The high level waste storage double-shell tanks at the Hanford site are highly basic. The high basicity is a key factor in controlling the chemical behavior of different components of the waste and in influencing the corrosion rate of the carbon steel primary tanks. However, the introduction of atmospheric CO2 can act to reduce the pH of the tank wastes over time and possibly alter the corrosion rate of the carbon steel tanks. In order to at least partially address this issue for waste tank 241-AN-107, thermodynamic modeling calculations were performed to predict the changes in pH and carbonate concentration that could occur as CO2 is absorbed from the atmosphere. The calculations extended to complete equilibrium with the partial pressure of CO2 in the atmosphere (i.e. pCO2 = 10-3.5 atm). Simulations were performed for both the “upper” segments of tank 241-AN-107, which have been influenced by the introduction of high concentrations of NaOH to the supernatant, and for the “lower” segments where the salt cake/interstitial liquid have not been substantially altered by the introduction of base concentration.

Tritium contaminated concrete rubble from the 232-F Tritium Facility was disposed in the Slit 1 Trenches 1 and 2 in 1997. A Special Analysis (SA) has been performed to evaluate any impact this disposal may have on the groundwater. The SA assumed that the disposed concrete rubble was fully saturated at the time of disposal, however if the concrete was less than fully saturated, migration of tritium out of the concrete would be slower than under fully saturated conditions. Therefore if the concrete at disposal was less than fully saturated, the PA assumption of full saturation would be a conservative assumption. In order to evaluate whether the PA assumption resulted in a conservative analysis from the standpoint of the concrete saturation, concrete rubble samples were collected from various facilities being demolished at the Savannah River Site (SRS) and evaluated for in-field moisture content, absorbable moisture, and water exchangeable porosity. The purpose of this task was to collect concrete rubble samples from various demolished SRS facilities for the purpose of determining in-field moisture content, absorbable moisture, and water exchangeable porosity. Since moisture content testing for concrete rubble is not typical, existing ASTM Standards were reviewed for method and procedure development.

In a conventional permanent magnet (PM) machine, the air-gap flux produced by the PM is fixed. It is difficult to enhance the air-gap flux density due to limitations of the PM in a series-magnetic circuit. However, the air-gap flux density can be weakened by using power electronic field weakening to the limit of demagnetization of the PMs. This paper presents the test results of controlling the PM air-gap flux density through the use of a stationary brushless excitation coil in a reluctance interior permanent magnet with brushless field excitation (RIPM-BFE) motor. Through the use of this technology the air-gap flux density can be either enhanced or weakened. There is no concern with demagnetizing the PMs during field weakening. The leakage flux of the excitation coil through the PMs is blocked. The prototype motor built on this principle confirms the concept of flux enhancement and weakening through the use of excitation coils.

Transmission electron microscopy is used to acquire electron energy-loss spectra from phase-specific regions of Pu and U metal, PuO{sub 2} and UO{sub 2}, and aged, self-irradiated Pu metal. The N{sub 4,5} (4d {yields} 5f) spectra are analyzed using the spin-orbit sum rule. Our results show that the technique is sensitive enough to detect changes in the branching ratio of the white-line peaks between the metal and dioxide of both U and Pu. There is a small change in the branching ratio between different Pu metals, and the data trends as would be expected for varying f electron localization, i.e., {alpha}-Pu, {delta}-Pu, aged {delta}-Pu. Moreover, our results suggest that the metal-oxide bonds in UO{sub 2} and PuO{sub 2} are strongly covalent in nature and do not exhibit an integer valence change as would be expected from purely ionic bonding.

The intended purpose of the multiscale thermohydrologic model (MSTHM) is to predict the possible range of thermal-hydrologic conditions, resulting from uncertainty and variability, in the repository emplacement drifts, including the invert, and in the adjoining host rock for the repository at Yucca Mountain. The goal of the MSTHM is to predict a reasonable range of possible thermal-hydrologic conditions within the emplacement drift. To be reasonable, this range includes the influence of waste-package-to-waste-package heat output variability relevant to the license application design, as well as the influence of uncertainty and variability in the geologic and hydrologic conditions relevant to predicting the thermal-hydrologic response in emplacement drifts. This goal is quite different from the goal of a model to predict a single expected thermal-hydrologic response. As a result, the development and validation of the MSTHM and the associated analyses using this model are focused on the goal of predicting a reasonable range of thermal-hydrologic conditions resulting from parametric uncertainty and waste-package-to-waste-package heat-output variability. Thermal-hydrologic conditions within emplacement drifts depend primarily on thermal-hydrologic conditions in the host rock at the drift wall and on the temperature difference between the drift wall and the drip-shield and waste-package surfaces. Thus, the ability to predict a …

Using spin-polarized relativistic density functional theory the electronic and magnetic structures for the plutonium compounds Pu{sub 3}M(M = Al; Ga; In) and PuNp have been investigated. For the first group of compounds the enhanced hybridization between Pu 5f and p-states of alloying element, as it has been found in spin-polarized calculations, is believed to be the main reason for the higher formation energies obtained in such kind of studies in comparison with the non-spin-polarized case. Also, comparative analysis of the actinides U, Np, Pu, Am, and Cm has been performed based on their electronic and magnetic structure. Some noticeable difference in the calculated magnetic structure was discovered between the actinide with local magnetic moments (Cm) and the actinides (Pu, Am) in which magnetic moments were found only in the calculations.

This cleanup verification package documents completion of remedial action for the 300-8 waste site. This waste site was formerly used to stage scrap metal from the 300 Area in support of a program to recycle aluminum.

Previous LLNL investigators developed a bullet and projectile tracking system over a decade ago. Renewed interest in the technology has spawned research that culminated in a live-fire experiment, called Fight Sight, in September 2005. The experiment was more complex than previous LLNL bullet tracking experiments in that it included multiple shooters with simultaneous fire, new sensor-shooter geometries, large amounts of optical clutter, and greatly increased sensor-shooter distances. This presentation describes the data association and tracking algorithms for the Fight Sight experiment. Image processing applied to the imagery yields a sequence of bullet features which are input to a data association routine. The data association routine matches features with existing tracks, or initializes new tracks as needed. A Kalman filter is used to smooth and extrapolate existing tracks. The Kalman filter is also used to back-track bullets to their point of origin, thereby revealing the location of the shooter. It also provides an error ellipse for each shooter, quantifying the uncertainty of shooter location. In addition to describing the data association and tracking algorithms, several examples from the Fight Sight experiment are also presented.

Ben Cap, LLC, has a technology that utilizes bebtonite to plug wells. The bentonite is encapsulated in a cardboard capsule, droped down to the bottom of the well where it is allowed to hydrate, causing the bentonite to expand and plug the well. This method of plugging a well is accepted in some, but not all states. This technology can save a significant amount of money when compared to cementing methods currently used to plug and abandon wells. The test objective was to obtain the terminal velocity of the capsule delivery system as it drops through a column of water in a wellbore. Once the terminal velocity is known, the bentonite swelling action can be timed not to begin swelling until it reaches the bottom of the well bore. The results of the test showed that an average speed of 8.93 plus or minus 0.12 ft/sec was achieved by the capsule as it was falling through a column of water. Plotting the data revealed a very linear function with the capsules achieving terminal velocity shortly after being released. The interference of the capsule impacting the casing was not readily apparent in any of the runs, but a siginal sampling anomaly …

Shock-induced twinning and martensitic transformation in tantalum, which exhibits no solid-state phase transformation under hydrostatic pressures up to 100 GPa, have been further investigated. Since the volume fraction and size of twin and phase domains are small in scale, they are considered foming by heterogeneous nucleation that is catalyzed by high density lattice dislocations. A dynamic dislocation mechanism is accordingly proposed based upon the observation of dense dislocation clustering within shock-recovered tantalum. The dense dislocation clustering can cause a significant increase of strain energy in local regions of {beta} (bcc) matrix, which renders mechanical instability and initiates the nucleation of twin and phase domains through the spontaneous reactions of dislocation dissociation within the dislocation clusters. That is, twin domains can be nucleated within the clusters through the homogeneous dissociation of 1/2<111> dislocations into 1/6<111> partial dislocations, and {omega} phase domains can be nucleated within the closters through the inhomogeneous dissociation of 1/2<111> dislocations into 1/12<111>, 1/3<111> and 1/12<111> partial dislocations.

The objective of this project is to design, fabricate and demonstrate a cost effective, multi-spectral scanner for natural gas leak detection in transmission and distribution pipelines. During the first year of the project, a laboratory version of the multi-spectral scanner was designed, fabricated, and tested at EnUrga Inc. The multi-spectral scanner was also evaluated using a blind Department of Energy study at the Rocky Mountain Oilfield Testing Center. The performance of the scanner was inconsistent during the blind study. However, most of the leaks were outside the view of the multi-spectral scanner that was developed during the first year of the project. Therefore, a definite evaluation of the capability of the scanner was not obtained. Despite the results, sufficient number of plumes was detected fully confirming the feasibility of the multi-spectral scanner. During the second year, the optical design of the scanner was changed to improve the sensitivity of the system. Laboratory tests show that the system can reliably detect small leaks (20 SCFH) at 30 to 50 feet. A prototype scanner was built and evaluated during the second year of the project. Only laboratory evaluations were completed during the second year. The laboratory evaluations show the feasibility of using …

Evidence for a structural phase transition from rutile {alpha}-CrO{sub 2} phase I (P4{sub 2}/mnm) to orthorhombic {beta}-CrO{sub 2} phase II (CaCl{sub 2}-like, Pnnm) is presented using angle-resolved synchrotron x-ray diffraction and high sensitivity confocal Raman spectroscopy. The transition to the CaCl{sub 2} structure, which appears to be second-order, occurs at 12 {+-} 3 GPa without any measurable discontinuity in volume, but is accompanied by an apparent increase in compressibility. Raman data are also presented to show further evidence for a second-order structural phase transition as well to demonstrate soft-mode behavior of the B{sub 1g} phonon mode.

We propose a real-space finite differences approach for accurate and unbiased O(N) Density Functional Theory molecular dynamics simulations based on a localized orbitals representation of the electronic structure. The discretization error can be reduced systematically by adapting the mesh spacing, while the orbitals truncation error decreases exponentially with the radius of the localization regions. For regions large enough, energy conservation in microcanonical simulations is demonstrated for liquid water. We propose an explanation for the energy drift observed for smaller regions.

It is well known that at present exact averaging of theequations of flow and transport in random porous media have been realizedfor only a small number of special fields. Moreover, the approximateaveraging methods are not yet fully understood. For example, theconvergence behavior and the accuracy of truncated perturbation seriesare not well known; and in addition, the calculation of the high-orderperturbations is very complicated. These problems for a long time havestimulated attempts to find the answer for the question: Are there inexistence some exact general and sufficiently universal forms of averagedequations? If the answer is positive, there arises the problem of theconstruction of these equations and analyzing them. There are manypublications on different applications of this problem to various fields,including: Hydrodynamics, flow and transport in porous media, theory ofelasticity, acoustic and electromagnetic waves in random fields, etc.Here, we present a method of finding some general form of exactlyaveraged equations for flow and transport in random fields by using (1)some general properties of the Green s functions for appropriatestochastic problems, and (2) some basic information about the randomfields of the conductivity, porosity and flow velocity. We presentgeneral forms of exactly averaged non-local equations for the followingcases: (1) steady-state flow with sources in …

The relativistic spin-polarized density functional theory has been used for the study of electronic and magnetic structure of the compounds NpM{sub 2}, PuM{sub 2} and AmM{sub 2} (M = Mn; Fe;Co;Ni). It has been shown that the peculiarities in their magnetic properties come mainly from the hybridization between 5f-electrons of actinides and 3d-electrons of transition metals. It is interesting, that existence of the local magnetic moments appears to be possible on the atoms, despite the fact that Hill's condition is not satisfied for these compounds of actinides. Besides, the electronic and magnetic structures of PuU have been studied and the comparative analysis of them with another compounds of plutonium and its neighbors in Periodic System: PuNp and PuAm has been performed. It has been found that in all the cases the electronic structure formation is a result of a superposition of spin-orbit and exchange band splitting with some increasing of the role of exchange as we are going to americium. Atoms of plutonium appear to be near the point of equal importance of both interactions.

Spin-polarized relativistic density functional theory has been employed for the study of the electronic and magnetic structures for the compounds Np{sub 3}M and Am{sub 3}M (M = Al; Ga; In) and their comparison with plutonium's alloys Pu{sub 3}M has been made. It has been found that of the three actinides (Np, Pu, Am) only plutonium has its FCC structure essentially more stable after alloying with aforementioned elements. Apart from that, the electronic and magnetic structures for the system Pu-Am presented by three different compounds: Pu{sub 3}Am, PuAm, and PuAm{sub 3} have been investigated. Their magnetic structures have been found to be too robust in comparison with the experimental fact that magnetism in Pu-Am system depends strongly on the percentage of the americium in the alloy. One possible explanation consists in the overestimation of the spin splitting and in the disregarding of orbital dependence of the exchange-correlation potential.

Several theoretical studies have indicated that the presence of subsurface cavities in the vadose zone results in complete or partial diversion of flow around cavities. As a result, the region immediately below the cavities is partially shielded from the downward flux. This shadowing effect of cavities can be exploited in the design of dry subsurface storage facilities as an additional barrier to contain waste within or around the cavities. However, empirical evidence that supports these theories is lacking. This study is motivated by the inherent difficulty to make direct observation of the shadow zone as it occurs under very dry conditions. To aid future field and laboratory scale investigations of the shadow zone, we performed rigorous theoretical scrutiny of the conditions that result in the shadowing effect. We formulated relative permeability and saturation based criteria to identify the boundaries of the shadow zone. Analytical and numerical tools were used to develop dimensionless scaling laws that define the size of the shadow zone. Moreover, we analyzed the effect of natural perturbations (heterogeneity and fracturing) on the integrity of the shadow zone. The results will be used in selecting study sites; identifying observation locations and methods; and designing active tests to test …

Estimating unknown system configurations/parameters by combining system knowledge gained from a computer simulation model on one hand and from observed data on the other hand is challenging. An example of such inverse problem is detecting and localizing potential flaws or changes in a structure by using a finite-element model and measured vibration/displacement data. We propose a probabilistic approach based on Bayesian methodology. This approach does not only yield a single best-guess solution, but a posterior probability distribution over the parameter space. In addition, the Bayesian approach provides a natural framework to accommodate prior knowledge. A Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) procedure is proposed to generate samples from the posterior distribution (an ensemble of likely system configurations given the data). The MCMC procedure proposed explores the parameter space at different resolutions (scales), resulting in a more robust and efficient procedure. The large-scale exploration steps are carried out using coarser-resolution finite-element models, yielding a considerable decrease in computational time, which can be a crucial for large finite-element models. An application is given using synthetic displacement data from a simple cantilever beam with MCMC exploration carried out at three different resolutions.

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Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) turbulence theory, often employed satisfactorily in astrophysical applications, has often focused on parameter ranges that imply nearly equal values of kinetic and magnetic energies and length scales. However, MHD flow may have disparity magnetic Prandtl number, dissimilar kinetic and magnetic Reynolds number, different kinetic and magnetic outer length scales, and strong anisotropy. Here a phenomenology for such ''non-equipartitioned'' MHD flow is discussed. Two conditions are proposed for a MHD flow to transition to strong turbulent flow, extensions of (1) Taylor's constant flux in an inertial range, and (2) Kolmogorov's scale separation between the large and small scale boundaries of an inertial range. For this analysis, the detailed information on turbulence structure is not needed. These two conditions for MHD transition are expected to provide consistent predictions and should be applicable to anisotropic MHD flows, after the length scales are replaced by their corresponding perpendicular components. Second, it is stressed that the dynamics and anisotropy of MHD fluctuations is controlled by the relative strength between the straining effects between eddies of similar size and the sweeping action by the large-eddies, or propagation effect of the large-scale magnetic fields, on the small scales, and analysis of this balance in principle …

Overview. This document and the accompanying manuscripts summarize the technical accomplishments of our one-year LDRD-ER effort, a project that has since been incorporated into a larger LDRD-SI for FY05. The objective of this effort was to develop a predictive synthetic capability for the preparation of materials with cellular architectures (sub-micron pore or cell sizes and relative densities less than 10% of full density) not attainable by conventional methods. The ability to reliably prepare these nanocellular materials and control their bulk physical properties (e.g. mechanical strength) would be a considerable advance in the areas of porous materials and its impact would cut across many existing LLNL investments. One significant area related to the Laboratory mission that would benefit is the design of new materials for high energy density physics (HEDP) targets. Current synthetic techniques do not allow for the preparation of foams that meet all of the current and projected compositional and mechanical requirements of these experiments. This project focused on two main types of materials: inorganic sol-gel materials and nanocellular metal foams. The following sections describe the project goals for these two types of materials as well as the progress made towards these goals in FY04. These sections also provide …

Automated electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) mapping systems have existed for more than 10 years [1,2], and due to their versatility in characterizing multiple aspects of microstructure, they have become an important tool in microscale crystallographic studies. Their increasingly widespread use however raises questions about their accuracy in both determining crystallographic orientations, as well as ensuring that the orientation information is spatially correct. The issue of orientation accuracy (as defined by angular resolution) has been addressed previously [3-5]. While the resolution of EBSD systems is typically quoted to be on the order of 1{sup o}, it has been shown that by increasing the pattern quality via acquisition parameter adjustment, the angular resolution can be improved to sub-degree levels. Ultimately, the resolution is dependent on how it is identified. In some cases it can be identified as the orientation relative to a known absolute, in others as the misorientation between nearest neighbor points in a scan. Naturally, the resulting values can be significantly different. Therefore, a consistent and universal definition of resolution that can be applied to characterize any EBSD system is necessary, and is the focus of the current study. In this work, a Phillips (FEI) XL-40 FEGSEM coupled to a …

Introduction A telephone survey of 1,025 residential occupants was administered in late October for the Building Technologies Program (BT) to gather information on residential occupant attitudes, behaviors, knowledge, and perceptions. The next section, Survey Results, provides an overview of the responses, with major implications and caveats. Additional information is provided in three appendices as follows: - Appendix A -- Summary Response: Provides summary tabular data for the 13 questions that, with subparts, comprise a total of 25 questions. - Appendix B -- Benchmark Data: Provides a benchmark by six categories to the 2001 Residential Energy Consumption Survey administered by EIA. These were ownership, heating fuel, geographic location, race, household size and income. - Appendix C -- Background on Survey Method: Provides the reader with an understanding of the survey process and interpretation of the results.

We report the first complete mitochondrial genome sequences of stomatopods and compare their features to each other and to those of other crustaceans. Phylogenetic analyses of the concatenated mitochondrial protein-coding sequences were used to explore relationships within the Stomatopoda, within the malacostracan crustaceans, and among crustaceans and insects. Although these analyses support the monophyly of both Malacostraca and, within it, Stomatopoda, it also confirms the view of a paraphyletic Crustacea, with Malacostraca being more closely related to insects than to the branchiopod crustaceans.