This report deals with a frequency spectrum evaluation of the SWAAM I predicted double rupture disc assembly operation pressure wave generated in the LLTR Series II A-2 test. It also evaluates the same wave predicted by the TRANSWRAP II code and the pressure wave actually measured upstream of the rupture disc assembly by the test instrumentation in Test A-2. The SWAAM I and TRANSWRAP II codes currently use the same analytical model to characterize the rupture disc until the disc strikes the knife edges. Thereafter, the SWAAM I code relies on analytical techniques to characterize the phenomena, whereas the TRANSWRAP II code uses empirical parameters based on A-2 test data to represent the disc behavior. Any differences in the predicted dynamic pipe loads caused by double rupture disc assembly operation, using the forcing functions predicted by the codes can, therefore, be traced to this difference.

The Spin Spectrometer at the Holifield Heavy Ion Research Facility (HHIRF) is a multidetector ..gamma..-ray spectrometer consisting of 72 separate NaI detector elements closely packed in a 4..pi.. geometry. The basic apparatus was constructed at Washington University and has been installed and implemented at the HHIRF at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The spectrometer was designed especially for the investigation of the mechanisms of heavy-ion induced nuclear reactions and of the structure of nuclei with high angular momentum. The data acquisition system is described. (WHK)

A method is presented for preparing a boride layer on a transition metal substrate for use in corrosive environments or as a harden surface in machine applications. This method is particularly useful in treating current collectors for use within a high temperature and corrosive electrochemical cell environment. A melt of a alkali metal boride tetrafluoride salt including such as KF to lower its melting point is prepared including a dissolved boron containing material, for instance NiB, MnB/sub 2/, or CrB/sub 2/. A transition metal to be coated is immersed in the melt at a temperature of no more than 700/sup 0/C and a surface boride layer of that transition metal is formed within a period of about 24 hours on the substrate surface.

During the past three months effort has concentrated on formulating a method to predict the enhancement of electrode surface field and power input occasioned by the presence of a projection on the electrode surface, during the ion sheath development period which attends the scavenging a contact gap following current interruption in vacuum. In addition, experimental evidence has been obtained to support the theory, postulated earlier, of a turn-around interval for electrons left in the gap, which preceeds the rise of the transient recovery voltage.

The present invention is directed to the extraction of energy values from oil shale containing considerable concentrations of calcium carbonate in an efficient manner. The volatiles are separated from the oil shale in a retorting zone of a fluidized bed where the temperature and the concentration of oxygen are maintained at sufficiently low levels so that the volatiles are extracted from the oil shale with minimal combustion of the volatiles and with minimal calcination of the calcium carbonate. These gaseous volatiles and the calcium carbonate flow from the retorting zone into a freeboard combustion zone where the volatiles are burned in the presence of excess air. In this zone the calcination of the calcium carbonate occurs but at the expense of less Btu's than would be required by the calcination reaction in the event both the retorting and combustion steps took place simultaneously. The heat values in the products of combustion are satisfactorily recovered in a suitable heat exchange system.

Nuclear reactor core safety rod release apparatus comprises a control rod having a detent notch in the form of an annular peripheral recess at its upper end, a control rod support tube for raising and lowering the control rod under normal conditions, latches pivotally mounted on the control support tube with free ends thereof normally disposed in the recess in the control rod, and cam means for pivoting the latches out of the recess in the control rod when a scram condition occurs. One embodiment of the invention comprises an additonal magnetically-operated latch for releasing the control rod under two different conditions, one involving seismic shock.

An improved method and apparatus are given for producing cryogenic inertially driven fusion targets in the fast isothermal freezing (FIF) method. Improved coupling efficiency and greater availability of volume near the target for diagnostic purposes and for fusion driver beam propagation result. Other embodiments include a new electrical switch and a new explosive detonator, all embodiments making use of a purposeful heating by means of optical fibers.

The purpose of the concept paper is to outline a possible approach to conducting the point-of-use component of the Virginia Electric and Power Company (VEPCO) study of alternative fuels. Alternative measures for point-of-use application (specifically for the residential sector) would include conservation, solar space conditioning and water heating, and heat pumps. An outline is presented of analytical and field work that will provide information on parameters affecting users, the utility, and the market. Six interdependent activities discussed are: performance analysis, market research, utility impact analysis, comparative analysis, strategy planning, and implementation.

An on-line, nonreferenced apparatus for measuring the concentration of a biomarker species in authentic biological samples in solution comprises conduit means for conducting said sample solution from a source of said solution, stream diversion means disposed within the conduit for diverting a predetermined amount of said sample for analysis, means for introducing and independently regulating the flow of one or more reactants disposed in fluid communication with said diverted stream, incubating means within the diverted stream for reacting said reactants and biomarkers to produce a bioluminescence emission, and means disposed within the diverted stream for monitoring said emission intensity which is correlatable to said biomarker concentration.

This review covers the basics of the fusion process. Some research programs and their present status are mentioned. (MOW)

The potential environmental impacts of the exploration, development, and production of hydrothermal geothermal energy for direct use applications are reviewed and evaluated. Mitigation strategies and research and development needs are included. (MHR)

The central detector of the Axial Field Spectrometer (AFS) is a cylindrical drift chamber using a bicycle-wheel geometry. Its design has been optimized for jet-like events with high track densities. This is accomplished through a high degree of azimuthal segmentation (4/sup 0/ sectors) with up to 42 space points per track, using measurements of drift time and charge division. Particle identification in the non-relativistic region is obtained by (dE/dx) sampling. The detector is operated in an inhomogeneous magnetic field at event rates of typically 5 x 10/sup 5/ collisions per second. Preliminary results will be presented on the detector performance achieved after one year of operation at the ISR.

The United States, Japan, USSR and the European community are jointly participating in the design of an International Tokamak Reactor called INTOR. In support of the US contribution to the INTOR design, the features of an experiment for bulk neutron irradiation damage studies were developed. It is anticipated that materials testing will be an important part of the programmatic mission of INTOR and consequently the requirements for materials testing in INTOR must be identified early in the reactor design to insure compatibility. The design features of the experiment, called a Channel Test, are given in this paper. The major components of the channel test are the water cooled heat sink (channel module) and the specimen capsule. The temperature within each of the 153 specimen capsules is predetermined by engineering the thermal barrier between the specimen capsule and heat sink. Individual capsules can be independently accessed and are designed to operate at a predetermined temperature within the range of 50 to 700/sup 0/C. The total irradiation volume within a single channel test is 45 liters. Features of the channel test that result in experimental versatility and simplified remote access and handling are discussed.

An apparatus and method are described for retorting oil shale using solar radiation. Oil shale is introduced into a first retorting chamber having a solar focus zone. There the oil shale is exposed to solar radiation and rapidly brought to a predetermined retorting temperature. Once the shale has reached this temperature, it is removed from the solar focus zone and transferred to a second retorting chamber. In the second chamber, the oil shale is maintained at the retorting temperature, without direct exposure to solar radiation, until the retorting is complete.

/sup 240/Pu possesses a value for the dilute resonance capture integral that is mostly due to the resonance at 1.056 eV. It is important to the neutron economy of a reactor to know the accurate size of the resonance, i.e., GAMMA/sub n/ and GAMMA/sub ..gamma../. The HFBR fast chopper facility has been used to make a determination of these resonance parameters. In this low energy region the intensity and resolution of the instrument are adequate for precise measurements.

As part of the National Uranium Resource Evaluation (NURE) Program, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory analyzed about 30,000 stream sediment samples from selected areas of the western United States for numerous chemical elements. The analysis was performed by neutron activation. Data for the concentrations of gold and silver for the samples in which they were detected are presented. Gold was detected in 310 samples, and silver in 19. Latitudes and longitudes are given for the sites from which these samples were taken.

The absolute cross sections for the single, double, triple and quadruple ionization of Cs/sup +/ ions by electron impact have been measured from below their respective thresholds to approximately 5000 eV. This determination has been accomplshed using a crossed beam facility in which monoenergetic beams of ions and electrons are caused to intersect at right angles in a well-defined collision volume. Multiply charged, product ions born as a result of the electron impact are deflected into their respective detectors by cascaded electrostatic analyzers. The multiply charged beam current component is measured by means of a vibrating reed electrometer operating in the rate-of-charge mode.

Synthetic liquid fuels, otherwise referred to as synfuels or coal-derived liquids, are probably best characterized from a combustion-environmental point of view as low in hydrogen, low in sulfur, high in nitrogen, and high in aromatics. As a consequence two of the more critical problems in synfuel combustion are NO/sub x/ formation and soot formation (and polycyclic organic matter). This program is directed to these two issues. At first hand the solutions to burning synfuels high in aromatics and fuel-bound nitrogen are diametrically opposed, i.e., high temperature and excess air keep soot levels down, low temperatures and vitiated air keep nitrogen oxide levels down. Staged combustion however offers a logical solution to the above. This program separates and analyzes the synfuel combustion problem via its component parts and then puts them together again phenomenologically via the stage combustion process.

Specifications are presented for the Linear Charge Coupled Device (LCCD) developed at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory for recording data from transients. This device can be used to record electrical signals at sample rates greater than 10/sup 9/ samples per second. Both electrical and physical specifications of the device are presented. The bias and drive requirements of the device are presented in tables and in timing diagrams. Typical performance data are tabulated and shown in oscilloscope photos. The physical specifications of the device include plane and cross sectional drawings of its various registers and I/O sections. Enlarged photos of the mask set are shown and all critical dimensions of the active regions are given. Finally, the impurity doping profile used for the transfer channels is shown.

Program planning support was provided by; developing a geothermal RD and D program structure, characterizing the status of geothermal RD and D through review of literature and interaction with the geothermal research community, developing a candidate list of future Texas geothermal projects, and prioritizing the candidate projects based on appropriate evaluation criteria. The method used to perform this study and the results thereof are presented. Summary reviews of selected completed and ongoing projects and summary descriptions and evaluations of the candidate RD and D projects ar provided. A brief discussion emerging federal RD and D policies is presented. References and independent project rankings by three of the GRP members are included. (MHR)

Described herein are the data structures used in implementing a distributed data base management system (DBMS) for the Mirror Fusion Test Facility (MFTF), a part of the Mirror Fusion Energy Program at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. The hardware and software frameworks within which the DBMS have been developed are first described, followed by a brief look at the motivation and fundamental design goals of the system. The structures are given in detail.

Extensive data analysis and theoretical analysis has been done to complete the extensive decay scheme investigation of /sup 206/ /sup 208/Fr and the level structures of /sup 206/ /sup 208/Rn. A final version of a journal article is presented in preprint form. Extensive Monte Carlo calculations have been made to correct the end point energies of positron spectra taken with intrinsic Ge detectors for annihilation radiation interferences. These calculations were tested using the decay of /sup 82/Sr which has previously measured positron branches. This technique was applied to the positron spectra collected at the on-line UNISOR isotope separator. The reactions used were /sup 60/Ni(/sup 20/Ne;p2n)/sup 77/Rb and /sup 60/Ni(/sup 20/Ne;pn)/sup 78/Rb. Values for 5, ..gamma..-..beta../sup +/ coincidence positron end point energies are given for the decay of /sup 77/Rb. The implied Q-value is 5.075 +- 0.010 MeV. A complete paper on the calculated corrections is presented. A flow chart of a more complete program which accounts for positrons scattering out of the detector and for bremsstralung radiation is also presented. End-point energies of four ..beta../sup +/ branches in /sup 77/Rb are given as well as a proposed energy level scheme of /sup 75/Kr based on ..gamma..-..gamma.. coincidence data taken at …

This partial report on the reactor design contains sections on the following: (1) burner section magnet system design, (2) plasma ring energy recovery, (3) vacuum system, (4) cryogenic system, (5) tritium flows and inventories, and (6) reactor design and layout. (MOW)

The thermal hydraulic simulation of a large sodium reactor by a scaled water model is examined. The Richardson Number, friction coefficient and the Peclet Number can be closely matched with the water system at full power and the similarity is retained for buoyancy driven flows. The simulation of thermal-hydraulic conditions in a reactor vessel provided by a scaled water experiment is better than that by a scaled sodium test. Results from a correctly scaled water test can be tentatively extrapolated to a full size sodium system.