.

Mechanically weak formations, such as chalks, high porosity sandstones, and marine sediments, pose significant problems for oil and gas operators. Problems such as compaction, subsidence, and loss of permeability can affect reservoir production operations. For example, the unexpected subsidence of the Ekofisk chalk in the North Sea required over one billion dollars to re-engineer production facilities to account for losses created during that compaction (Sulak 1991). Another problem in weak formations is that of shallow water flows (SWF). Deep water drilling operations sometimes encounter cases where the marine sediments, at shallow depths just below the seafloor, begin to uncontrollably flow up and around the drill pipe. SWF problems created a loss of $150 million for the Ursa development project in the U.S. Gulf Coast SWF (Furlow 1998a,b; 1999a,b). The goal of this project is to provide a database on both the rock mechanical properties and the geophysical properties of weak rocks and sediments. These could be used by oil and gas companies to detect, evaluate, and alleviate potential production and drilling problems. The results will be useful in, for example, pre-drill detection of events such as SWF's by allowing a correlation of seismic data (such as hazard surveys) to rock …

The oil and gas industry has encountered significant problems in the production of oil and gas from weak rocks (such as chalks and limestones) and from unconsolidated sand formations. Problems include subsidence, compaction, sand production, and catastrophic shallow water sand flows during deep water drilling. Together these cost the petroleum industry hundreds of millions of dollars annually. The goals of this first quarterly report is to document the progress on the project to provide data on the acoustic imaging and mechanical properties of soft rock and marine sediments. The project is intended to determine the geophysical (acoustic velocities) rock properties of weak, poorly cemented rocks and unconsolidated sands. In some cases these weak formations can create problems for reservoir engineers. For example, it cost Phillips Petroleum 1 billion dollars to repair of offshore production facilities damaged during the unexpected subsidence and compaction of the Ekofisk Field in the North Sea (Sulak 1991). Another example is the problem of shallow water flows (SWF) occurring in sands just below the seafloor encountered during deep water drilling operations. In these cases the unconsolidated sands uncontrollably flow up around the annulus of the borehole resulting in loss of the drill casing. The $150 million …

Highly alkaline radioactive waste tanks contain a number of transuranic species, in particular U, Np, Pu, and Am--the exact forms of which are currently unknown. Knowledge of actinide speciation under highly alkaline conditions is essential towards understanding and predicting their solubility and sorption behavior in tanks, determining whether chemical separations are needed for waste treatment, and designing separations processes. Baseline washing of tank sludges with NaOH solutions is being proposed to reduce the volume of HLW. Alkaline pretreatment of HLW will be needed to remove aluminum [as NaAl(OH){sub 4}] because it significantly reduces the HLW volume; however, aluminate [Al(OH){sub 4}{sup -}] enhances actinide solubility via an unknown mechanism. Thus, alkaline wash residues may require an additional treatment to remove actinides. The results of this research will determine the nature TRU (Np, Pu, Am) speciation with aluminate anions under alkaline, oxidizing tank-like conditions. Specific issues to be addressed include solubility of these actinides, speciation in aluminate-containing alkaline supernatants, the role of actinide redox states on solubility, and partitioning between supernatant and solid phases, including colloids. Studies will include thermodynamics, kinetics, spectroscopy, electrochemistry, etc. It is already known, for example, that certain high valent forms of NF and Pu are very soluble …

This report summarizes experimental and test results from a two year LDRD project entitled Real Time Error Correction Using Electromagnetic Bearing Spindles. This project was designed to explore various control schemes for levitating magnetic bearings with the goal of obtaining high precision location of the spindle and exceptionally high rotational speeds. As part of this work, several adaptive control schemes were devised, analyzed, and implemented on an experimental magnetic bearing system. Measured results, which indicated precision positional control of the spindle was possible, agreed reasonably well with simulations. Testing also indicated that the magnetic bearing systems were capable of very high rotational speeds but were still not immune to traditional structural dynamic limitations caused by spindle flexibility effects.

This project is being conducted to ascertain the shape of the dose response curve for neoplastic transformation in vitro over the dose range 0.0 to 10 cGy, and to determine how this depends on radiation quality and dose fractionation. Preliminary data already have indicated that at a dose of 1 cGy the induced transformation frequency is less than the spontaneous transformation frequency. The results will be compared with animal and human epidemiological data on the induction of cancer by low doses of radiation. This will hopefully allow for a more informed estimation of the risk of cancer induction at low doses.

Measurement and signal intelligence demands has created new requirements for information management and interoperability as they affect surveillance and situational awareness. Integration of on-board autonomous learning and adaptive control structures within a remote sensing platform architecture would substantially improve the utility of intelligence collection by facilitating real-time optimization of measurement parameters for variable field conditions. A problem faced by conventional digital implementations of intelligent systems is the conflict between a distributed parallel structure on a sequential serial interface functionally degrading bandwidth and response time. In contrast, optically designed networks exhibit the massive parallelism and interconnect density needed to perform complex cognitive functions within a dynamic asynchronous environment. Recently, all-optical self-organizing neural networks exhibiting emergent collective behavior which mimic perception, recognition, association, and contemplative learning have been realized using photorefractive holography in combination with sensory systems for feature maps, threshold decomposition, image enhancement, and nonlinear matched filters. Such hybrid information processors depart from the classical computational paradigm based on analytic rules-based algorithms and instead utilize unsupervised generalization and perceptron-like exploratory or improvisational behaviors to evolve toward optimized solutions. These systems are robust to instrumental systematics or corrupting noise and can enrich knowledge structures by allowing competition between multiple hypotheses. This property …

A disposal authorization statement (DAS) was issued by the U.S. Department of Energy/Headquarters (DOE/HQ) on December 5, 2000, authorizing the DOE's National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Operations Office to continue the operation of the Area 5 Radioactive Waste Management Site (RWMS) at the Nevada Test Site for the disposal of low-level waste and mixed low-level waste. Prior to the issuance of the DAS, the Low-Level Waste Disposal Facility Federal Review Group (LFRG) had conducted reviews of the performance assessment (PA) and the composite analysis (CA) for the Area 5 RWMS, in accordance with the requirements of the DOE Radioactive Waste Management Order DOE O 435.1. A brief history of the reviews is as follows. (The reviews were conducted by independent review teams chartered by the LFRG; the review findings and recommendations were issued in review team reports to the LFRG.) The LFRG accepted the initial PA, with conditions, on August 30, 1996. Revision 2.1 to the PA was issued in January 1998, implementing the conditions of acceptance of the 1996 PA. The LFRG reviewed Revision 2.1 as part of the Area 5 RWMS CA review during 2000, and found it acceptable. The CA and the Supplemental Information provided in response …

Underwater time-lapse video technology has been used to monitor adult spring and summer chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) escapement into the Secesh River and Lake Creek, Idaho, since 1998. Underwater time-lapse videography is a passive methodology that does not trap or handle this Endangered Species Act listed species. Secesh River chinook salmon represent a wild spawning aggregate that has not been directly supplemented with hatchery fish. The Secesh River is also a control population under the Idaho Salmon Supplementation study. This project has demonstrated the successful application of underwater video adult salmon abundance monitoring technology in Lake Creek in 1998 and 1999. Emphasis of the project in 2000 was to determine if the temporary fish counting station could be installed early enough to successfully estimate adult spring and summer chinook salmon abundance in the Secesh River (a larger stream). Snow pack in the drainage was 93% of the average during the winter of 1999/2000, providing an opportunity to test the temporary count station structure. The temporary fish counting station was not the appropriate technology to determine adult salmon spawner abundance in the Secesh River. Due to its temporary nature it could not be installed early enough, due to high stream discharge, …

Among the accomplishments of this past reporting period are obtaining a complete landgrid for the State of Michigan and the digital processing of the high and medium resolution DEM files. We can now extract lineations from the DEMs automatically using machine algorithms. One tentative result that may be very significant is that we may be seeing manifestations of buried structures in the DEM data. We are looking at a set of extracted lineations in the northern lower peninsula that appear to follow the trend of the pinnacle reefs (Silurian) which had relief approaching 300 feet but are now buried to greater than 3000 feet. We have also extracted the dolomite alteration data from all fields and can show that this is mainly confined to the basin center. It may be related to the paleo-rift suggested by the paleomagnetic and gravity data. As reported last time, the acquisition of a 3D seismic dataset over Stoney Point Field from Marathon Oil Company, is complete and attention is being devoted to incorporating the data into the project database and utilizing it. The surface lineation study is focusing on Stoney Point Field using the high-resolution DEM data and plotting of subsurface formation top data …

Final report describing a three-year research project applying various methods to study the structures of crystalline solids and also apply to polycrystalline disordered materials.

In the second year of the project, the Eulerian-Lagrangian formulation for analyzing three-phase slurry flows in a bubble column is further developed. The approach uses an Eulerian analysis of liquid flows in the bubble column, and makes use of the Lagrangian trajectory analysis for the bubbles and particle motions. An experimental set for studying a two-dimensional bubble column is also developed. The operation of the bubble column is being tested and diagnostic methodology for quantitative measurements is being developed. An Eulerian computational model for the flow condition in the two-dimensional bubble column is also being developed. The liquid and bubble motions are being analyzed and the results are being compared with the experimental setup. Solid-fluid mixture flows in ducts and passages at different angle of orientations were analyzed. The model predictions were compared with the experimental data and good agreement was found. Gravity chute flows of solid-liquid mixtures is also being studied. Further progress was also made in developing a thermodynamically consistent model for multiphase slurry flows with and without chemical reaction in a state of turbulent motion. The balance laws are obtained and the constitutive laws are being developed. Progress was also made in measuring concentration and velocity of …

The purpose of the report is to build and demonstrate an advanced concept thruster and prove its performance and behavior for future references.

Computed tomography (CT) has long been used by industry as a non-destructive evaluation technique for discovering flaws in parts before their use. Traditional linear array computed tomography systems acquired data at a rate that could be reconstructed simultaneously with data acquisition. With new area detectors, the data rate of acquisition has increased exponentially, and the reconstruction algorithm does not scale linearly with increased data. FlashCT DPS (Flat Panel Amorphous Silicon High Resolution Computed Tomography, Data Processing System) is a software package developed by M. Sheats, and A. Davis at LANL to meet the data processing demands of new flat panel array computed tomography. FlashCT--DPS combines several features unique to industrial computed tomography systems. It addresses traditional usability problems by providing an intuitive graphical user interface and powerful analysis tools. It includes the three major CT reconstruction algorithms: parallel backprojection, fan beam resorting, and Feldkamp cone beam. It also provides visualization tools for examination of data after processing. Finally, it is able to perform distributed data reconstruction with a near linear speed increase as a function of the number of processors used. Additionally, utility programs have been developed to support project editing and computing cluster management for the FlashCT system. FlashCT--DPS …

The results of Laboratory and Bench-Scale experiments and supporting technical and economic assessments conducted under DOE Contract No. DE-AC22-91PC91040 are reported for the period July 1, 2001 to September 30 2001. This work involves the introduction into the basic two-stage liquefaction process several novel concepts, which include dispersed lower-cost catalysts, coal cleaning by oil agglomeration, and distillate hydrotreating and dewaxing. This project has been modified to include an investigation into the production of value added materials from coal using low-severity liquefaction based technologies.