Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report provides a status of the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) efforts to implement recommendations GAO made on its audits of IRS's financial statements. In updating the status of these recommendations, GAO included the results of its audit of IRS's financial statements for fiscal year 2001 and 2000."

A statement of record issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Despite regulations limiting emissions and improved vehicle and fuel technologies, the air in many cities and towns still does not meet air quality standards. Vehicle emissions contain substances, including carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and volatile organic compounds, that degrade air quality and threaten public health and the environment. Vehicles emissions account for about one third to one-half of these pollutants. Epidemiological and other studies have consistently found that breathing emissions containing these compounds contributes to respiratory and other health problems. Vehicle emissions also harm vegetation and cause crop damage. Provisions in the clean air and surface transportation laws have encouraged transportation planners to look for ways to curb harmful emissions, but predominantly in areas that already suffer pollution problems. The Clean Air Act requires planners to demonstrate that their plans and programs will not worsen air quality, but only in areas with current or prior air quality problems. Congress and federal agencies have opportunities to provide more help to transportation planners and communities considering the environmental impacts of their transportation and land use decisions."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), there have been 181 confirmed cases of illicit trafficking of nuclear materials between 1993 and December 31, 2001. Nuclear materials can be smuggled across a country's border through a variety of means: they can be hidden in a car, train, or ship, carried in personal luggage through an airport; or walked across an unprotected border. U.S. efforts to help other countries combat nuclear smuggling are divided among six federal agencies--the Departments of Energy (DOE); State; and Defense (DOD); the U.S. Customs Service; the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); and the U.S. Coast Guard. From fiscal year 1992 through fiscal year 2001, the six agencies spent about $86 million to help 30 countries, mostly in the former Soviet Union and Central and Eastern Europe, combat the threat of smuggling nuclear and other materials that could be used in weapons of mass destruction. Assistance provided by six agencies includes installing radiation detection equipment, helping countries improve their ability to control the export of goods and technologies that could be used to develop nuclear weapons, and providing other equipment and training to improve …

The federal government has traditionally played a role in fostering technological progress. This has involved both direct federal research and development (R&D) funding and indirect measures that create incentives for increased private sector investments in innovation. However, this mix of initiatives was challenged since the 104th Congress. While support for all on-going efforts continues, some programs have been funded at reduced levels. However, since FY2001, appropriations appear to have reversed this trend.

A one-piece, composite open-bottom casting mold with integral withdrawal section is fabricated by thermal spraying of materials compatible with and used for the continuous casting of shaped products of reactive metals and alloys such as, for example, titanium and its alloys or for the gas atomization thereof.

The quantitative estimation of changes in water saturation (S{sub W}) and effective pressure (P), in terms of changes in compressional and shear impedance, is becoming routine in the interpretations of time-lapse surface seismic data. However, when the number of reservoir constituents increases to include in situ gas and injected CO{sub 2}, there are too many parameters to be determined from seismic velocities or impedances alone. In such situations, the incorporation of electromagnetic (EM) images showing the change in electrical conductivity ({sigma}) provides essential independent information. The purpose of this study was to demonstrate a methodology for jointly interpreting crosswell seismic and EM data, in conjunction with detailed constitutive relations between geophysical and reservoir parameters, to quantitatively predict changes in P, S{sub W}, CO{sub 2} gas saturation (S{sub CO2}), CO{sub 2} gas/oil ratio (R{sub CO{sub 2}}), hydrocarbon gas saturation (S{sub g}), and hydrocarbon gas/oil ration (R{sub g}) in a reservoir undergoing CO{sub 2} flood.

Photograph of the entrance of a New Life Treatment Center at canyon lake. The photo shows a portion of a new channel of Guadalupe River created at Canyon Lake after flooding. There are two signs for the treatment center located in the foreground of the photo.

Photograph of a new Guadalupe River channel created after a flood at Canyon Lake and Canyon Dam. There is fencing located in the foreground of the photo and various plant life is growing throughout the surrounding area.

Photograph of a new Guadalupe River channel created at Canyon Lake after a flood in 2002. There are trees and various plant life located along the river's edges and in the background of the photo.

Photograph of a new Guadalupe River channel created after a flood at Canyon Lake and Canyon Dam. There are rocks and stones in the foreground of the photo, a moving body of water in the center, and there are trees located in the distance.

Photograph of a new Guadalupe River channel created after a flood at Canyon Lake Dam. There is some debris located on the shore and there are trees growing throughout the surrounding area.

Weekly newspaper from Emory, Texas that includes local, state, and national news along with advertising.

Eltron Research Inc. and their team members are developing an environmentally benign, inexpensive, and efficient method for separating hydrogen from gas mixtures produced during industrial processes, such as coal gasification. This project was motivated by the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) Vision 21 initiative which seeks to economically eliminate environmental concerns associated with the use of fossil fuels. This objective is being pursued using dense membranes based in part on Eltron-patented ceramic materials with a demonstrated ability for proton and electron conduction. The technical goals are being addressed by modifying single-phase and composite membrane composition and microstructure to maximize proton and electron conductivity without loss of material stability. Ultimately, these materials must enable hydrogen separation at practical rates under ambient and high-pressure conditions, without deactivation in the presence of feedstream components such as carbon dioxide, water, and sulfur. During this quarter, new cermet compositions were tested that demonstrated similar performance to previous materials. A 0.5-mm thick membrane achieved at H{sub 2} transport rate of 0.2 mL/min/cm{sup 2} at 950 C, which corresponded to an ambipolar conductivity of 3 x 10{sup -3} S/cm. Although these results were equivalent to those for other cermet compositions, this new composition might be useful if …

This is the fourth quarterly progress report for Year-3 of the ACTS Project. It includes a review of progress made in: (1) Flow Loop construction and development and (2) research tasks during the period of time between April 1, 2002 and June 30, 2002. This report presents a review of progress on the following specific tasks: (a) Design and development of an Advanced Cuttings Transport Facility (Task 3: Addition of a Cuttings Injection/Separation System), (b) Research project (Task 6): ''Study of Cuttings Transport with Foam Under LPAT Conditions (Joint Project with TUDRP)''; (c) Research project (Task 9b): ''Study of Foam Flow Behavior Under EPET Conditions''; (d) Research project (Task 10): ''Study of Cuttings Transport with Aerated Mud Under Elevated Pressure and Temperature Conditions''; (e) Research on three instrumentation tasks to measure: Cuttings concentration and distribution in a flowing slurry (Task 11), Foam texture while transporting cuttings. (Task 12), and Viscosity of Foam under EPET (Task 9b); (f) Development of a Safety program for the ACTS Flow Loop. Progress on a comprehensive safety review of all flow-loop components and operational procedures. (Task 1S); (g) Activities towards technology transfer and developing contacts with Petroleum and service company members, and increasing the number …

The use of steel components is being challenged by lighter nonferrous or cast iron components. The development of techniques for enhancing and ensuring the filability of thin-wall mold cavities is most critical for thinner wall cast steel production. The purpose of this research was to develop thin-wall casting techniques that can be used to reliably produce thin-wall castings from traditional gravity poured sand casting processes. The focus of the research was to enhance the filling behavior to prevent misrunds. Experiments were conducted to investigate the influence of various foundry variables on the filling of thin section steel castings. These variables include casting design, heat transfer, gating design, and metal fluidity. Wall thickness and pouring temperature have the greatest effect on casting fill. As wall thickness increases the volume to surface area of the casting increases, which increases the solidification time, allowing the metal to flow further in thicker sect ions. Pouring time is another significant variable affecting casting fill. Increases or decreases of 20% in the pouring time were found to have a significant effect on the filling of thin-wall production castings. Gating variables, including venting, pouring head height, and mold tilting also significantly affected thin-wall casting fill. Filters offer …

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Single-molecule methods have the potential to provide information about conformational dynamics and molecular interactions that cannot be obtained by other methods. Removal of ensemble averaging provides several benefits, including the ability to detect heterogeneous populations and the ability to observe asynchronous reactions. Single-molecule diffusion methodologies using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) are developed to monitor conformational dynamics while minimizing perturbations introduced by interactions between molecules and surfaces. These methods are used to perform studies of the folding of Chymotrypsin Inhibitor 2, a small, single-domain protein, and of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) homopolymers. Confocal microscopy is used in combination with sensitive detectors to detect bursts of photons from fluorescently labeled biomolecules as they diffuse through the focal volume. These bursts are analyzed to extract fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) efficiency. Advances in data acquisition and analysis techniques that are providing a more complete picture of the accessible molecular information are discussed. Photon Arrival-time Interval Distribution (PAID) analysis is a new method for monitoring macromolecular interactions by fluorescence detection with simultaneous determination of coincidence, brightness, diffusion time, and occupancy (proportional to concentration) of fluorescently-labeled molecules undergoing diffusion in a confocal detection volume. This method is based on recording the time of arrival of …

Shielding current limits and magnetic diffusion characteristics have been measured at 77 K for a set of YBCO single-domain rings. These were fabricated from melt-textured cylindrical YBCO monoliths that were densified to nearly 100%, and then oriented from a single seed. The rings were surrounded by a drive coil that can, under pulse conditions, achieve applied magnetic fields in excess of 1 T and induce currents in excess of 50 kA. Simultaneous magnetic characterization with a Rogowski coil and Hall probe was used to determine the induced current in the sample and the magnetic field in the center of the sample. Magnetic fields trapped in the samples were mapped with a scanning Hall probe. When compared with similar measurements on multidomain c-axis-oriented YBCO rings, the flux penetration is faster and more uniform around the circumference of the ring. The observed critical current density, 15,000 A/cm{sup 2} at 77 K, is suitable for application in penetration-type fault current limiters. Separate measurements of the trapped magnetic field and critical current density in the rings are compared with results obtained by analysis of magnetic diffusion characteristics.

Using cesium distribution ratio data from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) on the candidates for the optimized solvent, calculations were made to determine how each solvent would perform in the caustic-side solvent extraction (CSSX) process. This report describes the effect that each solvent would have on the CSSX flowsheet for both the current solvent flow rate and the optimum solvent flow rate.

The instrumentation used for the nuclear medical imaging technique of Positron Emission Tomography (PET) shares many features with the instrumentation used for electromagnetic calorimetry. Both fields can certainly benefit from technical advances in many common areas, and this paper discusses both the commonalties and the differences between the instrumentation needs for the two fields. The overall aim is to identify where synergistic development opportunities exist. While such opportunities exist in inorganic scintillators, photodetectors, amplification and readout electronics, and high-speed computing, it is important to recognize that while the requirements of the two fields are similar, they are not identical, and so it is unlikely that advances specific to one field can be transferred without modification to the other.

Argonne National Laboratory has developed a ceramic waste form to immobilize the salt waste from electrometallurgical treatment of spent nuclear fuel. The process is being scaled up to produce bodies of 100 Kg or greater. With conventional heating, heat transfer through the starting powder mixture necessitates long process times. Coupling of 2.45 GHz radiation to the starting powders has been demonstrated. The radiation couples most strongly to the salt occluded zeolite powder. The results of these experiments suggest that this ceramic waste form could be produced using microwave heating alone, or by using microwave heating to augment conventional heating.

This project was initially targeted to the making of coke for blast furnaces by using proprietary technology of Calderon in a phased approach, and Phase I was successfully completed. The project was then re-directed to the making of iron units. U.S. Steel teamed up with Calderon for a joint effort which will last 30 months to produce directly reduced iron with the potential of converting it into molten iron or steel consistent with the Roadmap recommendations of 1998 prepared by the Steel Industry in cooperation with the Department of Energy.

The objective of this project is to develop an improved ultra-lightweight cement using ultra-lightweight hollow glass spheres (ULHS). This report includes results from laboratory testing of ULHS systems along with other lightweight cement systems, including foamed and sodium silicate slurries. During this project quarter, a comparison study of the three cement systems examined the effect that cement drillout has on the three cement systems. Testing to determine the effect of pressure cycling on the shear bond properties of the cement systems was also conducted. This report discusses testing that was performed to analyze the alkali-silica reactivity of ULHS in cement slurries.

Mixed solvent aqueous waste of various chemical compositions constitutes a significant fraction of the total waste produced by industry in the United States. Not only does the chemical process industry create large quantities of aqueous waste, but the majority of the waste inventory at the Department of Energy (DOE) sites previously used for nuclear weapons production is mixed solvent aqueous waste. In addition, large quantities of waste are expected to be generated in the clean-up of those sites. In order to effectively treat, safely handle, and properly dispose of these wastes, accurate and comprehensive knowledge of basic thermophysical properties is essential. The goal of this work is to develop a phase equilibrium model for mixed solvent aqueous solutions containing salts. An equation of state was sought for these mixtures that (a) would require a minimum of adjustable parameters and (b) could be obtained from a available data or data that were easily measured. A model was developed to predict vapor composition and pressure given the liquid composition and temperature. It is based on the Peng-Robinson equation of state, adapted to include non-volatile and salt components. The model itself is capable of predicting the vapor-liquid equilibria of a wide variety of …