On July 27, 1954, 965 grams of plutonium alloy contained in three standard quart size ice cream cartons were being removed from the process line by two process operators using the plastic bag technique. Shortly after the plastic bag scaler had been energized a brown spot appeared on the plastic bag. The glowing turnings burned through the containers and plastic bag and continued to burn until completely oxidized. Personnel contamination was minor and readily removed. The contamination was confined to the room of the incident and was deposited in gross amounts in the area surrounding Task IV and V. This report includes a description of the incident and subsequent decontamination activities and a summary of plutonium recovery. Facts unknown about the incident and the reasons for these facts not being known are discussed. Plans for the future for reducing the possibility of recurrence of a similar incident are formulated.

This document details activities of the Irradiation Processing Department during the month of August, 1957. A general summary is included at the start of the report, after which the report is divided into the following sections: Research and engineering; operations; production and reactor operations; facilities engineering operation; employee relations operation; and financial operation.

The equations used in advanced reactor core calculations and a semigraphical method for their solution are presented. The following fuel elements are analyzed: continuous plates, parallel-flow rods, cross-flow rods, tubular flow channels in a solid matrix of fuel, and pellets. (M.H.R.)

Tests of the HRT fuel and blanket recombiners at several gas concentrations and steam rates disclosed satisfactory efficiency at approximately design conditions. At lower gas concentrations and steam fiow rates a small recombiner downstream from the condenser is necessary to maintain 100% recombination. It is recommended that the platinized catalyst in the fuel and blanket HRT recombiners not be replaced, and that a small recombiner be installed in the 1-in. off-gas line from each recombiner condenser. (auth)

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S>A convenient modified form of Maxwell distribution is chosen. The modified expressions for the energy transfer from the ions to the electrons in a plasma and the bremsstrahlung from the electrons are calculated. Using the expressions some possible steady-state conditions for the ion and electron gases are derived and compared with those for the usual Maxwell distributions. (anth)

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plants ln England and France. With the increasing de output of given designs and probably allow operation at higher polymer contents than orignally foreseen, thereby reducing the make-up requirements. The physical characteristics of the OMRE such as critical loading, temperature coefficient, and general stability appeared to be close to the predicted values. Radiation levels in the primary circuit area during full power operation appear to be so low that maintenance is possible during operation. The reactor has been run for a full month at 30% polymer concentration and is, at the time of this writing, brought to a still higher steady state percentage of breakdown products ln the coolant stream. No evidence whatsoever of fouling or precipitation has been observed. The reactor behaves in a routine manner in all respects and invites immediate application of the OMR principle to reactors for large scale ceniral stations. Final design on one 11.4 Mwe unit for the city of Piqua, Ohio, has now stanted. A short description is given of OMR power reactors. The use of magnetic jack mechanisms for control and safety rods provides a reactors top shield without penetrations, as well as an unpenetrated lower core vessel, still avoiding any interference …

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This document is a HAPO report dated September 20, 1957. At the time of this report, there had been many different methods suggested for improving the Purex organic recovery system. Some of these suggestions been tried in the plant and others had not. Information concerning this system and, particularly, methods for improving it were wide spread. At the time of this report was no immediate source of information available on the proposed and investigated methods for improving the Purex solvent recovery system.

Hydrostatic pressing was investigated as a method of fabricating long preforms made from uranium powder. A laboratory scale pressure vessel was constructed to evaluate the feasibility of this process. Various metal powders were loaded into flexible molds and subjected to pressure in an enclosed liquid. The high density of uranium caused the flexible molds to distort during filling and after pressing there was a tendency for the compact to adhere to the mold. Methods of minimizing these difficulties are suggested. Uranium powder, compacted in a plastic mold at 21 tsi had a density of 12.5 g/cc. During the course of the investigation, it was found that hydrostatic pressing of other metal powders presented advantages over conventional steel die methods, especially in the ability to press experimental shapes using economical equipment. Recommendations were made for further development work on both cold and hot hydrostatic pressing. (auth)

The distribution of H/sub 2/ among feed materials and products in the thermite reaction producing dingot U was studied. The H/sub 2/ content of Mg, molten U, and molten and solid MgF/sub 2/ density oxide to 98 to 99% for the high specific surface, ow bulk density oxides. The observed values for properties of the U/sub 3/O/sub 8/ samples correlated better with conversion of U/ sub 3/O/sub to UF/sub 4/ than did the observed values for properties of the corresponding UO/sub 2/ intermediates. (auth)