The results are reported of a technical evaluation of alternate fuels for the proposed oil and natural gas fired No. 3 boiler at the Minnegasco Energy Center (MEC) located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This report has been prepared for the Department of Energy, Office of Fuels Conversion for their use in considering an alternate fuel exemption petition submitted by MEC. The fuels considered for the proposed boiler include oil, natural gas, bituminous coal, petroleum coke/coal mixture, refuse-derived fuel (RDF), coal-oil mixtures, and coal/oil dual fuel fired. The purchase of steam from the Northern States Power Company (NSPCo) was also considered as an alternative to construction of another boiler at MEC. Evaluation of each fuel included review of the overall plant design, estimates of capital and O and M costs, salvage value, useful life, and quantities of solid waste produced. The MEC supplies steam and chilled water to the downtown Minneapolis area for building heating and cooling using two presently owned and operated 200,000 lb/h oil/natural gas fired boilers. If the proposed boiler is permitted to burn oil and natural gas, it will be identical in design to the existing boilers. The evaluation showed that the use of oil, natural gas, coal, …

A system for acquisition of delayed neutron data, based on an LSI-11 with 28 K words of memory, is described. Hardware features are a six-channel scaler and level sensor to determine the state of the experiment; and normal peripherals include dual floppy-disk drive, line printer, and CRT terminal. The software for experiment control and for the analysis of data is presented. The protocol for assays that optimally utilize the system is suggested.

This data record report describes three sodium oxide aerosol tests and four uranium oxide aerosol tests conducted in the Nuclear Safety Pilot Plant project at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The goal of this project is to establish the validity (or level of conservatism) of the aerosol behavioral code, HAARM-3, and follow-on codes under development at the Battelle Columbus Laboratories for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Descriptions of the seven tests with tables and graphs summarizing the results are included. 92 figs.

Aquatic, atmospheric, and terrestrial studies and instrumentation developments are described in a series of articles. More details about specific studies are given in publications listed at the end of the report.

An account is given of concepts of favorability of geologic environments in the eastern United States for uranium deposits of several major types existing elsewhere in the world. The purpose is to convey some initial ideas about the interrelationships of the geology of the eastern United States and the geologic settings of certain of these world-class deposits. The study and report include consideration of uranium deposits other than those generally manifesting the geologic, geochemical and genetic characteristics associated with the conventional sandstone-type ores of the western United States.

The cataractogenic effects of heavy charged particles have been evaluated in mice in relation to dose and ionization density (LET/sub infinity/). The study was undertaken due to the high potential for eye exposures to HZE particles among SPS personnel working in outer space. This has made it imperative that the relative biological effectiveness (RBE) in relation to LET/sub infinity/ for various particles be defined so that appropriate quality factors (Q) could be assigned for estimation of risk. Although mice and men differ in susceptibility to radiation-induced cataracts, the results from this project should assist in defining appropriate quality factors in relation to LET/sub infinity/, particle mass, charge, or velocity. Evaluation of results indicated that : (1) low single doses (5 to 20 rad) of iron (/sup 56/Fe) or argon (/sup 40/Ar) particles are cataractogenic at 11 to 18 months after irradiation; (2) onset and density of the opacification are dose related; (3) cataract density (grade) at 9, 11, 13, and 16 months after irradiation shows partial LET/sub infinity/-dependence; and (4) the severity of cataracts is reduced significantly when 417 rad of /sup 60/Co gamma radiation is given in 24 weekly 17 rad fractions compared to giving this radiation as a …

The repair-misrepair model of cell survival is formulated mathematically as a Markov process. The nucleus of a cell is described by the status of the lesions that resulted from exposure to radiation. At any time each of these lesions is either unrepaired, misrepaired, or eurepaired. A system of coupled differential equations for the probabilities of zero, one, two, ... unrepaired lesions is derived. The probability of survival of a cell is the probability of zero unrepaired or misrepaired lesions. Solutions for the probability of survival are obtained for four cases: three for lesions associated with the tracks of ionizing particles through the nucleus and one for lesions resulting from X rays and not distributed along tracks. These solutions reduce to simple forms for various limiting cases of the parameters. These limiting solutions bound the range of the probability of survival. It is shown that when the average number of initial lesions per track is varied while the average number of lesions for the nucleus as a whole is held constant, the cells with a higher number of lesions per track (corresponding to higher LET) have a higher probability of survival than those with a lower number. This shows the effect …

Nondestructive assay (NDA) methods were studied for application to sphere-pac fuel with a high gamma ray background. It was decided that the NDA method selected should be capable of measuring total fissile content of each fuel rod as well as determining the axial fissile distribution because assay techniques that employ detection of spontaneous or induced gamma ray emission are not practicable because of the high gamma ray background of candidate fuels. Therefore, methods employing neutron detection were studied for use with sphere-pac fuel rods.

In order to suppress longitudinal coupled-bunch oscillations which might limit the capabilities of PEP, the 18 GeV e/sup +/e/sup -/ storage ring at SLAC, a longitudinal feedback system is utilized. A frequency domain feedback system was chosen with the frequency spectrum of the stored beam being sampled close to a symmetry point in the ring where the feedback cavity itself is also located. The symmetry point chosen is symmetry point 5 which lies half-way between interaction regions 4 and 6. The system has been installed in PEP and is now operational. However, at stored currents up to the maximum stored in PEP to date at 14.5 GeV (approximately 40 mA in 6 bunches), the ring has been stable to all modes of longitudinal coupled-bunch oscillations both barycentric and the other fundamental modes. By deliberately detuning the main accelerating cavities, small multibunch oscillations can be introduced which, in turn, can be damped by the feedback system. Under optimized beam conditions the feedback system could be adjusted to positive feedback and excite oscillations with relatively small power to the feedback cavity. This will be described along with other details of the system.

Progress at LAMPF is the semiannual progress report of the MP Division of the Los Alamos National Laboratory. The report also includes brief reports on research done at LAMPF by researchers from other institutions and Los Alamos divisions.

During the first years of Bevalac operation the biomedical effort concentrated on radiobiology work, laying the foundation for patient radiotherapy. A dedicated radiotherapy area was created in 1978, and in 1979 full-scale patient treatment was begun. As of now over 500 treatments with carbon, neon and argon beams have been delivered to about 50 patients, some as boosts from other modalities and some as complete heavy ion treatments. Up to 12 patients per day have been treated in this facility. Continuing efforts in refining techniques and operating procedures are increasing efficiency and accuracy of treatments, and are contributing to the alleviation of scheduling difficulties caused by the unique requirements of radiotherapy with human patients.

The University of Tennessee Space Institute (UTSI) reports on significant activity, task status, planned research, testing, development, and conclusions for the Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) Coal-Fired Flow Faclity (CFFF) and the Energy Conversion Facility (ECF).

Data from tests in He II of four 1-meter-long magnets are presented. The maximum quench current is increased up to 30 percent, compared with tests in He I. Data from calorimetric measurements of heat generated during cyclic operation are presented. Quenches were induced by heaters placed near the conductor, and the energy required to induce quenches in He II and in He I are compared.

As part of the national hot dry rock (HDR) geothermal program conducted by Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, a regional deep magnetotelluric (MT) survey of Arizona and New Mexico was performed. The main objective of the MT project was to produce a regional geoelectric contour map of the pervasive deep electrical conductor within the crust and/or upper mantle beneath the Colorado Plateau, Basin and Range Province, and Rio Grande rift. Three MT profiles cross the Jemez lineament. Preliminary one-dimensional analysis of the data suggest the lineament is associated with anomalously high electrical conductivity very shallow in the crust. An MT/audiomagnetotelluric (AMT) study of a 161 km/sup 2/ HDR prospect was performed on the Zuni Indian Reservation, New Mexico. Two-dimensional gravity modeling of a 700-km gravity profile at 34/sup 0/30'N latitude was used to study the crust and upper mantle beneath the Rio Grande rift. Several models of each of three consecutive layers were produced using all available geologic and geophysical constraints. Two short-wavelength anomalies along the gravity profile were analyzed using linear optimization techniques.

The Southern Rocky Mountain atlas assimilates five collections of wind resource data: one for the region and one for each of the four states that compose the Southern Rocky Mountain region (Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah). At the state level, features of the climate, topography and wind resource are discussed in greater detail than is provided in the regional discussion, and the data locations on which the assessment is based are mapped. Variations, over several time scales, in the wind resource at selected stations in each state are shown on graphs of monthly average and interannual wind speed and power, and hourly average wind speed for each season. Other graphs present speed, direction, and duration frequencies of the wind at these locations.

An extensive vibration survey was conducted on the Fast Flux Test Facility piping during the plant acceptance test program. The purpose was to verify that both mechanical and flow induced vibration amplitudes were of sufficiently low level so that pipe and pipe support integrity would not be compromised over the plant design lifetime. Excitation sources included main heat transport sodium pumps, reciprocating auxiliary system pumps, EM pumps, and flow oscillations. Pipe sizes varied from one-inch to twenty-eight-inches in diameter. This paper describes the test plan; the instrumentation and procedures utilized; and the test results.

The techniques and practices utilized in an allied industry (electric power generation) that might serve as a baseline for formulating Quality Assurance and Reliability (QA and R) procedures for photovoltaic solar energy systems were studied. The study results provide direct near-term input for establishing validation methods as part of the SERI performance criteria and test standards development task.

The purpose of contract No. E(49-18)2368 (EX-76-S-01-2368) was to develop a means for measuring coal reactivities at practical gasification conditions, to make measurements of coal reactivities on several coal chars, and to develop correlations relating coal gasification rates to measurable parameters. These goals have been achieved. A novel Hanging Reactor Thermobalance was developed under the present contract. This unique instrument provides a completely new method for measurement of gas/solid reaction rate data at practical process conditions of temperature, pressure, gas phase composition and fluid mechanical regime. In addition to coal gasification studies the new device will be useful in other energy related studies, i.e., shale oil pyrolysis and hot stack gas cleanup. The instrument was used to study the CO/sub 2/ gasification of Montana Rosebud char and Illinois No. 6 coal. A careful modelling study was made. The observed reaction rate vs. time (and conversion) data were correlated with a physically realistic model using only measurable parameters.

A general review is given of the recently discovered phenomenon of enhanced ion backscattering near 180/sup 0/. Examples of experimental results are presented that illustrate the nature of the enhancement and its basic dependences on angle and depth. It is shown that the various aspects of the effect can be reproduced by computer simulations that include the effects of trajectory reversibility, nuclear recoils and detector depth resolution. Measured and calculated results are given that illustrate the dependences of the enhancement on ion and target parameters. Results are presented of the enhancement observed in amorphous Ge and in a single crystal of Ge rotated to create a reference spectrum. The enhancement is greater for the rotating crystal case demonstrating crystalline effects on the enhancement. Also presented are some results for the enhancement of the surface yield in a channeling direction of a crystal in the 180/sup 0/ geometry; possible application for surface studies is discussed.

The design process and energy analyses for the wall (air) collector component for the passive/hybrid system building alternatives for pre-engineered metal buildings are described. A hybrid collector was coupled to the rockbed storage and ceiling plenum of the office and maintenance spaces. A thermosyphon collector was coupled directly to the interior space of the warehouse. The schematic design, design development, and performance analysis are included. (MHR)

For a 49-trench section that was sealed in Solid Waste Disposal Area 6, the water-table elevation was periodically measured to assess the effectiveness of the seal for controlling the intrustion of water. Water was found in a majority of trenches throughout the study period (May 1978-December 1979). Mean seasonal water-table fluctuations indicated an average rise of 131 +- 56 cm in waste trenches between October 30, 1978 (minimum level) and February 15, 1979 (maximum level). This mean difference corresponds to an estimated gain of 1000 m/sup 3/ of groundwater storage in the trench area. The measured depths to water in the trenches showed a general correspondence with those in monitoring wells (augered during September 1979) outside the trenches in the undisturbed zone in the downslope southern half of the study area. In contrast, the measured depths to water were relatively greater in wells in the undisturbed zone in comparison with those in trenches in the upslope northern half of the study area. This suggests that perched water tables developed within the trenches in the upslope area. The groundwater table (potentiometric surface) contours essentially followed the topographic contours and indicated a predominant gradient toward the south-southwest, which is in the direction …

More accurate and efficient algorithms to calculate geometric factors and obstruction logic was developed, programmed, and tested. These new algorithms were needed in order to facilitate the incorporation of lighting, both natural and artificial, into the DEROB System. With this new set of algorithms it will be possible to hard-wire, with minimum user involvement, the highly desirable capability of calculating light propagation via light shafts, courtyards and other multispace radiation coupling problems. This capability will include as a special case, the simple one room illumination analysis. The report contains the basic theory for these algorithms, and the listing of the DRBGF module that has them incorporated. The completed incorporation of diffuse lighting into DEROB is expected to be completed by September 1981.

Research conducted in the Environmental Sciences Division for the Fiscal Year 1980 included studies carried out in the following Division programs and sections: (1) Advanced Fossil Energy Program, (2) Nuclear Program, (3) Environmental Impact Program, (4) Ecosystem Studies Program, (5) Low-Level Waste Research and Development Program, (6) National Low-Level Waste Program, (7) Aquatic Ecology Section, (8) Environmental Resources Section, (9) Earth Sciences Section, and (10) Terrestrial Ecology Section. In addition, Educational Activities and the dedication of the Oak Ridge National Environmental Research Park are reported. Separate abstracts were prepared for the 10 sections of this report.

Pressure of approx. 10/sup -10/ torr is needed in the Bevatron to accelerate partially-stripped very-heavy ions (e.g. U/sup 69 +/) in the Bevatron without significant loss due to interactions with the residual gas. This ultra-high vacuum will be achieved by installing (summer and fall 1981) a cryogenic liner, mostly 12/sup 0/K, surrounding the Bevatron circulating beam. The novel construction features are presented along with results from successful tests of prototype sections. This is believed to be the largest application of cryogenic pumping to particle accelerators yet undertaken.