When boiling occurs in a pile of porous corrosion products (sludge), chemical species can concentrate. These species can react with the corrosion products and transform the sludge into a rock hard mass and/or create a corrosive environment. In-situ measurements are required to improve the understanding of this process, and the thermal-hydraulic and electrochemical environment in the pile. A test method is described that utilizes a water heated instrumented tube array in an autoclave to perform the in-situ measurements. As a proof of method feasibility, tests were performed in an alkaline phosphate solution. The test data is discussed. Temperature changes and electrochemical potential shifts were used to indicate when chemicals concentrate and if/when the pile hardens. Post-test examinations confirmed hardening occurred. Experiments were performed to reverse the hardening process. A one-dimensional model, utilizing capillary forces, was developed to understand the thermal-hydraulic measurements.

About 20 vapor-phase garnets were studied in two samples of the Topopah Spring Tuff from Yucca Mountain, in southern Nevada. The Miocene-age Topopah Spring Tuff is a 350-m-thick, devitrified, moderately to densely welded ash flow that is compositionally zoned from high-silica rhyolite to quartz latite. During cooling of the tuff, escaping vapor produced lithophysae (former gas cavities) lined with an assemblage of tridymite, cristobalite, alkali feldspar, and locally, hematite and/or garnet. Vapor-phase topaz and economic deposits (such as porphyry molybdenum-tungsten) commonly associated with topaz-bearing rhyolites (characteristically enriched in fluorine) were not found in the Topopah Spring Tuff at Yucca Mountain. The garnets are not primary igneous phenocrysts, but rather crystals that grew from a fluorine-poor magma-derived vapor trapped during emplacement of the tuff. The garnets are euhedral, vitreous, reddish brown, trapezohedral, as large as 2 mm in diameter, and fractured. The garnets also contain inclusions of tridymite. Electron-microprobe analyses of the garnets reveal that they are almandine-spessartine (48.0 and 47.9 mol percent, respectively), have an average chemical formula of (Fe{sub 1.46}, Mn{sub 1.45}, Mg{sub 0.03}, Ca{sub 0.10}) (Al{sub 1.93}, TiO{sub 0.02}) Si{sub 3.01}O{sub 12}, and are homogeneous in Fe and Mn concentrations from core to rim. Composited garnets from each …

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Injection of Lower Hybrid Heating and Current Drive into the current ramp-up phase of Joint European Torus (JET) discharges can produce extremely reversed q-profiles characterized by a core region of very small or zero current density (within Motional Stark Effect diagnostic measurement errors) and q(subscript min) > 1. T(subscript e)-profiles show sawtooth-like collapses and the presence of an internal transport barrier. Accurate equilibrium reconstructions of these discharges are obtained using the ESC code, which was recently extended to allow equilibrium reconstructions in which a free boundary solver determines the plasma boundary and a fixed boundary solver provides the magnetic geometry and current density profile. The core current density does not appear to go negative, although current diffusion calculations indicate that sufficient non-inductive current drive to cause this is present. This is explained by nonlinear resistive MHD simulations in toroidal geometry which predict that these discharges undergo n=0 reconnection events (axisymmetric sawteeth) that redistribute the current to hold the core current density near zero.

This quarterly report focuses on the two specific topics: (1) Reversibility of CO{sub 2} affinity of hydrotalcite materials; and (2)In-situ crystallization of hydrotalcite on commercial tubular ceramic membrane as substrate. The former relates to the foundation of the use of the hydrotalcite material as a membrane. The later addresses the first step of the membrane synthesis we propose. Our study concludes that the CO{sub 2} affinity of the hydrotalcite material is reversible at 150 C and in the presence of water using TG/MS. Additional study at a high pressure and/or high temperature will be performed to scope the operating range of the membrane. On the other hand, the in-situ crystallization is proven to be an effective first step for the hydrotalcite membrane synthesis. Our result indicates that about hydrotalcite covers about 50% of the porosity of the substrate, ideal as a seed for the 2nd step involving in-situ crystal growth. Our next quarterly report will report the result from the study on the 2nd step.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) spent nuclear fuel (DSNF) is categorized into eleven different spent fuel groups. Group 7, is predominantly uranium metal spent fuel from N Reactor that could oxidize rapidly in the presence of air when a waste package is breached. Such rapid oxidation constitutes a pyrophoric event. The consequences of a post closure pyrophoric event were evaluated in terms of its potential to damage adjacent waste packages and consequences of it in terms of long-term dose to humans. This work was conducted as part of the total system performance assessment (TSPA) of DOE spent fuel for the National Spent Nuclear Fuel Program. These analyses were performed in support of the site recommendation for a repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada.

In FY-2000, Engineering at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory faced significant pressures to meet critical project milestones, and immediate demands to facilitate the reassignment of employees as the National Ignition Facility (the 600-TW laser facility being designed and built at Livermore, and one of the largest R&D construction projects in the world) was in the process of re-baselining its plan while executing full-speed its technology development efforts. This drive for change occurred as an unprecedented level of management and program changes were occurring within LLNL. I am pleased to report that we met many key milestones and achieved numerous technological breakthroughs. This report summarizes our efforts to perform feasibility and reduce-to-practice studies, demonstrations, and/or techniques--as structured through our technology centers. Whether using computational engineering to predict how giant structures like suspension bridges will respond to massive earthquakes or devising a suitcase-sized microtool to detect chemical and biological agents used by terrorists, we have made solid technical progress. Five Centers focus and guide longer-term investments within Engineering, as well as impact all of LLNL. Each Center is responsible for the vitality and growth of the core technologies it represents. My goal is that each Center will be recognized on an international scale …

The Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) canister production rate must be increased to meet canister production goals. Although a number of factors exist that could potentially increase melt rate, this study focused on two: (1) changes in frit composition and (2) changes to the feed preparation process to alter the redox of the melter feed. These two factors were investigated for Macrobatch 2 (sludge batch 1B) utilizing crucible studies and a specially designed ''melt rate'' furnace. Other potential factors that could increase melt rate include: mechanical mixing via stirring or the use of bubblers, changing the power skewing to redistribute the power input to the melter, and elimination of heat loss (e.g. air in leakage). The melt rate testing in FY00 demonstrated that melt rate can be improved by adding a different frit or producing a much more reducing glass by the addition of sugar as a reductant. The frit that melted the fastest in the melt rate testing was Frit 165. A paper stud y was performed using the Product Composition Control System (PCCS) to determine the impact on predicted glass viscosity, liquidus, durability, and operating window if the frit was changed from Frit 200 to Frit 165. PCCS …

This report provides a brief history of how the current National Integrated Ballistics Information Network (NIBIN) system evolved and operates. It includes information about issues that may be of concern to Members and committees of the 107th Congress, such as whether expanding NIBIN to include new gun purchases could be construed as a step toward a national gun registry system. The report also summarizes bills introduced in the 107th Congress related to NIBIN.

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The purpose of this paper is to report the methodology and assumptions, data, and results of calculations concerning safety and environmental issues related to excursions to currently planned NIF operations. Many possible uses of NIF have been suggested over the years. While some of these possible uses have been adopted into the baseline plans for NIF, many others have not. While we do not yet know all of the possible approved uses for NIF, one of the items that would bear on whether a certain course use might be adopted or not would be its environmental and safety impact. Here we examine certain excursions from the existing planned operations to determine their environmental and safety impacts. These excursions are related to the use of ''cocktail'' hohlraums as the baseline target for ignition experiments in the National Ignition Facility (NIF) as well as possible increased utilization of beryllium and uranium. This paper also addresses the fission products produced from cocktail hohlraum use for high yield experiments. Again, this analyses does not imply an authorization to proceed with such modes of operation, or any intent to proceed beyond this analyses. A detailed analysis of a range of postulated experiments for NIF was …

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This report is a guide to one of the 13 regular appropriations bills that Congress passes each year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Agriculture by summarizing the current legislative status of the bill, its scope, major issues, funding levels, and related legislative activity. The report also lists the key CRS staff relevant to the issues covered and related CRS products.

Report of memberships for the NAACP

Segmented electrodes with a low secondary electron emission are shown to alter significantly plasma flow in the ceramic channel of the Hall thruster. The location of the axial acceleration region relative to the magnetic field can be moved. The radial potential distribution can also be altered near the channel walls. A hydrodynamic model shows that these effects are consistent with a lower secondary electron emission of the segmented electrode as compared to ceramic channel walls.

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One of the least controversial provisions of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 (P.L. 94-163) established corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards for new passenger cars. This report presents a brief background and analysis regarding the price of crude oil that brought into sharp focus the fuel inefficiency of U.S. automobiles. The report also discusses the previous issues and the most recent developments regarding CAFE.

The General Mining Law of 1872 is one of the major statutes that direct the federal government's land management policy. The law grants free access to individuals and corporations to prospect for minerals in public domain lands, and allows them, upon making a discovery, to stake (or "locate") a claim on that deposit. A claim gives the holder the right to develop the minerals and may be "patented" to convey full title to the claimant. A continuing issue is whether this law should be reformed, and if so, how to balance mineral development with competing land uses.

The American particle physics community can look forward to a well-conceived and vital program of experimentation for the next ten years, using both colliders and fixed target beams to study a wide variety of pressing questions. Beyond 2010, these programs will be reaching the end of their expected lives. The CERN LHC will provide an experimental program of the first importance. But beyond the LHC, the American community needs a coherent plan. The Snowmass 2001 Workshop and the deliberations of the HEPAP subpanel offer a rare opportunity to engage the full community in planning our future for the next decade or more. A major accelerator project requires a decade from the beginning of an engineering design to the receipt of the first data. So it is now time to decide whether to begin a new accelerator project that will operate in the years soon after 2010. We believe that the world high-energy physics community needs such a project. With the great promise of discovery in physics at the next energy scale, and with the opportunity for the uncovering of profound insights, we cannot allow our field to contract to a single experimental program at a single laboratory in the world. …

Contamination is anathema in reservoir production. Some of the contamination is a result of welding and some appears after welding but existed before. Oxygen was documented to be a major contributor to discoloration in welding. This study demonstrates that it can be controlled and that some of the informal cleaning processes contribute to contamination.

The objective of this effort is to benchmark the development of process-based quality tools for application in CAD (computer-aided design) model-based applications. The processes of interest are design, manufacturing, and quality process applications. A study was commissioned addressing the impact, current technologies, and known problem areas in application of 3D MCAD (3-dimensional mechanical computer-aided design) models and model integrity on downstream manufacturing and quality processes. The downstream manufacturing and product quality processes are profoundly influenced and dependent on model quality and modeling process integrity. The goal is to illustrate and expedite the modeling and downstream model-based technologies for available or conceptual methods and tools to achieve maximum economic advantage and advance process-based quality concepts.

This project, carried out at the Colorado School of Mines, addresses long-term research and development issues related to polycrystalline thin-film solar cells. Our general research approach is based on combining activities aimed at improving cell performance and stability with activities aimed at increasing our fundamental understanding of the properties of materials making up the cells: CdTe, CdS, multilayer back-contact, and transparent conducting oxide (TCO) from contact. We emphasize the relation between structural and electronic materials properties and various processing procedures, as well as the microscopic mechanisms responsible for the cell performance and its degradation. Section 1 presents studies of degradation under stressing of the cells with differently processed CdTe and different back contents. Section 2 presents studies of deep traps in the electrodeposited (ED) CdTe cells performed in collaboration at NREL. Section 3 reports studies of the spectral dependencies of photocurrent, and their spatial distribution over the cross-section of the ED CdTe cells were performed using near-field scanning optical microscopy (NSOM). Section 4 discusses the impedance spectroscopy of CdTe and CdS thin films. Section 5 presents studies of band spectrum and electron scattering in transparent conducting oxides. Appendices present data on personnel involved in the studies, laboratory improvements, and publications.