This report reviews a demonstration of light-emitting diode (LED) accent lighting compared to halogen (typical) accent lighting in a gallery of the Field Museum in Chicago, IL.

Mixtures of oxalic acid with nitric acid have been shown to be superior to oxalic acid alone for the dissolution of iron-rich High Level Waste sludge heels. Optimized conditions resulting in minimal oxalate usage and stoichiometric iron dissolution (based on added oxalate ion) have been determined for hematite (a primary sludge iron phase) in oxalic/nitric acid mixtures. The acid mixtures performed better than expected based on the solubility of hematite in the individual acids through a synergistic effect in which the preferred 1:1 Fe:oxalate complex is formed. This allows for the minimization of oxalate additions to the waste stream. Carbon steel corrosion rates were measured in oxalic/nitric acid mixtures to evaluate the impacts of chemical cleaning with these solutions on waste tank integrity. Manageable corrosion rates were observed in the concentration ranges of interest for an acid contact timescale of 1 month. Kinetics tests involving hematite and gibbsite (a primary sludge aluminum phase) have confirmed that {ge}90% solids dissolution occurs within 3 weeks. Based on these results, the chemical cleaning conditions recommended to promote minimal oxalate usage and manageable corrosion include: 0.5 wt. % oxalic acid/0.175 M nitric acid mixture, 50 C, 2-3 week contact time with agitation.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced the creation of a pilot loan program for home energy improvements. The PowerSaver loan program is a new, energy-focused variant of the Title I Property Improvement Loan Insurance Program (Title I Program) and is planned for introduction in early 2011. The PowerSaver pilot will provide lender insurance for secured and unsecured loans up to $25,000 to single family homeowners. These loans will specifically target residential energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements. HUD estimates the two-year pilot will fund approximately 24,000 loans worth up to $300 million; the program is not capped. The Federal Housing Administration (FHA), HUD's mortgage insurance unit, will provide up to $25 million in grants as incentives to participating lenders. FHA is seeking lenders in communities with existing programs for promoting residential energy upgrades.

The objective of Task 2 is to develop a numerical method for the efficient and accurate analysis of distributed thermal perturbation sensing (DTPS) data for (1) imaging flow profiles and (2) in situ determination of thermal conductivities and heat fluxes. Numerical forward and inverse modeling is employed to: (1) Examine heat and fluid flow processes near a geothermal well under heating and cooling conditions; (2) Demonstrate ability to interpret DTPS thermal profiles with acceptable estimation uncertainty using inverse modeling of synthetic temperature data; and (3) Develop template model and analysis procedure for the inversion of temperature data collected during a thermal perturbation test using fiber-optic distributed temperature sensors. This status report summarizes initial model developments and analyses.

The LCLS photocathode rf gun requires a solenoid immediately downstream for proper emittance compensation. Such a gun and solenoid have been operational at the SSRL Gun Test Facility (GTF) for over eight years. Based on magnetic measurements and operational experience with the GTF gun solenoid multiple modifications are suggested for the LCLS gun solenoid. The modifications include adding dipole and quadrupole correctors inside the solenoid, increasing the bore to accommodate the correctors, decreasing the mirror plate thickness to allow the solenoid to move closer to the cathode, cutouts in the mirror plate to allow greater optical clearance with grazing incidence cathode illumination, utilizing pancake coil mirror images to compensate the first and second integrals of the transverse fields and incorporating a bipolar power supply to allow for proper magnet standardization and quick polarity changes. This paper describes all these modifications plus the magnetic measurements and operational experience leading to the suggested modifications.

The spectrometer design was modified to allow the measurement of uncorrelated energy spread for the nominal lattice. One bunch from every 120 each second would be sent to the straight ahead spectrometer while the transverse cavity is on. The implementation of this 'stealing mode' will not be available for the LCLS commissioning and the early stage of operation. However, the spectrometer was redesigned to retain that option. The energy feedback relies independently on the beam position of the beam in the dispersive section of dogleg 1 (DL1). The main modification of the spectrometer design is the Pole face rotation of 7.5 degrees on both entrance and exit faces. The location and range of operation of the 3 quadrupoles remains unchanged relative to those of the earlier design.

The lithium tokamak experiment #2;LTX#3; is a modest-sized spherical tokamak #2;R0=0.4 m and a =0.26 m#3; designed to investigate the low-recycling lithium wall operating regime for magnetically confined plasmas. LTX will reach this regime through a lithium-coated shell internal to the vacuum vessel, conformal to the plasma last-closed-flux surface, and heated to 300-400 oC. This structure is highly conductive and not axisymmetric. The three-dimensional nature of the shell causes the eddy currents and magnetic fields to be three-dimensional as well. In order to analyze the plasma equilibrium in the presence of three-dimensional eddy currents, an extensive array of unique magnetic diagnostics has been implemented. Sensors are designed to survive high temperatures and incidental contact with lithium and provide data on toroidal asymmetries as well as full coverage of the poloidal cross-section. The magnetic array has been utilized to determine the effects of nonaxisymmetric eddy currents and to model the start-up phase of LTX. Measurements from the magnetic array, coupled with two-dimensional field component modeling, have allowed a suitable field null and initial plasma current to be produced. For full magnetic reconstructions, a three-dimensional electromagnetic model of the vacuum vessel and shell is under development.

Penetrations through the LCLS injector shield wall are needed for the alignment of the accelerator, a diagnostic laser beam and utilities, and are shown in figure 1. The 1-inch diameter LCLS injector beam tube is blocked by the PPS stopper when the injector side of the wall is occupied. The two 3-inch diameter penetrations above and to the left of the beam tube are used by Precision Alignment and will be open only during installation of the injector beamline. Additional 3-inch diameter penetrations are for laser beams which will be used for electron beam diagnostics. These will not be plugged when the injector occupied. Other penetrations for the RF waveguide and other utilities are approximately 13-inch from the floor and as such are far from the line-of-sight of any radiation sources. The waveguide and utility penetrations pass only through the thicker wall as shown in the figure. The principal issue is with the two laser penetrations, since these will be open when the linac is operating and people are in the LCLS injector area. A principal concern is radiation streaming through the penetrations due to direct line-of sight of the PEP-2 lines. To answer this, fans of rays were traced …

A method for simulating Coulomb collisions in plasma simulations is described, in which particle weights are changed, instead of particle velocities.

This report describes radioactive effluents from commercial nuclear power plants (NPPs) in the United States. This information was reported by the licensees for radioactive discharges that occurred in 2007. The report provides information relevant to the potential impact of NPPs on the environment and on public health.

This report describes radioactive effluents from commercial nuclear power plants (NPPs) in the United States. This information was reported by the licensees for radioactive discharges that occurred in 2008. The report provides information relevant to the potential impact of NPPs on the environment and on public health.

PBXN-9, an HMX-formulation, is thermally damaged and thermally decomposed in order to determine the morphological changes and decomposition kinetics that occur in the material after mild to moderate heating. The material and its constituents were decomposed using standard thermal analysis techniques (DSC and TGA) and the decomposition kinetics are reported using different kinetic models. Pressed parts and prill were thermally damaged, i.e. heated to temperatures that resulted in material changes but did not result in significant decomposition or explosion, and analyzed. In general, the thermally damaged samples showed a significant increase in porosity and decrease in density and a small amount of weight loss. These PBXN-9 samples appear to sustain more thermal damage than similar HMX-Viton A formulations and the most likely reasons are the decomposition/evaporation of a volatile plasticizer and a polymorphic transition of the HMX from {beta} to {delta} phase.

The scintillation properties of cerium-doped oxyhalides following the general formula REOX (RE=Y, La, Gd, and Lu; X=F, Cl, Br, and I) are reported. These materials were synthesized under dry conditions as microcrystalline powders from conventional solid state reactions. The room temperature X-ray excited emission and scintillation decay curves were measured and analyzed for each material. Additionally, the hygroscopic nature of the oxychlorides and oxybromides was compared to that of their corresponding rare earth halides. The yttrium, lanthanum, and gadolinium oxychlorides, and all of the oxybromides and oxyiodides are found to be activated by Ce{sup 3+}. GdOBr doped with 0.5% Ce{sup 3+} has the highest light output with a relative luminosity of about one-half that of LaBr{sub 3}: Ce{sup 3+}. It displays a single exponential decay of 30 ns.

To support Sludge Batch 7 (SB7) washing, a demonstration of the proposed Tank Farm washing operation was performed utilizing a real-waste test slurry generated from Tank 4, 7, and 12 samples. The purpose of the demonstration was twofold: (1) to determine the settling time requirements and washing strategy needed to bring the SB7 slurry to the desired endpoint; and (2) to determine the impact of washing on the chemical and physical characteristics of the sludge, particularly those of sulfur content, oxalate content, and rheology. Seven wash cycles were conducted over a four month period to reduce the supernatant sodium concentration to approximately one molar. The long washing duration was due to the slow settling of the sludge and the limited compaction. Approximately 90% of the sulfur was removed through washing, and the vast majority of the sulfur was determined to be soluble from the start. In contrast, only about half of the oxalate was removed through washing, as most of the oxalate was initially insoluble and did not partition to the liquid phase until the latter washes. The final sulfur concentration was 0.45 wt% of the total solids, and the final oxalate concentration was 9,900 mg/kg slurry. More oxalate could …

Defining high-level features, detecting them, tracking them and deriving quantities based on them is an integral aspect of modern data analysis and visualization. In combustion simulations, for example, burning regions, which are characterized by high fuel-consumption, are a possible feature of interest. Detecting these regions makes it possible to derive statistics about their size and track them over time. However, features of interest in scientific simulations are extremely varied, making it challenging to develop cross-domain feature definitions. Topology-based techniques offer an extremely flexible means for general feature definitions and have proven useful in a variety of scientific domains. This paper will provide a brief introduction into topological structures like the contour tree and Morse-Smale complex and show how to apply them to define features in different science domains such as combustion. The overall goal is to provide an overview of these powerful techniques and start a discussion how these techniques can aid in the analysis of astrophysical simulations.

I present an analysis for fitting cosmological parameters from a Hubble Diagram of a standard candle with unknown intrinsic magnitude dispersion. The dispersion is determined from the data themselves, simultaneously with the cosmological parameters. This contrasts with the strategies used to date. The advantages of the presented analysis are that it is done in a single fit (it is not iterative), it provides a statistically founded and unbiased estimate of the intrinsic dispersion, and its cosmological-parameter uncertainties account for the intrinsic dispersion uncertainty. Applied to Type Ia supernovae, my strategy provides a statistical measure to test for sub-types and assess the significance of any magnitude corrections applied to the calibrated candle. Parameter bias and differences between likelihood distributions produced by the presented and currently-used fitters are negligibly small for existing and projected supernova data sets.

After the CMMD Seminar by Sung Woo Yu on the subject of the x-ray spectroscopy of UO2, there arose some questions concerning the XAS of UO2. These questions can be distilled down to these three issues: (1) The validity of the data; (2) The monchromator energy calibration; and (3) The validity of XAS component of the figure shown. The following will be shown: (1) The data is valid; (2) It is possible to calibrate the monchromator; and (3) The XAS component of the above picture is correct. The remainder of this document is in three sections, corresponding to these three issues.

The R- and P-reactor vessels at the Savannah River Site (SRS) are being prepared for deactivation and decommissioning (D&D). D&D activities will consist primarily of physically isolating and stabilizing the reactor vessel by filling it with a grout material. The reactor vessels contain aluminum alloy materials, which pose a concern in that aluminum corrodes rapidly when it comes in contact with the alkaline grout. A product of the corrosion reaction is hydrogen gas and therefore potential flammability issues were assessed. A model was developed to calculate the hydrogen generation rate as the reactor is being filled with the grout material. Three options existed for the type of grout material for D&D of the reactor vessels. The grout formulation options included ceramicrete (pH 6-8), a calcium aluminate sulfate (CAS) based cement (pH 10), or Portland cement grout (pH 12.4). Corrosion data for aluminum in concrete were utilized as input for the model. The calculations considered such factors as the surface area of the aluminum components, the open cross-sectional area of the reactor vessel, the rate at which the grout is added to the reactor vessel, and temperature. Given the hydrogen generation rate, the hydrogen concentration in the vapor space of the …

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Environmental health focus with training conducted as part of the United Negro College Fund Special Programs Corporation/National Library of Medicine HBCU ACCESS Project at Winston-Salem State University, NC on November 10, 2010.

This report summarizes field sampling activities conducted in support of WCH’s Remedial Investigation of Hanford Site Releases to the Columbia River. This work was conducted form 2008 through 2010. The work included preliminary mapping and measurement of Hanford Site contaminants in sediment, pore water, and surface water located in areas where groundwater upwelling were found.

Unlike the ferropnictide superconductors, which crystallize in a tetragonal crystal structure, binary FeAs forms in an orthorhombic crystal structure, where the local atomic environment resembles a highly distorted variant of the FeAs{sub 4} tetrahedral building block of the ferropnictide superconductors. However, like the parent compounds of the ferropnictide superconductors, FeAs undergoes magnetic ordering at low temperatures, with no evidence favoring a superconducting ground state at ambient pressure. We employ pressure-dependent electrical transport and x-ray diffraction measurements using diamond anvil cells to characterize the magnetic state and the structure as a function of pressure. While the structure persists up to 25 GPa, compressing continuously with pressure, magnetotransport measurements suggests that the magnetic state is destroyed near 11 GPa. The magnetic transition temperature is found to be remarkably robust under pressure, and transport measurements suggest that a dynamical structural instability coupled to the Fermi surface via a strong electron-phonon interaction may play an important role in enabling magnetism in FeAs.

Prokaryotic life on earth is manifested by its diversity and omnipresence. These microbes serve as natural sources of a large variety of compounds with the potential to serve the ever growing, medicinal, chemical and transportation needs of the human population. However, commercially viable production of these compounds can be realized only through significant improvement of the native production capacity of natural isolates. The most favorable way to achieve this goal is through the genetic manipulation of metabolic pathways that direct the production of these molecules. While random mutagenesis and screening have dominated the industrial production of such compounds in the past our increased understanding of microbial physiology over the last five decades has shifted this trend towards rational approaches for metabolic design. Major drivers of this trend include recombinant DNA technology, high throughput characterization of macromolecular cellular components, quantitative modeling for metabolic engine ring, targeted combinatorial engineering and synthetic biology. In this chapter we track the evolution of microbial engineering technologies from the black box era of random mutagenesis to the science and engineering-driven era of metabolic design.

Customized spatial light modulators have been designed and fabricated for use as precision beam shaping devices in fusion class laser systems. By inserting this device in a low-fluence relay plane upstream of the amplifier chain, 'blocker' obscurations can be programmed into the beam profile to shadow small isolated flaws on downstream optical components that might otherwise limit the system operating energy. In this two stage system, 1920 x 1080 bitmap images are first imprinted on incoherent, 470 nm address beams via pixilated liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) modulators. To realize defined masking functions with smooth apodized shapes and no pixelization artifacts, address beam images are projected onto custom fabricated optically-addressable light valves. Each valve consists of a large, single pixel liquid cell in series with a photoconductive Bismuth silicon Oxide (BSO) crystal. The BSO crystal enables bright and dark regions of the address image to locally control the voltage supplied to the liquid crystal layer which in turn modulates the amplitude of the coherent beams at 1053 nm. Valves as large as 24 mm x 36 mm have been fabricated with low wavefront distortion (<0.5 waves) and antireflection coatings for high transmission (>90%) and etalon suppression to avoid spectral and …