This fact sheet provides an overview of the purpose, benefit, and features of the newly updated National Solar Radiation Database.

In 2006, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory conducted a nationwide quality survey of pure biodiesel (B100) intended to be used as a blendstock. The study collected random samples throughout the United States and analyzed them for quality against the current and proposed ASTM D6751 fuel quality specifications.

The purpose of this report is to provide a concise but comprehensive overview of Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program Climate Research Facility instrumentation status. The report is divided into four sections: (1) new instrumentation in the process of being acquired and deployed, (2) existing instrumentation and progress on improvements or upgrades, (3) proposed future instrumentation, and (4) Small Business Innovation Research instrument development.

The purpose of this report is to provide a concise but comprehensive overview of Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program Climate Research Facility instrumentation status. The report is divided into four sections: (1) new instrumentation in the process of being acquired and deployed, (2) existing instrumentation and progress on improvements or upgrades, (3) proposed future instrumentation, and (4) Small Business Innovation Research instrument development.

The Department of Energy is documenting the selection of an alternative for the TAN-607 Hot Shop Area using a Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act non-time-critical removal action (NTCRA). The scope of the removal action is limited to TAN-607 Hot Shop Area. An engineering evaluation/cost analysis (EE/CA) has assisted the Department of Energy Idaho Operations Office in identifuomg the most effective method for performing the decommissioning of this structure whose mission has ended. TAN-607 Hot Shop Area is located at Test Area North Technical Support Facility within the Idaho National Laboratory Site. The selected alternative consists of demolishing the TAN-607 aboveground structures and components, removing belowground noninert components (e.g. wood products), and removing the radiologically contaminated debris that does not meet remedial action objectives (RAOs), as defined in the Record of Decision Amendment for the V-Tanks and Explanation of Significant Differences for the PM-2A Tanks at Test Area North, Operable Unit 1-10.

This document, which makes changes to Groundwater Flow Model of Corrective Action Units 101 and 102: Central and Western Pahute Mesa, Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada, S-N/99205--076, Revision 0 (June 2006) was prepared to address review comments of this final document by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) in a letter dated July 19, 2006. The document includes revised pages that address NDEP review comments and comments from other document users. Change bars are included on these pages to identify where the text was revised. In addition to the revised pages, the following clarifications are made: • On Plate 1 (inserted in the back of the document), the ET Unit legend has been revised. The revised Plate 1 is included and replaces the original Plate 1. • Some of the Appendix D perturbation sensitivity analysis plots included on the CD for Sections D.3.1 and D.3.2 were not properly aligned. A revised CD is provided with all plots properly aligned.

This document, which makes changes to Phase I Hydrologic Data for the Groundwater Flow and Contaminant Transport Model of Corrective Action Unit 97: Yucca Flat/Climax Mine, Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada, S-N/99205--077, Revision 0 (June 2006), was prepared to address review comments on this final document provided by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) in a letter dated August 4, 2006. The document includes revised pages that address NDEP review comments and comments from other document users. Change bars are included on these pages to identify where the text was revised. In addition to the revised pages, the following clarifications are made for the two plates inserted in the back of the document: • Plate 4: Disregard the repeat of legend text ‘Drill Hole Name’ and ‘Drill Hole Location’ in the lower left corner of the map. • Plate 6: The symbol at the ER-16-1 location (white dot on the lower left side of the map) is not color-coded because no water level has been determined. The well location is included for reference. • Plate 6: The symbol at the ER-12-1 location (upper left corner of the map), a yellow dot, represents the lower water level elevation. The …

This document, which makes changes to Phase II Groundwater Flow Model of Corrective Action Unit 98: Frenchman Flat, Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada, S-N/99205--074, Revision 0 (May 2006) was prepared to address review comments on this final document provided by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) in a letter dated June 20, 2006. The document includes revised pages that address NDEP review comments and comments from other document users. Change bars are included on these pages to identify where the text was revised. In addition to the revised pages, the following clarifications are made: • Section 6.0 Conceptual Model Uncertainty Analyses. Please note that in this section figures showing the observed versus simulated well head (Figures 6-1, 6-5, 6-7, 6-16, 6-28, 6-30, 6-32, 6-34, 6-37, 6-42, 6-47, 6-52, 6-57, 6-62, 6-71, and 6-86) have a vertical break in scale on the y axis. • Section 7.0 Parameter Sensitivity Analysis. In Section 7.2, the parameter perturbation analysis defines two components of the objective function PHI. These two components include the WELL component that represents the head portion of the objective function as measured in wells and the FLUX component that represents the lateral boundary flux portion of the objective …

The Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) Design Basis Reconstitution Program (DBRP) is a structured assessment and reconstitution of the design basis for the ATR. The DBRP is designed to establish and document the ties between the Document Safety Analysis (DSA), design basis, and actual system configurations. Where the DBRP assessment team cannot establish a link between these three major elements, a gap is identified. Resolutions to identified gaps represent configuration management and design basis recovery actions. The proposed paper discusses the process being applied to define, evaluate, report, and address gaps that are identified through the ATR DBRP. Design basis verification may be performed or required for a nuclear facility safety basis on various levels. The process is applicable to large-scale design basis reconstitution efforts, such as the ATR DBRP, or may be scaled for application on smaller projects. The concepts are applicable to long-term maintenance of a nuclear facility safety basis and recovery of degraded safety basis components. The ATR DBRP assessment team has observed numerous examples where a clear and accurate link between the DSA, design basis, and actual system configuration was not immediately identifiable in supporting documentation. As a result, a systematic approach to effectively document, prioritize, and …

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The recent record-setting performance of the Fermilab Tevatron is the culmination of a long series of efforts to optimize the many parameters that go into generating integrated luminosity for the colliding beams experiments. The instantaneous luminosity is a function of the number of particles of each particle species, the physical extent at the collision point of the transverse and longitudinal particle distributions, and the bunch collision frequency. Meanwhile, the integrated luminosity also depends upon the rate at which particles are lost due to collisions or other means, as well as the rate at which the initial store luminosity can be restored after the end - intentional or otherwise - of the previous store. While many numerical computer models already exist that are used to help optimize the performance of the Tevatron complex, here we take an analytical approach in an attempt to illustrate the most fundamental aspects of integrating luminosity in the Tevatron. We find that the essential features, including recent values of the weekly integrated luminosity, can be understood in a transparent way from basic operational parameters such as antiproton stacking rate and beam emittance growth rate in the Tevatron.

This report--the first in what is envisioned to be an ongoing annual series--attempts to fill this need by providing a detailed overview of developments and trends in the U.S. wind power market, with a particular focus on 2006.

This report describes the Regulatory Developments and Issues related to Arsenic in Drinking Water.

Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) is conducting pilot scale evaluations of the performance and cost of innovative water treatment technologies aimed at meeting the recently revised arsenic maximum contaminant level (MCL) for drinking water. The standard of 10 {micro}g/L (10 ppb) is effective as of January 2006. The first pilot tests have been conducted in New Mexico where over 90 sites that exceed the new MCL have been identified by the New Mexico Environment Department. The pilot test described in this report was conducted in Socorro New Mexico between January 2005 and July 2005. The pilot demonstration is a project of the Arsenic Water Technology Partnership program, a partnership between the American Water Works Association Research Foundation (AwwaRF), SNL and WERC (A Consortium for Environmental Education and Technology Development). The Sandia National Laboratories pilot demonstration at the Socorro Springs site obtained arsenic removal performance data for five different adsorptive media under constant ambient flow conditions. Well water at Socorro Springs has approximately 42 ppb arsenic in the oxidized (arsenate-As(V)) redox state with moderate amounts of silica, low concentrations of iron and manganese and a slightly alkaline pH (8). The study provides estimates of the capacity (bed volumes until breakthrough at 10 …

Narasimhan Consulting Services, Inc. (NCS), under a contract with the Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), designed and operated pilot scale evaluations of the adsorption and coagulation/filtration treatment technologies aimed at meeting the recently revised arsenic maximum contaminant level (MCL) for drinking water. The standard of 10 {micro}g/L (10 ppb) is effective as of January 2006. The pilot demonstration is a project of the Arsenic Water Technology Partnership program, a partnership between the American Water Works Association Research Foundation (AwwaRF), SNL and WERC (A Consortium for Environmental Education and Technology Development). The pilot evaluation was conducted at Well 30 of the City of Weatherford, OK, which supplies drinking water to a population of more than 10,400. Well water contained arsenic in the range of 16 to 29 ppb during the study. Four commercially available adsorption media were evaluated side by side for a period of three months. Both adsorption and coagulation/filtration effectively reduced arsenic from Well No.30. A preliminary economic analysis indicated that adsorption using an iron oxide media was more cost effective than the coagulation/ filtration technology.

Run II at the Tevatron has seen an explosion of results related to the B{sub s} meson, ranging from tests of QCD models, to probes of electro-weak symmetry breaking, to direct searches for new physics effects. I will briefly summarize the CDF and D0 B{sub s}-physics programs, describing the suitability of the detectors for doing this kind of physics, and pointing out how our knowledge of important quantities has improved through Run II measurements.

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 requires individuals to receive credit counseling before filing for bankruptcy and to take a debtor education course before having debts discharged. Concerns were raised that the new requirements could expose consumers to abusive practices by credit counseling agencies or become barriers to filing for bankruptcy. This testimony is based on GAO's report issued last month, and addresses (1) the process of approving counseling and education providers, (2) the content and results of the counseling and education sessions, (3) the fees charged, and (4) the availability of and challenges to accessing services. To address these issues, GAO reviewed Trustee Program data and application case files, and interviewed a wide range of individuals and groups involved in the bankruptcy process."

Current work on the Integrated Stockpile Evaluation (ISE) project is evidence of Sandia's commitment to maintaining the integrity of the nuclear weapons stockpile. In this report, we undertake a key element in that process: development of an analytical framework for determining the reliability of the stockpile in a realistic environment of time-variance, inherent uncertainty, and sparse available information. This framework is probabilistic in nature and is founded on a novel combination of classical and computational Bayesian analysis, Bayesian networks, and polynomial chaos expansions. We note that, while the focus of the effort is stockpile-related, it is applicable to any reasonably-structured hierarchical system, including systems with feedback.

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The greatest challenge in the interpretation of galaxy clustering data from any surveys is galaxy bias. Using a simple Fisher matrix analysis, we show that the bispectrum provides an excellent determination of linear and non-linear bias parameters of intermediate and high-z galaxies, when all measurable triangle configurations down to mildly non-linear scales, where perturbation theory is still valid, are included. The bispectrum is also a powerful probe of primordial non-Gaussianity. The planned galaxy surveys at z {approx}> 2 should yield constraints on non-Gaussian parameters, f{sub NL}{sup loc.} and f{sub NL}{sup eq.}, that are comparable to, or even better than, those from CMB experiments. We study how these constraints improve with volume, redshift range, as well as the number density of galaxies. Finally we show that a halo occupation distribution may be used to improve these constraints further by lifting degeneracies between gravity, bias, and primordial non-Gaussianity.

Semiweekly newspaper from Boerne, Texas that includes local, state, and national news along with advertising.

This tutorial is aimed at guiding a user through the process of performing a cable SGEMP simulation. The tutorial starts with processing a differential photon spectrum obtained from a Monte Carlo code such as ITS into a discrete (multi-group) spectrum used in CEPXS and CEPTRE. Guidance is given in the creation of a nite element mesh of the cable geometry. The set-up of a CEPTRE simulation is detailed. Users are instructed in evaluating the quality of the CEPTRE radiation transport results. The post-processing of CEPTRE results using Exostrip is detailed. And finally, an EMPHASIS/CABANA simulation is detailed including the interpretation of the output.

A practical form of CO2 capture at water-gas shift conditions in the IGCC process could serve the dual function of producing a pure CO2 stream for sequestration and forcing the equilibrium-limited shift reaction to completion enriching the stream in H2. The shift temperatures, ranging from the low temperature shift condition of 260°C to the gasification condition of 900°C, limit capture options by diminishing associative interactions which favor removal of CO2 from the gas stream. Certain sorption interactions, such as carbonate formation, remain available but generally involve exceptionally high sorbent regeneration energies that contribute heavily to parasitic power losses. Carbon dioxide selective membranes need only establish an equilibrium between the gas phase and sorption states in order to transport CO2, giving them a potential energetic advantage over other technologies. Supported liquid membranes take advantage of high, liquid phase diffusivities and a solution diffusion mechanism similar to that observed in polymeric membranes to achieve superior permeabilities and selectivites. The primary shortcoming of the supported liquid membranes demonstrated in past research has been the lack of stability caused by volatilization of the transport liquid. Ionic liquids, which possess high CO2 solubility relative to light gases such as H2, are excellent candidates for this …