Savannah River Remediation (SRR) LLC assumed the liquid waste contract at the Savannah River Site (SRS) in the summer of 2009. The main contractual agreement was to close 22 High Level Waste (HLW) tanks in eight years. To achieve this aggressive commitment, faster waste processing throughout the SRS liquid waste facilities will be required. Part of the approach to achieve faster waste processing is to increase the canister production rate of the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) from approximately 200 canisters filled with radioactive waste glass per year to 400 canisters per year. To reach this rate for melter throughput, four bubblers were installed in the DWPF Melter in the late summer of 2010. This effort required collaboration between SRR, SRR critical subcontractor EnergySolutions, and Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, including the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL). The tasks included design and fabrication of the bubblers and related equipment, testing of the bubblers for various technical issues, the actual installation of the bubblers and related equipment, and the initial successful operation of the bubblers in the DWPF Melter.

Daylight responsive dimming systems have been used in few buildings to date because they require improvements to improve reliability. The key underlying factor contributing to poor performance is the variability of the ratio of the photosensor signal to daylight workplane illuminance in accordance with sun position, sky condition, and fenestration condition. Therefore, this paper describes the integrated systems between automated roller shade systems and daylight responsive dimming systems with an improved closed-loop proportional control algorithm, and the relative performance of the integrated systems and single systems. The concept of the improved closed-loop proportional control algorithm for the integrated systems is to predict the varying correlation of photosensor signal to daylight workplane illuminance according to roller shade height and sky conditions for improvement of the system accuracy. In this study, the performance of the integrated systems with two improved closed-loop proportional control algorithms was compared with that of the current (modified) closed-loop proportional control algorithm. In the results, the average maintenance percentage and the average discrepancies of the target illuminance, as well as the average time under 90percent of target illuminance for the integrated systems significantly improved in comparison with the current closed-loop proportional control algorithm for daylight responsive dimming systems …

Traditionally, modeling investment and dispatch problems in electricity economics has been limited by computation power. Due to this limitation, simplifications are applied. One common practice, for example, is to reduce the temporal resolution of the dispatch by clustering similar load levels. The increase of intermittent electricity from renewable energy sources (RES-E) changes the validity of this assumption. RES-E already cover a certain amount of the total demand. This leaves an increasingly volatile residual demand to be matched by the conventional power market. This paper quantifies differences in investment decisions by applying three different time-resolution residual load patterns in an investment and dispatch power system model. The model optimizes investment decisions in five year steps between today and 2030 with residual load levels for 8760, 288 and 16 time slices per year. The market under consideration is the four zone ERCOT market in Texas. The results show that investment decisions significantly differ across the three scenarios. In particular, investments into base-load technologies are substantially reduced in the high resolution scenario (8760 residual load levels) relative to the scenarios with lower temporal resolution. Additionally, the amount of RES-E curtailment and the market value of RES-E exhibit noteworthy differences.

In the 50 years since the laser was first demonstrated in Malibu, California, on May 16, 1960, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has been a world leader in laser technology and the home for many of the world's most advanced laser systems. That tradition continues today at LLNL's National Ignition Facility (NIF), the world's most energetic laser system. NIF's completion in March 2009 not only marked the dawn of a new era of scientific research - it could also prove to be the next big step in the quest for a sustainable, carbon-free energy source for the world. NIF consists of 192 laser beams that will focus up to 1.8 million joules of energy on a bb-sized target filled with isotopes of hydrogen - forcing the hydrogen nuclei to collide and fuse in a controlled thermonuclear reaction similar to what happens in the sun and the stars. More energy will be produced by this 'ignition' reaction than the amount of laser energy required to start it. This is the long-sought goal of 'energy gain' that has eluded fusion researchers for more than half a century. Success will be a scientific breakthrough - the first demonstration of fusion ignition in a …

The destabilized complex hydride system composed of LiNH{sub 2}:MgH{sub 2} (1:1 molar ratio) is one of the leading candidates of hydrogen storage with a reversible hydrogen storage capacity of 8.1 wt%. A low sorption enthalpy of {approx}32 kJ/mole H{sub 2} was first predicted by Alapati et al. utilizing first principle density function theory (DFT) calculations and has been subsequently confirmed empirically by Lu et al. through differential thermal analysis (DTA). This enthalpy suggests that favorable sorption kinetics should be obtainable at temperatures in the range of 160 C to 200 C. Preliminary experiments reported in the literature indicate that sorption kinetics are substantially lower than expected in this temperature range despite favorable thermodynamics. Systematic isothermal and isobaric sorption experiments were performed using a Sievert's apparatus to form a baseline data set by which to compare kinetic results over the pressure and temperature range anticipated for use of this material as a hydrogen storage media. Various material preparation methods and compositional modifications were performed in attempts to increase the kinetics while lowering the sorption temperatures. This paper outlines the results of these systematic tests and describes a number of beneficial additions which influence kinetics as well as NH{sub 3} formation.

We present a broad-brush survey of the phenomenology, history and importance of the electron-cloud effect (ECE). We briefly discuss the simulation techniques used to quantify the electron-cloud (EC) dynamics. Finally, we present in more detail an effective theory to describe the EC density build-up in terms of a few effective parameters. For further details, the reader is encouraged to refer to the proceedings of many prior workshops, either dedicated to EC or with significant EC contents, including the entire 'ECLOUD' series. In addition, the proceedings of the various flavors of Particle Accelerator Conferences contain a large number of EC-related publications. The ICFA Beam Dynamics Newsletter series contains one dedicated issue, and several occasional articles, on EC. An extensive reference database is the LHC website on EC.

Vacuum and extreme ultraviolet radiation from 8 - 24 eV generated at a synchrotron was used to postionize laser desorbed neutrals of antibiotic-treated biofilms and a modified fullerene using laser desorption postionization mass spectrometry (LDPI-MS). Results show detection of the parent ion, various fragments, and extracellular material from biofilms using LDPI-MS with both vacuum and extreme ultraviolet photons. Parent ions were observed for both cases, but extreme ultraviolet photons (16-24 eV) induced more fragmentation than vacuum ultraviolet (8-14 eV) photons.

Overview of an ongoing, 2 year research project partially funded by APRA-E to create a novel, synthetic analogue of carbonic anhydrase and incorporate it into a membrane for removal of CO2 from flue gas in coal power plants. Mechanism background, preliminary feasibility study results, molecular modeling of analogue-CO2 interaction, and program timeline are provided.

The electronic as well as magnetic properties of Ga{sub x}Fe{sub 1-x} films were studied by soft x-ray measurements. Using x-ray magnetic circular dichroism the Fe majority-spin band was found to be completely filled for x {approx} 0.3. With further enhanced Ga content, the Fe moment as well as the angular dependence of the x-ray magnetic linear dichroism decrease strongly, which we attribute to the formation of D0{sub 3} precipitates. Moreover, the magnetocrystalline anisotropy drops significantly.

We describe an improved reaction rate equation for simulating ignition and growth of reaction in high explosives. It has been implemented into CALE and ALE3D as an alternate to the baseline the Lee-Tarver reactive flow model. The reactive flow model treats the explosive in two phases (unreacted/reactants and reacted/products) with a reaction rate equation to determine the fraction reacted, F. The improved rate equation has fewer parameters, is continuous with continuous derivative, results in a unique set of reaction rate parameters for each explosive while providing the same functionality as the baseline rate equation. The improved rate equation uses a cosine function in the ignition term and a sine function in the growth and completion terms. The improved rate equation is simpler with fewer parameters.

We report on a general method to fabricate transition metal related defects in diamond. Controlled incorporation of Mo and W in synthetic CVD diamond was achieved by adding volatile metal precursors to the diamond chemical vapor deposition (CVD) growth process. Effects of deposition temperature, grain structure and precursor exposure on the doping level were systematically studied, and doping levels of up to 0.25 at.% have been achieved. The metal atoms are uniformly distributed throughout the diamond grains without any indication of inclusion formation. These results are discussed in context of the kinetically controlled growth process of CVD diamond.

The pressure dependent deflagration rates of LLM-105, DAAF and TATB based formulations were measured in the LLNL high pressure strand burner. The role of binder amount, explosive type, and thermal damage and their effects on the deflagration rate will be discussed. One DAAF formulation, two different formulations of LLM-105, and four formulations of TATB were studied; results indicate that binder amount and type play a minor role in the deflagration behavior. This is in sharp contrast to the HMX based formulations which strongly depend on binder amount and type. The effect of preheating these samples was considerably more dramatic. In the case of LLM-105, preheating the sample appears to have little effect on the deflagration rate. In contrast, preheating DAAF and TATB formulations causes the deflagration rate to accelerate. The thermal and mechanical properties of these formulations will be discussed in the context of their pressure and temperature dependent deflagration rates.

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The automatic alignment system for the National Ignition Facility (NIF) is a large-scale parallel system that directs all 192 laser beams along the 300-m optical path to a 50-micron focus at target chamber in less than 50 minutes. The system automatically commands 9,000 stepping motors to adjust mirrors and other optics based upon images acquired from high-resolution digital cameras viewing beams at various locations. Forty-five control loops per beamline request image processing services running on a LINUX cluster to analyze these images of the beams and references, and automaticallys teer the beams toward the target. This paper discusses the upgrades to the NIF automatic alignment system to handle new alignment needs and evolving requirements as related to various types of experiments performed. As NIF becomes a continuously-operated system and more experiments are performed, performance monitoring is increasingly important for maintenance and commissioning work. Data, collected during operations, is analyzed for tuning of the laser and targeting maintenance work. handling evolving alignment and maintenance needs is expected for the planned 30-year operational life of NIF.

One of the options considered for future upgrades of the LHC injector complex entails the replacement of the PSwith the PS2, a longer circumference and higher energy synchrotron. Electron cloud effects represent an importantpotential limitation to the achievement of the upgrade goals. We report the results of numerical studies aimingat estimating the e-cloud density thresholds for the occurrence of single bunch instabilities.

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The goal of modern high explosive slow heat cookoff modeling is to understand the level of mechanical violence. This requires understanding the coupled thermal-mechanical-chemical system that such an environment creates. Recent advances have improved our ability to predict the time to event, and we have been making progress on predicting the mechanical response. By adding surface tension to the product gas pores in the high explosive, we have been able to reduce the current model's tendency to overpressurize confinement vessels. We describe the model and demonstrate how it affects a LX-10 STEX experiment. Issues associated with current product gas equations of state are described and examined.

The Laser Inertial Fusion-based Energy (LIFE) project at LLNL includes development of hybrid fusion-fission systems for energy generation. These hybrid LIFE engines use high-energy neutrons from laser-based inertial confinement fusion to drive a subcritical blanket of fission fuel that surrounds the fusion chamber. The fission blanket contains TRISO fuel particles packed into pebbles in a flowing bed geometry cooled by a molten salt (flibe). LIFE engines using a thorium fuel cycle provide potential improvements in overall fuel cycle performance and resource utilization compared to using depleted uranium (DU) and may minimize waste repository and proliferation concerns. A preliminary engine design with an initial loading of 40 metric tons of thorium can maintain a power level of 2000 MW{sub th} for about 55 years, at which point the fuel reaches an average burnup level of about 75% FIMA. Acceptable performance was achieved without using any zero-flux environment 'cooling periods' to allow {sup 233}Pa to decay to {sup 233}U; thorium undergoes constant irradiation in this LIFE engine design to minimize proliferation risks and fuel inventory. Vast reductions in end-of-life (EOL) transuranic (TRU) inventories compared to those produced by a similar uranium system suggest reduced proliferation risks. Decay heat generation in discharge fuel …

The United Kingdom's National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) has developed a radiation-mapping device that can locate and quantify radioactive hazards within contaminated areas of the nuclear industry. The device, known as RadBall{trademark}, consists of a colander-like outer collimator that houses a radiation-sensitive polymer sphere. The collimator has over two hundred small holes; thus, specific areas of the polymer sphere are exposed to radiation becoming increasingly more opaque in proportion to the absorbed dose. The polymer sphere is imaged in an optical-CT scanner that produces a high resolution 3D map of optical attenuation coefficients. Subsequent analysis of the optical attenuation data provides information on the spatial distribution of sources in a given area forming a 3D characterization of the area of interest. The RadBallTM technology has been deployed in a number of technology trials in nuclear waste reprocessing plants at Sellafield in the United Kingdom and facilities of the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL). This paper summarizes the tests completed at SRNL Health Physics Instrument Calibration Laboratory (HPICL).

A novel prototype fission meter is being designed at National Security Technologies, LLC, using a thin uniform coating (only 1 micron thick) of {sup 10}B as a neutron converter inside a large array of thin (4 mm diameter) copper tubes. The copper tubes are only 2 mils thick, and each holds the stretched anode wire under tension and high voltage. The tubes are filled with proportional counter gas (a mixture of 90%/10% of Ar/CO{sub 2}). The tubes operate in proportional counter mode and attract mobile charged particles ({alpha}'s) created in the nuclear interaction {sup 10}B(n, {sup 4}He){sup 7}Li. However, a single tube has about 1/7th the sensitivity of a {sup 3}He tube. Modeling is required to determine if enough such tubes could be placed in a neutron detection assembly of the current size to give comparable sensitivity to {sup 3}He. Detectors lined with {sup 10}B lie between {sup 3}He and {sup 10}BF{sub 3} proportional counters and fission chambers in terms of neutron detection efficiency and gamma ray insensitivity. The mean free path of thermal neutrons in {sup 10}B is about 18 {micro}m. It takes about 60 {micro}m of {sup 10}B layer to completely stop thermal neutrons, but the energetic {alpha}-particles …

The objective of the CERTS Microgrid Test Bed project was to enhance the ease of integrating energy sources into a microgrid. The project accomplished this objective by developing and demonstrating three advanced techniques, collectively referred to as the CERTS Microgrid concept, that significantly reduce the level of custom field engineering needed to operate microgrids consisting of generating sources less than 100kW. The techniques comprising the CERTS Microgrid concept are: 1 a method for effecting automatic and seamless transitions between grid-connected and islanded modes of operation, islanding the microgrid's load from a disturbance, thereby maintaining a higher level of service, without impacting the integrity of the utility's electrical power grid; 2 an approach to electrical protection within a limited source microgrid that does not depend on high fault currents; and 3 a method for microgrid control that achieves voltage and frequency stability under islanded conditions without requiring high-speed communications between sources.

We have performed a detailed study of molecular dissociation in liquid hydrogen using both Born-Oppenheimer molecular dynamics with Density Functional Theory and Coupled Electron-Ion Monte Carlo simulations. We observe a range of densities where (dP/d{rho}){sub T} = 0 that coincides with sharp discontinuities in the electronic conductivity, which is clear evidence of the plasma phase transition for temperatures 600K {le} T {le} 1500K. Both levels of theory exhibit the transition, although Quantum Monte Carlo predicts higher transition pressures. Based on the temperature dependence of the discontinuity in the electronic conductivity, we estimate the critical point of the transition at temperatures slightly below 2000 K. We examine the influence of proton zero point motion by using Path Integral Molecular Dynamics with Density Functional Theory; the main effect is to shift the transition to lower pressures. Furthermore, we calculate the melting curve of molecular hydrogen up to pressures of 200 GPa, finding a reentrant melting line in good agreement with previous calculations. The melting line crosses the metalization line at 700 K and 220 GPa using density functional energetics and at 550 K and 290 GPa using Quantum Monte Carlo energetics.

The United Kingdom's National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) has developed a remote, non-electrical, radiation-mapping device known as RadBall{trademark}, which can locate and quantify radioactive hazards within contaminated areas of the nuclear industry. RadBall{trademark} consists of a colander-like outer shell that houses a radiation-sensitive polymer sphere. The outer shell works to collimate radiation sources and those areas of the polymer sphere that are exposed react, becoming increasingly more opaque, in proportion to the absorbed dose. The polymer sphere is imaged in an optical-CT scanner, which produces a high resolution 3D map of optical attenuation coefficients. Subsequent analysis of the optical attenuation matrix provides information on the spatial distribution of sources in a given area forming a 3D characterization of the area of interest. RadBall{trademark} has no power requirements and can be positioned in tight or hard-to reach locations. The RadBall{trademark} technology has been deployed in a number of technology trials in nuclear waste reprocessing plants at Sellafield in the United Kingdom and facilities of the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL). This study focuses on the RadBall{trademark} testing and modeling accomplished at SRNL.

We show that the angular dependence of x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) is strongly sensitive to strain-induced electronic structure changes in magnetic transition metal oxides. We observe a pronounced dependence of the XMCD spectral shape on the experimental geometry as well as nonvanishing XMCD with distinct spectral features in transverse geometry in compressively strained MnCr{sub 2}O{sub 4} films. The angular dependent XMCD can be described as a sum over an isotropic and anisotropic contribution, the latter linearly proportional to the axial distortion due to strain. The XMCD spectra are well reproduced by atomic multiplet calculations.