Pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (CWA), activities resulting in the discharge of dredge or fill material into waters of the US, including wetlands, require permit authorization from the US Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE). As part of the Section 404 permitting process, compensatory wetland mitigation in the form of wetland enhancement, restoration, or construction may be required to off-set impacts sustained under a Section 404 permit. Under normal circumstances, compensatory mitigation is a relatively straight forward process; however, issues associated with mitigation become more complex at sites undergoing remediation under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), because on-site response/remedial actions involving dredged and fill material are not subject to the formal Section 404 permitting process. These actions are conducted in accordance with the substantive permitting requirements of the ACOE`s Nationwide and individual permitting programs. Wetland mitigatory requirements are determined through application of the US Environmental Protection Agency`s (USEPA`s) 040(b) (1) Guidelines promulgated in 40 CFR Part 230 and are implemented through compliance with substantive permitting requirements during the conduct of response/remedial actions. A programmatic approach for implementing wetland mitigatory requirements is being developed at a former US Department of Energy (DOE) uranium refinery …

Knowledge of the rheological properties of saturated solutions containing solid particles is very important in nuclear waste management technology. For example, the nuclear waste in the Hanford Site high-level radioactive waste tanks contains strong electrolyte solutions with a high concentration of solids. Previous attempt using rotational viscometers to determine the rheology has shown unusual thixotropic and shear thinning behaviors with a lack of reproducibility. Using falling-ball rheometry, the rheology of the undisturbed simulant may be determined with much better reproducibility. In this study, a well-mixed simulant which has similar chemical composition to the actual waste will be tested. Falling-ball size and density will be varied to get data in a wide range of shear rates. To determine the rheogram, several methods will be tried to match the observed data. Based on these tests, a rheogram can be determined from the model and its best-fit parameters. The simulant shows shear-thinning behavior and a yield stress. This would suggest a H-B model. But when fitting to one of the simulants which showed a very low yield stress, the predictions assuming no yield and assuming yield resulted in no improvement in the fit when assuming yield.

Storage of electrical energy on a utility scale is currently not practicable for most utilities, preventing the full utilization of existing base-load capacity. A potential solution to this problem is Flywheel Energy Storage (FES), made possible by technological developments in high-temperature superconducting materials. Commonwealth Research Corporation (CRC), the research arm of Commonwealth Edison Company, and Argonne National Laboratory are implementing a demonstration project to advance the state of the art in high temperature superconductor (HTS) bearing performance and the overall demonstration of efficient Flywheel Energy Storage. Currently, electricity must be used simultaneously with its generation as electrical energy storage is not available for most utilities. Existing storage methods either are dependent on special geography, are too expensive, or are too inefficient. Without energy storage, electric utilities, such as Commonwealth Edison Company, are forced to cycle base load power plants to meet load swings in hourly customer demand. Demand can change by as much as 30% over a 12-hour period and result in significant costs to utilities as power plant output is adjusted to meet these changes. HTS FES systems can reduce demand-based power plant cycling by storing unused nighttime capacity until it is needed to meet daytime demand.

Cerium-doped lithium-silicate glass fibers have been developed at Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) for use as thermal neutron detectors. By using highly-enriched {sup 6} Li , these fibers efficiently capture thermal neutrons and produce scintillation light that can be detected at the ends of the fibers. Advantages of scintillating fibers over {sup 3}He or BF{sub 3} proportional tubes include flexibility in geometric configuration, ruggedness in high-vibration environments, and less detector weight for the same neutron sensitivity. This paper describes the performance of these scintillating fibers with regard to count rates, pulse height spectra, absolute efficiencies, and neutron/gamma discrimination. Fibers with light transmission lengths (1/e) of greater than 2 m have been produced at PNL. Neutron sensors in fiber form allow development of a variety of neutron detectors packaged in previously unavailable configurations. Brief descriptions of some of the devices already produced are included to illustrate these possibilities.

Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) has fabricated cerium-activated lithium silicate scintillating fibers via a hot-downdraw process. These fibers, which, as produced, typically have a transmission length (e{sup {minus}1} length) of greater than 2 meters, are found to undergo aging when subjected to room air. The aging, which is complete in a few weeks, reduces the transmission length to the order of 0.5 meter. Because of the high alkali content of the glass (on the order of 20--30 mole % lithia), we have attributed this aging to aqueous corrosion oat the polymer cladding/glass interface. changes in transmission with chemical treatment of the surface support the corrosion model. Fiber transmission performance has been preserved by modifying the hot-downdraw to a double crucible to produce glass-on-glass waveguides.

The Atmospheric Release Advisory Capability (ARAC) Center located at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, provides real-time estimates of the environmental consequences of accidental releases of radioactivity or other hazardous materials into the atmosphere anywhere in the world. ARAC`s expertise includes integrating a suite of local, regional and global dispersion models into a highly automated system. Since 1979, on-site computers have provided the link between DOE and DOD facilities around the U.S. and the ARAC Center. Beginning in 1993, these facilities have been replacing their personal computers with UNIX workstations running ARAC`s Site Workstation Systems (SWS) software. The SWS consists of a collection of applications that help sites prepare for and respond to incidents involving an atmospheric release. The SWS can be used either as a real-time emergency-response tool or to make historical or hypothetical assessments of releases.

This paper shows an analysis of the applicability of an adsorption system for electric vehicle (EV) air conditioning. Adsorption systems are designed and optimized to provide the required cooling for four combinations of vehicle characteristics and driving cycles. The resulting adsorption systems are compared with vapor compression air conditioners that can satisfy the cooling load. The objective function is the overall system weight, which includes the cooling system weight and the weight of the battery necessary to provide energy for air conditioner operation. The system with the minimum overall weight is considered to be the best. The results show the optimum values of all the variables, as well as temperatures and amounts adsorbed, for the adsorption and desorption processes. The results indicate that, for the conditions analyzed in this paper, vapor compression air conditioners are superior to adsorption systems, not only because they are lighter, but also because they have a higher COP and are more compact.

This paper presents an analysis of the applicability of alternative systems for electric vehicle (EV) heating and air conditioning (HVAC). The paper consists of two parts. The first part is a cooling and heating load calculation for electric vehicles. The second part is an evaluation of several systems that can provide the desired cooling and heating in EVs. These systems are ranked according to their overall weight The overall weight is calculated by adding the system weight and the weight of the battery necessary to provide energy for system operation. The system with the minimum overall weight is considered to be the best, because minimum vehicle weight decreases the energy required for propulsion, and therefore increases the vehicle range. Three systems are considered as the best choices for EV HVAC. These are, vapor compression, ice storage and adsorption systems. These systems are evaluated, including calculations of system weight, system volume, and COP. The paper also includes a calculation on how the battery energy storage capacity affects the overall system weights and the selection of the optimum system. The results indicate that, at the conditions analyzed in this paper, an ice storage system has the minimum weight of all the systems …

This report describes a hybrid vehicle simulation model, which can be applied to many of the vehicles currently being considered for low pollution and high fuel economy. The code operates interactively, with all the vehicle information stored in data files. The code calculates fuel economy for three driving schedules, time for 0-96 km/h at maximum acceleration, hill climbing performance, power train dimensions, and pollution generation rates. This report also documents the application of the code to a hybrid vehicle that operates with a hydrogen internal combustion engine. The simulation model is used for parametric studies of the vehicle. The results show the fuel economy of the vehicle as a function of vehicle mass, aerodynamic drag, engine-generator efficiency, flywheel efficiency, and flywheel energy and power capacities.

This paper describes a hybrid vehicle simulation model which can be applied to many of the vehicles currently being considered for low pollution and high fuel economy. The code operates in batch mode with all the vehicle information stored in data files. The code calculates fuel economy for three driving schedules, time for 0--96 km/h at maximum acceleration, hill climbing performance, power train dimensions, and pollution generation rates. This paper also documents the application of the code to a hybrid vehicle that utilizes a hydrogen internal combustion engine. The simulation model is used for parametric studies of the vehicle. The results show the fuel economy of the vehicle as a function of vehicle mass, aerodynamic drag, engine efficiency, accessory load, and flywheel efficiency. The code also calculates the minimum flywheel energy and power to obtain a desired performance. The hydrogen hybrid vehicle analyzed in the paper has a predicted range of 480 km (300 miles), with a gasoline equivalent fuel efficiency of 34.2 km/liter (80.9 mpg).

This paper describes a hybrid vehicle simulation model which can be applied to many of the vehicles currently being considered for low pollution and high fuel economy. The code operates in batch mode with all the vehicle information stored in data files. The code calculates power train dimensions, fuel economy for three driving schedules, time for 0-96 km/h at maximum acceleration, hill climbing performance, and pollution generation rates. This paper also documents the application of the code to a hybrid vehicle that utilizes a hydrogen internal combustion engine. The simulation model is used for parametric studies of the vehicle. The results show the fuel economy of the vehicle as a function of vehicle mass, aerodynamic drag, engine efficiency, accessory load, and flywheel efficiency. The code also calculates the minimum flywheel energy and power to obtain a desired performance. The hydrogen hybrid vehicle analyzed in the paper has a range of 480 km (300 miles), with a predicted gasoline equivalent fuel efficiency of 33.7 km/liter (79.3 mpg).

This paper shows an analysis of the applicability of an adsorption system for electric vehicle (EV) air conditioning. Adsorption systems are designed and optimized to provide the required cooling for four combinations of vehicle characteristics and driving cycles. The resulting adsorption systems are compared with vapor compression air conditioners that can satisfy the cooling load. The objective function is the overall system weight, which includes the cooling system weight and the weight of the battery necessary to provide energy for air conditioner operation. The system with the minimum overall weight is considered to be the best, because a lower weight results in an increased vehicle range. The results indicate that, for the conditions analyzed in this paper, vapor compression air conditioners are superior to adsorption systems not only because they are lighter, but also because they have a higher COP and are more compact.

Electrorefining in a molten salt electrolyte is used in the Integral Fast Reactor fuel cycle to recover actinides from spent fuel. Processes that are being developed for removing the waste constituents from the electrorefiner and incorporating them into the waste forms are described in this paper. During processing, halogen, chalcogen, alkali, alkaline earth, and rare earth fission products build up in the molten salt as metal halides and anions, and fuel cladding hulls and noble metal fission products remain as metals of various particle sizes. Essentially all transuranic actinides are collected as metals on cathodes, and are converted to new metal fuel. After processing, fission products and other waste are removed to a metal and a mineral waste form. The metal waste form contains the cladding hulls, noble metal fission products, and (optionally) most rare earths in a copper or stainless steel matrix. The mineral waste form contains fission products that have been removed from the salt into a zeolite or zeolite-derived matrix.

This article critically examines a two-step solvational model for mathematically describing the spectral properties of the DImroth-Reichardt betaine dye ET in binary aqueous-organic solvent mixures.

Article discussing spectrochemical investigations of preferential solvation and the compatibility of thermodynamic models versus spectrofluorometric probe methods for tautomeric solutes dissolved in binary mixtures.

Injectivity tests in wells with two permeable zones and internal flow is analyzed in order to include the usually severe thermal transient effects. A theoretical analysis is performed and a method devised to obtain information from the thermal transient, provided that temperature is measured simultaneously with pressure. The technique is illustrated with two real tests performed at Miravalles, Costa Rica. It allows to estimate total injectivity index as well as the injectivity index of each one of the two zones separately. Correct position of measuring tools and nature of spontaneous internal flow is also discussed.

As part of the Fuel Cycle Facility (FCF) of Argonne National Laboratory`s Integral Fast Reactor (IFR) demonstration, a computer-based Mass-Tracking (MTG) System has been developed. The MTG System collects, stores, retrieves and processes data on all operations which directly affect the flow of process material through FCF and supports such activities as process modeling, compliance with operating limits (e.g., criticality safety), material control and accountability and operational information services. Its architecture is client/server, with input and output connections to operator`s equipment-control stations on the floor of FCF as well as to terminal sessions. Its heterogeneous database includes a relational-database manager as well as both binary and ASCII data files. The design of the database, and the software that supports it, is based on a model of discrete accountable items distributed in space and time and constitutes a complete historical record of the material processed in FCF. Although still under development, much of the MTG System has been qualified and is in production use.

Well-designed graphical user interfaces, such as Microsoft Windows{trademark} or UNIX{trademark} -- based X-Windows, provide a capability for enhanced display of security alarm information. Conversely, a poorly designed interface can quickly overwhelm an operator. This paper describes types of graphical information that can be displayed and offers guidance on how to best display that information. Limits are proposed for the complexity of the user interface, and guidelines are suggested for the display of maps and sensors.

The Mixed Waste Management Facility (MWMF) is a national demonstration test bed that will be used to evaluate, at pilot scale, emerging technologies for the effective treatment of low-level radioactive, organic mixed wastes. The treatment technologies will be selected from candidates of advanced processes that have been sufficiently demonstrated in laboratory and bench-scale tests, and most closely meet suitable criteria for demonstration. The primary and initial goal will be to demonstrate technologies that have the potential to effectively treat a selection of organic-based mixed waste streams, currently in storage within the DOE, that list incineration as the best demonstrated available technology (BDAT). In future operations, the facility may also be used to demonstrate technology that addresses a broader range of government, university, medical, and industry needs. The primary objective of the MWMF is to demonstrate integrated mixed-waste processing technologies. While primary treatment processes are an essential component of integrated treatment trains, they are only a part of a fully integrated demonstration.

Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) developed a model for school networking using Los Alamos Middle School as a testbed. The project was a collaborative effort between the school and the Laboratory. The school secured administrative funding for hardware and software; and LANL provided the network architecture, installation, consulting, and training. The model is characterized by a computer classroom linked with two GatorBoxes and a UNIX-based workstation server. Six additional computers have also been networked from a teacher learning center and the library. The model support infrastructure includes: local school system administrators/lead teachers, introductory and intermediate hands-on teacher learning, teacher incentives for involvement and use, opportunities for student training and use, and ongoing LANL consulting. Formative evaluation data reveals that students and teachers alike are finding the Internet to be a tool that crosses disciplines, allowing them to obtain more, timely information and to communicate with others more effectively and efficiently. A lead teacher`s enthusiastic comments indicate some of the value gained: ``We have just scratched the surface. Each day someone seems to find something new and interesting on the Internet. The possibilities seem endless.``

The purpose of scientific visualization is to simplify the analysis of numerical data by rendering the information as an image. Even when the image is familiar, as in the case of terrain data, preconceptions about what the image should look like and deceptive image artifacts can create misconceptions about what information is actually contained in the scene. One way of aiding the development of unambiguous visualizations is to add stereoscopic depth to the image. Despite the recent proliferation of affordable stereoscopic viewing equipment, few researchers are at this time taking advantage of stereo in their visualizations. It is generally perceived that the rendering time will have to be doubled in order to generate the pair, and so stereoscopic viewing is sacrificed in the name of expedient rendering. We show that this perception is often invalid. The second half of a stereoscopic image can be generated from the first half for a fraction of the computational cost of complete rendering, usually no more than 50% of the cost and in many cases as little as 5%. Using the techniques presented here, the benefits of stereoscopy can be added to existing visualization systems for only a small cost over current single-frame rendering …

One of the drawbacks of standard volume rendering techniques is that is it often difficult to comprehend the three-dimensional structure of the volume from a single frame; this is especially true in cases where there is no solid surface. Generally, several frames must be generated and viewed sequentially, using motion parallax to relay depth. Another option is to generate a single spectroscopic pair, resulting in clear and unambiguous depth information in both static and moving images. Methods have been developed which take advantage of the coherence between the two halves of a stereo pair for polygon rendering and ray-tracing, generating the second half of the pair in significantly less time than that required to completely render a single image. This paper reports the results of implementing these techniques with parallel ray-traced volume rendering. In tests with different data types, the time savings is in the range of 70--80%.

This paper describes a radiological safety evaluation performed in support of operation of a typical Waste Transfer Facility (WTF) located at the Savannah River Site (SRS). This facility transfers liquid radioactive waste from and to various waste processing, storage, and treatment facilities.

A statistical design of experiments approach has been employed to evaluate the particle removal efficacy of the SC-1/megasonic clean for sub-0.15 {mu}m inorganic particles. The effects of megasonic input power, solution chemistry, bath temperature, and immersion time have been investigated. Immersion time was not observed to be a statistically significant factor. The NH{sub 4}OH/H{sub 2}O{sub 2} ratio was significant, but varying the molar H{sub 2}O{sub 2} concentration had no effect on inorganic particle removal. Substantially diluted chemistries, performed with high megasonic input power and moderate-to-elevated temperatures, was shown to be very effective for small particle removal. Bath composition data show extended lifetimes can be obtained when high purity chemicals are used at moderate (eg., 45{degrees}C) temperature. Transition metal surface concentrations and surface roughness have been measured after dilute SC-1 processing and compared to metallic contamination following traditional SC-1.