None

Two BWR fuels [64 and 71 (MWd)/kgU], one of which contained 2% Gd, and two PWR fuels [30 and 45 (MWd)/kgU], are tested by dripping groundwater on the fuels under oxidizing and hydrologically unsaturated conditions for times ranging from 2.4 to 8.2 yr at 90 C. The {sup 99}Tc, {sup 129}I, {sup 137}Cs, {sup 97}Mo, and {sup 90}Sr releases are presented to show the effects of long reaction times and of gadolinium on nuclide release. This investigation showed that the five nuclides at long reaction times have similar fractional release rates and that the presence of 2% Gd reduced the {sup 99}Tc cumulative release fraction by about an order of magnitude over that of a fuel with a similar burnup.

In this paper we study the formation of NO in laminar, nitrogen diluted methane diffusion flames that are seeded with ammonia in the fuel stream. We have performed numerical simulations with detailed chemistry as well as laser-induced fluorescence imaging measurements for a range of ammonia injection rates. For comparison with the experimental data, synthetic LIF images are calculated based on the numerical data accounting for temperature and fluorescence quenching effects. We demonstrate good agreement between measurements and computations. The LIF corrections inferred from the simulation are then used to calculate absolute NO mole fractions from the measured signal.The NO formation in both doped and undoped flames occurs in the flame sheet. In the undoped flame, four different mechanisms including thermal and prompt NO appear to contribute to NO formation. As the NH3 seeding level increases, fuel-NO becomes the dominant mechanism and N2 shifts from being a net reactant to being a net product. Nitric oxide in the undoped flame as well as in the core region of the doped flames are underpredicted by the model; we attribute this mainly to inaccuracies in the NO recycling chemistry on the fuel-rich side of the flame sheet.

A method was developed to enhance geothermal steam production from two-phase wells at THE Geysers Geothermal Field. The beneficial result was increased geothermal production that was easily and economically delivered to the power plant.

None

This project on heat transfer coefficients in metal permanent mold casting has been conducted in three areas. They are the theoretical study at the University of Michigan, the experimental investigation of squeeze casting at CMI-Tech Center (Now Hayes-Lemmerz Technical Center) and the experimental investigation of low pressure permanent mold casting at Amcast Automotive.

None

The purpose of this Analysis/Model Report (AMR) is to update and document the data and subsequent analyses from ambient field-testing activities performed in underground drifts of the Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project (YMP). This revision updates data and analyses presented in the initial issue of this AMR. This AMR was developed in accordance with the ''Technical Work Plan for Unsaturated Zone (UZ) Flow and Transport Process Model Report'' and ''Technical Work Plan for UZ Flow, Transport, and Coupled Processes Process Model Report. These activities were performed to investigate in situ flow and transport processes. The evaluations provide the necessary framework to: (1) refine and confirm the conceptual model of matrix and fracture processes in the unsaturated zone (UZ) and (2) analyze the impact of excavation (including use of construction water and effect of ventilation) on the UZ flow and transport processes. This AMR is intended to support revisions to ''Conceptual and Numerical Models for UZ Flow and Transport'' and ''Unsaturated Zone Flow and Transport Model Process Model Report''. In general, the results discussed in this AMR are from studies conducted using a combination or a subset of the following three approaches: (1) air-injection tests, (2) liquid-release tests, and (3) moisture …

Layering is the process whereby condensed deuterium tritium (DT) fusion fuel at 18-19 K is very uniformly distributed on the inside wall of an Inertial Fusion Energy (IFE) target. The quality and uniformity of the DT layer has a profound effect on the performance (gain) of the target. It would be a great advantage for indirect drive targets to carry out layering with the capsule already assembled in the hohlraum. One concept to accomplish this is to layer targets in controlled temperature, cryogenic tubes while they are being staged for feeding to the injection system. In this report we have demonstrated through extensive analysis that in-hohlraum layering is possible, but that variations in dimensions, alignments and material properties can easily cause the capsule temperature nonuniformity to exceed values needed to assure proper fuel layering. The concept shows sufficient promise to warrant continued investigation. Analysis alone cannot demonstrate the feasibility of in-hohlraum layering. One of the most basic and important experiments is the measurement of the properties of hohlraum materials. Such measurements must be performed with sufficient accuracy to demonstrate predictability and repeatability to the level of precision needed to maintain thermal control. Continued close interaction between target designers and target …

In this paper we study the behavior of a premixed turbulent methane flame in three dimensions using numerical simulation. The simulations are performed using an adaptive time-dependent low Mach number combustion algorithm based on a second-order projection formulation that conserves both species mass and total enthalpy. The species and enthalpy equations are treated using an operator-split approach that incorporates stiff integration techniques for modeling detailed chemical kinetics. The methodology also incorporates a mixture model for differential diffusion. For the simulations presented here, methane chemistry and transport are modeled using the DRM-19 (19-species, 84-reaction) mechanism derived from the GRIMech-1.2 mechanism along with its associated thermodynamics and transport databases. We consider a lean flame with equivalence ratio 0.8 for two different levels of turbulent intensity. For each case we examine the basic structure of the flame including turbulent flame speed and flame surface area. The results indicate that flame wrinkling is the dominant factor leading to the increased turbulent flame speed. Joint probability distributions are computed to establish a correlation between heat release and curvature. We also investigate the effect of turbulent flame interaction on the flame chemistry. We identify specific flame intermediates that are sensitive to turbulence and explore various correlations …

Second order optical nonlinearities were induced in commercial phosphate glasses (Schott, IOG-1) by the thermal poling technique. The induced {chi}{sup (2)} was measured via second harmonic generation using a fundamental beam from a 1064 nm mode-locked Nd:YAG laser. The nonlinear regions were characterized using the Maker-Fringe technique, in which the second harmonic signals were observed as a function of incident angle of the fundamental beam. The results show that the {chi}{sup (2)} profile has contributions from two distinct regions: a near-anodic surface region and a bulk. We have modeled the induced profile to fit our experimental results. The dependence of the induced nonlinearity on applied poling fields, temperatures and poling time is discussed.

Developed equipment consisted of a high magnetic field solenoid with supporting instrumentation for electron plasma confinement. The solenoid was designed and delivered in year 1. In year 2, it was mapped and the trap was created and commissioned. In parallel, an ongoing program of beam-plasma interaction studies was carried out with a lower field trap developed earlier. The trap was placed in the IUCF Coolor (an intermediate-energy electron-cooled storage ring) and the effects of the beam on the plasma were investigated, including energy and angular momentum transfer. Student projects carried out within the beam-plasma group also included development of a diagnostic with high spatial resolution, and preparation for extension of the beam-plasma interaction study to much lower beam energy. This became the principal group activity during the latter part of the project.

Recent progress in simulation methodologies and new, high-performance parallel architectures have made it is possible to perform detailed simulations of multidimensional combustion phenomena using comprehensive kinetics mechanisms. However, as simulation complexity increases, it becomes increasingly difficult to extract detailed quantitative information about the flame from the numerical solution, particularly regarding the details of chemical processes. In this paper we present a new diagnostic tool for analysis of numerical simulations of combustion phenomena. Our approach is based on recasting an Eulerian flow solution in a Lagrangian frame. Unlike a conventional Lagrangian viewpoint in which we follow the evolution of a volume of the fluid, we instead follow specific chemical elements, e.g., carbon, nitrogen, etc., as they move through the system. From this perspective an ''atom'' is part of some molecule that is transported through the domain by advection and diffusion. Reactions ca use the atom to shift from one species to another with the subsequent transport given by the movement of the new species. We represent these processes using a stochastic particle formulation that treats advection deterministically and models diffusion as a suitable random-walk process. Within this probabilistic framework, reactions can be viewed as a Markov process transforming molecule to molecule …

None

Refractive index changes have been induced inside bulk fused silica by using femtosecond (fs) laser pulses tightly focused inside the material. Waveguides have been fabricated inside the glass by scanning the glass with respect to the focal point of the laser beam. The refractive index change is estimated to be {approx} 10{sup -4}. Other more complex three-dimensional structures have also been fabricated (curved waveguides, splitters, and interferometers). We also report on fluorescence spectroscopy of the fs-modified fused silica using a confocal microscopy setup. Using a 488 nm excitation source, a fluorescence at 630 nm is observed from the modified glass, which is attributed to the presence of non-bridging oxygen hole center (NBOHC) defects created by the fs pulses. The fluorescence decays with prolonged exposure to the 488 nm light, indicating that the defects are being photobleached by the excitation light.

The problem of stopping nuclear smuggling of terrorist nuclear devices is a complex one, owing to the variety of pathways by which such a device can be transported. To fashion new detection systems that improve the chances of detecting such a device, it is important to know the various requirements and conditions that would be imposed on them by both the types of devices that might be smuggled and by the requirement that it not overly interfere with the transportation of legitimate goods. Requirements vary greatly from low-volume border crossings to high-volume industrial container ports, and the design of systems for them is likely to be quite different. There is also a further need to detect these devices if they are brought into a country via illicit routes, i.e., those which do not pass through customs posts, but travel overland though open space or to a smaller, unguarded airport or seaport. This paper describes some generic uses of detectors, how they need to be integrated into customs or other law enforcement systems, and what the specifications for such detectors might be.

The titles in the table of contents for this journal are: Editorial: Basic Research at ORNL; ORNL's Search for Rare Isotopes; ORNL Theorists and the Nuclear Shell Model; Beam Technologies Enable HRIBF Experiments; Neutrons, ''Stripes,'' and Superconductivity; ORNL's Neutron Sources and Nuclear Astrophysics; Modeling Magnetic Materials for Electronic Devices; In Quest of a Quark: ORNL's Role in the PHENIX Particle Detector; New Hope for the Blind from a Spinach Protein; Human Susceptibility and Mouse Biology; Modeling a Fusion Plasma Heating Process and Stellarator; Neutron Sources and Nanoscale Science; Quantum-Dot Arrays for Computation; Carbon Nanotubes and Nanofibers: The Self-Assembly Challenge; Incredible Shrinking Labs: Weighing a Move to the Nanoscale; Basic Geochemical Research Supports Energy Industries; Fermi Award Winner Opened New Fields in Atomic Physics; Improving the Internet's Quality of Service; and QOS for Wireless Communication.

The titles in the table of contents for this journal are: Editorial: Science at the Interface; Science at the Interface: A Round-table Discussion; Center for Structural and Molecular Biology Open to Users; The Virtual Human Project: An Idea Whose Time Has Come?; The Spallation Neutron Source: A Challenging Year; Neutrino Detector Laboratory To Be Proposed for ORNL; Turbine Renewal: Shaping an Emerging Gas-Fired Power Source; Heat Pumps: More Energy Bang for the Buck?; Combined Solar Light and Power for Illuminating Buildings; What's in a Chromosome? Tune in to the Genome Channel; Microbial Functional Genomics and Waste Site Bioremediation; Human Improvement; ORNL's Infrared Processing Center: Industrial Interest Heats Up; How Much Stuff Is Made in Stellar Explosions? ORNL's Answer; and Electronic License Could Reduce Drunken Driving.

The titles in the table of contents for this journal are: Editorial: ORNL Could Be DOE Leader in Carbon Management; Managing Carbon: ORNL's Research Roles; Building Energy Use and Carbon Management; Producing and Detecting Hydrogen; New Hydrogen-Producing Reaction Could Lead to Micropower Sources; Fuel Cells: Clean Power Source for Homes and Cars; Capturing Carbon the ORNL Way; Boosting Bioenergy and Carbon Storage in Green Plants; Land Use and Climate Change; Plunging into Carbon Sequestration Research; Methane Hydrates: A Carbon Management Challenge; Adapting to Climate Change; High-Carbon Tree Growth Rate Falls; Reshaping the Bottle for Fusion Energy; Building a Transistor That Doesn't Forget; New Type of Radioactivity Discovered at ORNL; Forecasting Epileptic Seizures; Lynne Parker's Cooperative Robots; Mercury Beyond Oak Ridge; A Disrupted Organic Film: Could Memories Be Made of This?; ORNL's Powerful Tools for Scientific Discovery; and Breaking a Record for Analysis of Atoms.

The titles in the table of contents from this journal are: Editorial: Unraveling Complex Biological Systems; Systems Biology: New Views of Life; Genes and Proteins: A Primer; Complex Biological Systems in Mice; Gene Chip Engineers; Searching for Mouse Models of Human Disorders; Mouse Models for the Human Disease of Chronic Hereditary Tyrosinemia; Obesity-related Gene in Mouse Discovered at ORNL; MicroCAT ''Sees'' Hidden Mouse Defects; Curing Cancer in Mice; Search for Signs of Inflammatory Disease; Surprises in the Mouse Genome; Protein Identification by Mass Spectrometry; Rapid Genetic Disease Screening Possible Using Laser Mass Spectrometry; Lab on a Chip Used for Protein Studies; The Mouse House: From Old to New; Human Genome Analyzed Using Supercomputer; Protein Prediction Tool Has Good Prospects; Microbe Probe: Studying Bacterial Genomes; SNS and Biological Research; Accessing Information on the Human Genome Project; A Model Fish for Pollutant Studies; Controlling Carbon in Hybrid Poplar Trees; and Disease Detectives.

This report describes the results achieved during Phase I of a three-phase subcontract to develop and understand thin-film solar cell technology associated with CuInSe2 and related alloys, a-Si and its alloys, and CdTe. Modules based on all these thin films are promising candidates to meet DOE long-range efficiency, reliability, and manufacturing cost goals. The critical issues being addressed under this program are intended to provide the science and engineering basis for developing viable commercial processes and to improve module performance. The generic research issues addressed are: (1) quantitative analysis of processing steps to provide information for efficient commercial-scale equipment design and operation; (2) device characterization relating the device performance to materials properties and process conditions; (3) development of alloy materials with different bandgaps to allow improved device structures for stability and compatibility with module design; (4) development of improved window/heterojunction layers and contacts to improve device performance and reliability; and (5) evaluation of cell stability with respect to illumination, temperature, and ambient, and with respect to device structure and module encapsulation.

We have induced, measured, and modeled the {delta}-{alpha}' martensitic transformation in a Pu-Ga alloy by a resistivity technique on a 2.8-mm diameter disk sample. Our measurements of the resistance by a 4-probe technique were consistent with the expected resistance obtained from a finite element analysis of the 4-point measurement of resistivity in our round disk configuration. Analysis by finite element methods of the postulated configuration of {alpha}' particles within model {delta} grains suggests that a considerable anisotropy in the resistivity may be obtained depending on the arrangement of the {alpha}' lens shaped particles within the grains. The resistivity of these grains departs from the series resistance model and can lead to significant errors in the predicted amount of the {alpha}' phase present in the microstructure. An underestimation of the amount of {alpha}' in the sample by 15%, or more, appears to be possible.

To assist in the characterization of microstructural changes associated with irradiation damage in low alloy steels, the technique of quantitative x-ray mapping using a field emission gun scanning transmission electron microscope (FEG-STEM) equipped with an x-ray energy Dispersive spectrometer (XEDS) has been employed. Quantitative XEDS microanalyses of the matrix and grain boundaries of irradiated specimens have been compared with previous quantitative analyses obtained using 3D-Atom Probe Field-Ion Microscopy (3D-APFIM). In addition, the FEG-STEM XEDS maps obtained from the irradiated steel have revealed the presence of 2 to 3 nm Ni-enriched 'precipitates' in the matrix, which had previously been detected using 3D-APFIM. These quantitative FEG-STEM XEDS results represent the first direct and independent microchemical corroboration of the 3D-APFIM results showing ultra-fine irradiation-induced hardening features in low alloy steel.

In accelerator-driven neutron sources such as the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) with powers in the 2 MW range (time-averaged), the interaction of the energetic proton beam with the mercury target can lead to very high heating rates in the target. Although the resulting temperature rise is relatively small (a few degrees C), the rate of temperature rise is enormous (-10{sup 7} C/s) during the very brief beam pulse (-0.58 {micro}s). The resulting thermal-shock induced compression of the mercury leads to the production of large amplitude pressure waves in the mercury that interact with the walls of the mercury target and the bulk flow field. Understanding and predicting propagation of pressure pulses in the target are considered critical for establishing the feasibility of constructing and safely operating such devices. Safety-related operational concerns exist in two main areas, viz., (1) possible target enclosure failure from impact of thermal shocks on the wall due to its direct heating from the proton beam and the loads transferred from the mercury compression waves, and (2) impact of the compression-cum-rarefaction wave-induced effects such as cavitation bubble emanation and their impact on mercury-steel interfacial phenomena (such as wetting, mass transfer and erosion).