Significant progress in plasma confinement and temperature has been achieved in the 2XIIB facility at Livermore. These encouraging results, and their theoretical corroboration, have provided a firm basis for the design of a new generation of magnetic mirror experiments, adding support to the mirror concept of a fusion reactor. Two new mirror experiments have been proposed to succeed the currently operating 2XIIB facility. The first of these called TMX (Tandem Mirror Experiment) has been approved and is currently under construction. TMX is designed to utilize the intrinsic positive plasma potential of two strong, and relatively small, minimum B mirror cells to enhance the confinement of a much larger, magnetically weaker, centrally-located mirror cell. The second facility, MFTF (Mirror Fusion Test Facility), is currently in preliminary design with line item approval anticipated for FY 78. MFTF is designed primarily to exploit the experimental and theoretical results derived from 2XIIB. Beyond that, MFTF will develop the technology for the transition from the present small mirror experiments to large steady-state devices such as the mirror FERF/FTR. The sheer magnitude of the plasma volume, magnetic field, neutral beam power, and vacuum pumping capacity, particularly in the case of MFTF, has placed new and exciting …

Magnetic moment measurements are made on holmium single crystals (hcp) from 1.3 to 300 deg K in magnetic fields from 250 to 18,000 Oe, with the field applied along the c axis, the a axis, and a (1010) direction. The STA1010! direction is the direction of easy magnetization with an extrapolated effective moment per atom at saturation of 10.34 Bohr magnetons. Basal plane measurements show antiferromagnetism below the Neel temperature of 132 deg K with basal plane anisotropy occurring below 80 deg K. Below the Neel point, an anomalous type of transition to ferromagnetic behavior upon application of sufficient field is observed. Magnetization curves for the c axis are linear down to 60 deg K, while measurements below 20 deg K show an initial magnetization of approximately 1.7 Bohr magnetons followed by nearly linear magnetization curves. Electrical resistivity measurements are made from 4.2 to 300 deg K. For the a axis, the resistivity changes slope slightly at 20 deg K. A larger change in slope occurs at the Neel temperature of 132 deg K. For the c axis, the resistivity changes slope slightly at 20 deg K, reaches a peak at 120 deg K, goes through a minimum at 132 …

Complementary broad-band instruments have been developed to measure time dependent, absolute soft x-ray spectra at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) Nd glass laser irradiation facilities. Absolute flux measurements of x rays emitted from laser-produced plasmas are important for understanding laser absorption and energy transport. We will describe two new 10-channel XRD systems that have been installed at the LLNL Novette facility for use in the 0.15- to 1.5-keV range. Since XRD channel time response is limited by available oscilloscope performance to 120 ps, a soft x-ray streak camera has been developed for better time resolution (20 ps) and greater dynamic range (approx.10/sup 3/) in the same x-ray energy region. Using suitable filters, grazing incidence mirrors, and a gold or cesium-iodide transmission cathode, this streak camera instrument has been installed at Novette to provide one broad and four relatively narrow channels. It can also be used in a single channel, spatially discriminating mode by means of pinhole imaging. The complementary nature of these instruments has been enhanced by locating them in close proximity and matching their channel energy responses. As an example of the use of these instruments, we present results from Novette 2..omega..(0.53 ..mu..m) gold disk irradiations at 1 …

Plant Metabolic Engineering is an emerging field that integrates a diverse range of disciplines including plant genetics, genomics, biochemistry, chemistry and cell biology. The Gordon-Kenan Graduate Research Seminar (GRS) in Plant Metabolic Engineering was initiated to provide a unique opportunity for future researcher leaders to present their work in this field. It also creates an environment allowing for peer-review and critical assessment of work without the intimidation usually associated with the presence of senior investigators. The GRS immediately precedes the Plant Metabolic Engineering Gordon Research Conference and will be for and by graduate students and post-docs, with the assistance of the organizers listed.

We report on the evaluation of the performance of two recently developed scintillator materials, LaCl{sub 3}:Ce and LaBr{sub 3}:Ce, at the task of gamma ray spectroscopy. Their performance is compared to a standard scintillator used for gamma ray spectroscopy--a 25 mm diameter 25 mm tall cylinder of NaI:Tl. We measure the pulse height, energy resolution, and full-energy efficiency of production LaBr{sub 3}:Ce and LaCl{sub 3}:Ce scintillation crystals of different sizes and geometries for a variety of gamma-ray energies. Using production rather than specially selected crystals will establish whether immediate large-scale use is feasible. The crystal is excited by gamma rays from one of six isotopic sources ({sup 125}I, {sup 241}Am, {sup 57}Co, {sup 22}Na, {sup 137}Cs, and {sup 60}Co) placed 15 cm away from the scintillator. Our measurements show that both LaCl{sub 3} and LaBr{sub 3} outperform NaI:Tl in almost all cases. They outperform NaI:Tl at all energies for the photopeak fraction and counting rate measurements, and for energy resolution at higher energies (above 200 keV for LaCl{sub 3} and 75 keV for LaBr{sub 3}). The performance of production crystals is excellent and these scintillators should be considered for immediate use in systems where stopping power and energy resolution are …

Uncertainty built into conceptual groundwater flow and transport models and associated parametric uncertainty should be appropriately included when such models are used to develop detection monitoring networks for contaminated sites. We compare alternative approaches of propagating such uncertainty from the flow and transport model into the network design. The focus is on detection monitoring networks where the primary objective is to intercept the contaminant before it reaches a boundary of interest (e.g., compliance boundary). Different uncertainty propagation approaches identify different well locations and different well combinations (networks) as having the highest detection efficiency. It is thus recommended that multiple uncertainty propagation approaches are considered. If several approaches yield consistent results in terms of identifying the best performing candidate wells and the best performing well network for detecting a contaminant plume, this would provide confidence in the suitability of the selected well locations.

We have previously evaluated the ductility behaviors of U-6Nb and pure Ta. One important observation was that both alloys have very stable necking ductility independent of test conditions. In contrast, uniform ductility varied significantly depending upon strain rates and temperatures. In general, higher strain rate and lower temperature reduce the uniform ductility. Using literature data, we have developed two dynamic ductility models to predict the ductility behaviors of pure-Ta and water-quenched U-6Nb respectively under extreme conditions. In this study we further evaluate the aging effect on U-6Nb and the W-addition effect on Ta. For U-6Nb, the objective is to determine whether or not the ductility degradation by low-temperature aging mostly measured in quasi-static condition can still be observed under dynamic loading (high strain rate) condition. For Ta-W alloys, the focus is to identify the key control parameter so that the optimal condition of high-strength/high-ductility of Ta-10W can be achieved for certain defense-related applications.

Rainier Mesa (RM) is a tuffaceous, high-elevation plateau on the Nevada Test Site (NTS) that has been subjected to numerous nuclear tests between 1957 and 1992. Unlike other tests on the NTS located within or just above the saturated zone, tests at the RM T-tunnel complex were conducted within a variably saturated sequence of bedded and non-welded vitric and zeolitized tuff units, located approximately 500 m above the regional groundwater flow system. The low permeability and high porosity of the underlying zeolitized tuff units suggest the downward transport of radionuclides released from these tests are minimal through the tuff matrix. However, numerous faults observed to discharge water into tunnel drifts may serve as preferential pathways for radionuclide migration. Data collected from tunnel drifts indicate that faulting within the zeolitized tuff units is sparse with fractal clustering, and that connectivity between adjacent fault clusters is often weak to non-existent. The sparse fault density at RM, in conjunction with the extreme variability in the spatial distribution of faults, poses challenges not readily addressed by existing upscaling methods that upscale fracture properties as equivalent grid tensors. The unique fault statistics at RM has led to the development of a fracture continuum method designed …

None

Plant mounds or blow-sand mounds are accumulations of soil particles and plant debris around large shrubs and are common features in deserts in the southwestern United States. Believed to be an important factor in their formation, the shrubs create surface roughness that causes wind-suspended particles to be deposited and resist further suspension. Shrub mounds occur in some plant communities on the Nevada Test Site, the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR), and Tonopah Test Range (TTR), including areas of surface soil contamination from past nuclear testing. In the 1970s as part of early studies to understand properties of actinides in the environment, the Nevada Applied Ecology Group (NAEG) examined the accumulation of isotopes of Pu, {sup 241}Am, and U in plant mounds at safety test sites. The NAEG studies found concentrations of these contaminants to be greater in shrub mounds than in the surrounding areas of desert pavement. For example, at Project 57 on the NTTR, it was estimated that 15 percent of the radionuclide inventory of the site was associated with shrub mounds, which accounted for 17 percent of the surface area of the site, a ratio of inventory to area of 0.85. At Clean Slate III at the …

For Pt, the best single-element catalyst for many reactions, the question of content and loading is exceedingly important because of its price and availability. Using platinum as a fuel-cell catalyst in automotive applications will cause an unquantifiable increase in the demand for this metal. This big obstacle for using fuel cells in electric cars must be solved by decreasing the content of Pt, which is a great challenge of electrocatalysis Over the last several years we inaugurated a new class of electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) based on a monolayer of Pt deposited on metal or alloy carbon-supported nanoparticles. The possibility of decreasing the Pt content in the ORR catalysts down to a monolayer level has a considerable importance because this reaction requires high loadings due to its slow kinetics. The Pt-monolayer approach has several unique features and some of them are: high Pt utilization, enhanced (or decreased) activity, enhanced stability, and direct activity correlations. The synthesis of Pt monolayer (ML) electrocatalysts was facilitated by our new synthesis method which allowed us to deposit a monolayer of Pt on various metals, or alloy nanoparticles [1, 2] for the cathode electrocatalyst. In this synthesis approach Pt is laid down …

Crystals of slightly soluble materials should be subject of relatively weak attachment/detachment fluctuations on their faces so that steps on that faces have low kink density. These steps are parallel to the most close packed lattice rows and form polygons on a crystal surface. The process responsible for implementation of the classical Gibbs-Thomson law (GTL) for the polygonal step (in two dimensions, 2D) is kink exchange between the step corners. For the 3D crystallites, this mechanism includes step exchange. If these mechanisms do not operate because of slow fluctuations the GTL is not applicable. Physics of these processes and conditions for the GTL applicability are discussed on a simple qualitative level.

Thulium(III) oxide (Tm{sub 2}O{sub 3}) targets prepared by the polymer-assisted deposition (PAD) method were irradiated by heavy-ion beams to test the method's feasibility for nuclear science applications. Targets were prepared on silicon nitride backings (thickness of 1000 nm, 344 {micro}g/cm{sup 2}) and were irradiated with an {sup 40}Ar beam at laboratory frame energy of {approx}210 MeV (50 particle nA). The root mean squared (RMS) roughness prior to irradiation is 1.1 nm for a {approx}250 nm ({approx}220 {micro}g/cm{sup 2}) Tm{sub 2}O{sub 3} target, and an RMS roughness of 2.0 nm after irradiation was measured by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Scanning electron microscopy of the irradiated target reveals no significant differences in surface homogeneity when compared to imaging prior to irradiation. Target flaking was not observed from monitoring Rutherford scattered particles as a function of time.

A new field facility was used to study CO2 migrationprocesses and test techniques to detect and quantify potential CO2leakage from geologic storage sites. For 10 days starting 9 July 2007,and for seven days starting 5 August 2007, 0.1 and 0.3 t CO2 d-1,respectively, were released from a ~;100-m long, sub-water table (~;2.5-mdepth) horizontal well. The spatio-temporal evolution of leakage wasmapped through repeated grid measurements of soil CO2 flux (FCO2). Thesurface leakage onset, approach to steady state, and post-release declinematched model predictions closely. Modeling suggested that minimal CO2was taken up by groundwater through dissolution, and CO2 spread out ontop of the water table. FCO2 spatial patterns were related to well designand soil physical properties. Estimates of total CO2 discharge along withsoil respiration and leakage discharge highlight the influence ofbackground CO2 flux variations on detection of CO2 leakagesignals.

This article examines the future role of energy efficiency as a resource in the Western United States and Canada, as envisioned in the most recent resource plans issued by 16 utilities, representing about 60percent of the region's load. Utility and third-party administered energy efficiency programs proposed by 15 utilities over a ten-year horizon would save almost 19,000 GWh annually, about 5.2percent of forecast load. There are clear regional trends in the aggressiveness of proposed energy savings. California's investor-owned utilities (IOUs) had the most aggressive savings targets, followed by IOUs in the Pacific Northwest, and the lowest savings were proposed by utilities in Inland West states and by two public utilities on the West coast. The adoption of multiple, aggressive policies targeting energy efficiency and climate change appear to produce sizeable energy efficiency commitments. Certain specific policies, such as mandated energy savings goals for California's IOUs and energy efficiency provisions in Nevada's Renewable Portfolio Standard had a direct impact on the level of energy savings included in the resource plans. Other policies, such as revenue decoupling and shareholder incentives, and voluntary or legislatively mandated greenhouse gas emission reduction policies, may have also impacted utilities' energy efficiency commitments, though the effects of …

The authors have developed a new target platform to study propagation and backscatter of a frequency-doubled (2{omega}) laser beam through large-scale length plasmas at ignition-design densities, intensities and temperatures above 3 keV. The plasma is created by heating a gas filled hohlraum target with 37 heater beams that deliver a total energy of up to 15 kJ in a 1 ns square pulse. They measure a factor of two higher temperatures than in open geometry gasbag targets investigated earlier. This new temperature regime with a measured beam transmission of up to 80% suggests we can expect good laser coupling into ignition hohlraums at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) using 2{omega} light.

I discuss the ridge phenomena observed in heavy ion collisions at RHIC. I argue that the ridge may be due to flux tubes formed from the Color Glass Condensate in the early Glasma phase of matter produced in such collisions.

Storage of large amounts of carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) in deep geological formations for greenhouse gas mitigation is gaining momentum and moving from its conceptual and testing stages towards widespread application. In this work we explore various optimization strategies for characterizing surface leakage (seepage) using near-surface measurement approaches such as accumulation chambers and eddy covariance towers. Seepage characterization objectives and limitations need to be defined carefully from the outset especially in light of large natural background variations that can mask seepage. The cost and sensitivity of seepage detection are related to four critical length scales pertaining to the size of the: (1) region that needs to be monitored; (2) footprint of the measurement approach, and (3) main seepage zone; and (4) region in which concentrations or fluxes are influenced by seepage. Seepage characterization objectives may include one or all of the tasks of detecting, locating, and quantifying seepage. Each of these tasks has its own optimal strategy. Detecting and locating seepage in a region in which there is no expected or preferred location for seepage nor existing evidence for seepage requires monitoring on a fixed grid, e.g., using eddy covariance towers. The fixed-grid approaches needed to detect seepage are expected …

A 55 gallon wastewater drum lid was found to be bulged during storage in a remote area. Drum samples were obtained for analysis. The interior surface of these samples revealed blistering and holes in the epoxy phenolic drum liner and corrosion of the carbon steel drum. It is suspected that osmotic pressure drove permeation of the water through the epoxy phenolic coating which was weakened from exposure to low pH water. The coating failed at locations throughout the drum interior. Subsequent corrosion of the carbon steel released hydrogen which pressurized the drum causing deformation of the drum lid. Additional samples from other wastewater drums on the same pallet were also evaluated and limited corrosion was visible on the interior surfaces. It is suspected that, with time, the corrosion would have advanced to cause pressurization of these sealed drums.

None

The prototype surface examination station for the Fuels and Materials Examination Facility (FMEF) will use closed circuit television (CCTV) for routine modes of operation along with a nuclear periscope for special examination needs. The CCTV and the nuclear periscope were evaluated against prescribed station requirements and compared in a side-by-side demonstration. A quantitative evaluation of their outputs showed that both systems were capable of meeting surface anomaly detection requirements. The CCTV system was superior in its ability to collect, suppress and present data into a more useful form for the experimenters.

In inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments, the high electromagnetic fields propagating through a relatively dense plasma can result in a transverse instability, causing the matter and light to form filaments oriented parallel to the light beam. We examine whether a similar instability exists in the electron beam of a free-electron laser, where such an instability could interfere with the transfer of beam kinetic energy into optical wave energy. We heuristically examine the instability in a relativistic beam through which an intense laser beam is propagating. We ignore the FEL effects. We estimate how the altered index of refraction in an FEL affects the dispersion relation. Finally, we estimate the effect that the instability could have on the phase coherence of a particle as it transits an FEL. 10 refs., 2 tabs.

The report consists of viewgraphs. (WRF)

This paper consists of viewgraphs on swept divertors and internal magnet coils for a Compact Ignition Tokamak design. The author concludes that poloidal field energy and volt-second considerations suggest a swept divertor scenario where the outboard strike point moves from small R to large R, while the inboard strike point moves from small Z to large Z. (LSP)