Results of work in a continuing program to investigate basic processes in thermionic energy conversion related to thermionic nuclear power plants for naval applications are reported. The areas in which progress is reported include statistical mechanics of Cs adsorption, space charge analysis for low pressure thermionic diodes, emission requirements for removal of space charge barriers, unignited mode of thermionic converters, interpretation of volt-ampere characteristics, vaporization and deposition at Cs-covered surfaces, and Cs purification. (auth)

Modifications to the shape of ideal quadrupole magnets were investigated, using an electrolytic tank method. Magnets with straight and with exponential pole faces were considered with 1: 1, 1: 2, and 1:3 apertures. The additional field introduced by these modifications was expressed in an harmonic series and the coefficients of this series plotted against the parameters characterizing the modifications made. (auth)

Design, testing, and early operation of the Argonne Low Power Reactor (SL- 1) that was subsequently destroyed in a nuclear incident are reviewed. Motives determining the design of the control system are explained; and information from tests, operation, and the incident itself is analyzed for the purpose of improving reactor design and operation. (D.C.W.)

A thermionic converter was constructed to evaluate the effect of radiation shields in the interelectrode space. No significart difference was found in the total power and short-circuit currents with and without the radiation shield, although there was evidence that the cell efficiency was higher at intermediate emitter temperatures (1200 to 1800 deg C). An in-ptle test was made with a cell containing a radiation shield surrounding the emitter and connected electrically to the collector. The cell for spectroscopic studies of cesium plasma was assembled and two runs completed without cesium. Metallographic examinations were made of hot-pressed UC-- ZrC fuel pins. An electrochemical technique was devised for cutting a fuel pin from a solid UC-ZrC cylinder. A carbide fuel pin, maintained at 700 deg C, brazed with V to a Nb collector underwent a 400 hr test in Cs vapor at 400 deg C. Potted electrical coils withstood 25 pulses with no visible damage. (M.C.G.)

A method of treating periodic potential problems, which appears to offer some simplifications, is described. The classical Kronig-Penny problem was treated as an introduction to the applications after which the method was used to obtain the band structure for the periodic potential, the parabolic scallop potential,'' consisting of a linear chain of segments of vertical parabolas opening upwards. The general problem for the one-dimensional periodic potential with reflection symmetry was then treated and illustrated by application of the method to the linear chain of inverted parabolic segments. As a third example the band structure was obtained for the hip-roof'' potential. The three- dimensional problem is also discussed. (auth)

The M-101 (an all steel) shipping container and safety cage was in use for about 15 years for transporting and storage of enriched U. With slight modifications and the addition of an inner container, the M-101 can be used to ship Pu metal. Various physical tests performed on the M-101 and inner container are described, and critical array sizes under various conditions of spacing and flooding are discussed. (auth)

The nature of certain critical lesions seen after exposure to air blast is described. The early lethality characterizing primary and tertiary blast damage is emphasized along with the seriousness of injuries caused by blastenergized debris. Tentative criteria are developed to the end that different levels of environmental variations caused by blast phenomena could be quantitatively related to various levels of biological response. Using the free- field scaling laws and a mathematical model whereby translational velocities can be computed for animate and inanimate objects, the criteria are applied to nuclear explosions ranging in yield from 1 kt to 100 Mt. Thus, it is possible to specify, as a function of yield, the hazard ranges inside which various blast injuries might occur. At these ranges the associated levels of initial nuclear and thermal radiation were computed to allow at least some assessment of the relative importance of all the major hazards from nuclear detonations. (auth)

The cycle of cesium-134 (2 mu c) in white oak trees on four sites differing soil type and moisture was followed. Gains, losses, and transfers were estimated by sampling from inoculated trees, understory, litter, and soil. With rapid translocation into leaves from initial trunk inoculations in the spring, white oak leaves contained 10/sup 5/ to 10/sup 6/ dpm per g dry weight by early June. This represented a total transfer of about 40% of the original input. From rains, loss from leaves continued throughout the growing season until September, by which time a total loss of 15% of the observed maximum concentration in leaves had occurred. Approximately 70% of this rain-induced loss reached the mineral soil by September, the remainder located in litter and understory vegetation. Radiocesium transferred from trees via annual leaf fall was two times greater than the quantity exported by rain. With subsequent leaching over the winter months, the litter lost about half of its radiocesium to the mineral soil. Soils on wet sites had significantly greater percentages at lower depths down to 12 in. However, 92% of the total soil radiocesium remained in the top 4 in. on year and seven months after tree inoculation. A …

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Separate abstracts have been prepared for 5 sections of this report. (C.H.)

An experimental program to evaluate the performance of FCR and EFCR fuel during transient operation is outlined, and the initial series of tests are described in some detail. Test results from five experiments in the TREAT reactor, using 1-in. OD SS-clad UO/sub 2/ fuel specimens, are compared with regard to fuel temperatures, mechanical integrity, and post-irradiation appearance. Incipient fuel pin failure limits for transients are identified with maximum fuel temperatures in the range of 7000 deg F. Multiple transient damage to the cladding is likely for transients above the melting point of the fuel. (auth)

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The combination of operating temperatures around 550 deg C with LiF present in the salt baths produces about the same bulk metal losses on Ni and Ni- base alloys as was found by operating at 650 deg C without Li in the salt baths. The presence of U accelerates corrosion of Ni and Ni-base alloys during the Volatility Process fluorination cycle. Prior F conditioning of L Ni decreases corrosion of the material during subsequent fluorination. Prior F conditioning of INCO-61 weld metal increases the attack on INCO 61 during subsequent fluorination. Bulk metal losses on L Ni and the Ni-binary alloys containing Al, Co, Fe, or Mn are about the same during fluorination at 550 deg C with Li present in the fluoride salt baths. The presence of the alloying elements, Al, Fe, or Mn, in Ni drastically reduces or lelements intergranular attack usually found in unalloyed Ni exposed to a fluorination environment. In fluorination environments, the effect of adding Co to Ni on subsequent corrosion by intergranular attack of the binary is unclear. These reported tests showed that serious intergranular attack of a 95% Ni --5% Co specimen occurred. On the other hand, this test series and previous series …

A computational model was used in studies of the biological effects of blast from nuclear explosions. The translational effects of blast waves for objects as small as a 10-mg stone and as large as a 168-lb man were computed from theoretical studies and results were compared to field data for near-ideal blast waves from nuclear explosions. Results indicate that the motion of experimental objects can be satisfactorily predicted for free-field conditions or for window glass in houses. Results were computed for high explosives with free air burst. Parameters computed include velocity, displacement, and acceleration as functions of time for a variety of objects exposed to blast waves with 12 maximum overpressures ranging from 1 to 20 atm. All computations were made for one ton of high explosives burst in free air, but the results may be readily scaled to lower or higher yields and to surface bursts. The missiles are identified by their acceleration coefficients which range from 0.01 to 6.0 ft/sup 2//lb. (C.H.)

ABS>A procedure was developed for fabricating a Teflon dropping-mercury electrode (D.M.E.) that has been shown experimentally to be satisfactory for polarography in glasscorroding media. Because of the lack of a suitable electrode, polarography in such media has not been possible. The electrode consists of a glass-capillary and a Tefloncapillary segment which are attached by guide sleeves to form a unit that behaves as if it were a single segment. Procedures were perfected for precision-lapping a conical end on a glass D.M.E. capillary without plugging the capillary and for fabricating a Teflon segment of specified orifice diameter within a wide range (15 to 110 mu ) and to within plus or minus 10 mu . The Teflon segment has a round smoothwalled orifice, a lapped face that is perpendicular to the bore, and a bore of diameter and shape that can be varied. (auth)

Radiation practices among the 4 Carbide Plants at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and Paducah, Kentucky, were evaluated, and uniform standards and criteria for handling U, Th, Np, and Pu were developed. Values for the permissible limits of internal and external radiation exposure published in the most current NCRP handbooks and FRC publications were adopted as the basic standards for all 4 plants. On the basis of these standards, the maximum permissible concentrations of U, Th, Np, and Pu in air and action limits for the presence of the 4 isotopes in urine were also established. Also, consideration was given to whether clothing should be furnished by the company for health protection purposes and whether surface contamination standards should be established (P.C.H.)

Experimental and theoretical work on the interaction mechanisms by which neutrons exchange energy with H atoms involves treating neutron thermalization as neutron interactions with energy levels in the atoms. Cold moderators are presently being studied in order to optimize the source of cold neutrons. Cold neutrons are provided from an accelerator arrangement that directs electrons against a Fansteel target producing fast neutrons. Thermal neutrons, produced by moderation of fast neutrons, are passed through a chopper. Several moderators are evaluated, and neutron emission time measurements by crystal diffraction and beam chopper techniques point out emission time dependence on thickness, moderator, and temperature. The neutron beam chopper used presently is described, and results of neutron scattering by liquid para- and orthohydrogen are displayed and compared with theoretical predictions made with a perfect hydrogen gas model. Inelastic scattering of neutrons by liquid H is discussed, and theoretical and experimental results of inelastic scattering by polyethylene are also included. (D.C.W.)