A simple analytic method is developed, based on physical approximations, for treating transient implosive longitudinal compression of bunches of heavy ions in an accelerator system for ignition of inertial-confinement fusion pellet targets. Parametric dependences of attainable compressions and of beam path lengths and times during compression are indicated for ramped pulsed-gap lines, rf systems in storage and accumulator rings, and composite systems, including sections of free drift. It appears that for high-confidence pellets in a plant producing 1000 MW of electric power the needed pulse lengths cannot be obtained with rings alone unless an unreasonably large number of them are used, independent of choice of rf harmonic number. In contrast, pulsed-gap lines alone can meet this need. The effects of an initial inward compressive drift and of longitudinal emittance are included.

Fluidized bed incineration and waste fixation processes are being used to process the types of wastes expected from nuclear fuel reprocessing and production plants. Test incineration runs have been made on two types of wastes: high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters and tributyl phosphate-solvent solutions. Laboratory-scale vitrification equipment was used to produce glass pellets from incinerator ash and blends of other expected waste streams. Computer modeling gave an expected product integrity life of over 2,000 years.

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This report discusses basic properties of bituminous, subbituminous, and lignite coals. Properties of coal liquids are also investigated. Heats of immersion in strong acids are found for Pittsburgh {number sign}8, Illinois {number sign}6, and Wyodak coals. Production of coal liquids by distillation is discussed. Heats of titration of coal liquids and coal slurries are reported. (VC)

This month's issue has the following 3 articles: (1) Kathy Yelick is the new director for the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC); (2) Head of the Class--A cray XT4 named Franklin passes a rigorous test and becomes an official member of the NERSC supercomputing family; and (3) Model Comparisons--Fusion research group published several recent papers examining the results of two types of turbulence simulations and their impact on tokamak designs.

Time-synchronized measurements provide rich information for estimating a power-system's electromechanical modal properties via advanced signal processing. This information is becoming critical for the improved operational reliability of interconnected grids. A given mode's properties are described by its frequency, damping, and shape. Modal frequencies and damping are useful indicators of power-system stress, usually declining with increased load or reduced grid capacity. Mode shape provides critical information for operational control actions. This project investigated many advanced techniques for power system identification from measured data focusing on mode frequency and damping ratio estimation. Investigators from the three universities coordinated their effort with Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). Significant progress was made on developing appropriate techniques for system identification with confidence intervals and testing those techniques on field measured data and through simulation. Experimental data from the western area power system was provided by PNNL and Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) for both ambient conditions and for signal injection tests. Three large-scale tests were conducted for the western area in 2005 and 2006. Measured field PMU (Phasor Measurement Unit) data was provided to the three universities. A 19-machine simulation model was enhanced for testing the system identification algorithms. Extensive simulations were run with this model …

BackgroundIncreasing energy costs and environmental concerns have motivated engineering microbes for the production of ?second generation? biofuels that have better properties than ethanol.Results& ConclusionsSaccharomyces cerevisiae was engineered with an n-butanol biosynthetic pathway, in which isozymes from a number of different organisms (S. cerevisiae, Escherichia coli, Clostridium beijerinckii, and Ralstonia eutropha) were substituted for the Clostridial enzymes and their effect on n-butanol production was compared. By choosing the appropriate isozymes, we were able to improve production of n-butanol ten-fold to 2.5 mg/L. The most productive strains harbored the C. beijerinckii 3-hydroxybutyryl-CoA dehydrogenase, which uses NADH as a co-factor, rather than the R. eutropha isozyme, which uses NADPH, and the acetoacetyl-CoA transferase from S. cerevisiae or E. coli rather than that from R. eutropha. Surprisingly, expression of the genes encoding the butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase from C. beijerinckii (bcd and etfAB) did not improve butanol production significantly as previously reported in E. coli. Using metabolite analysis, we were able to determine which steps in the n-butanol biosynthetic pathway were the most problematic and ripe for future improvement.

Research supported by this grant focuses on molecular scale understanding of central issues related to the structure and dynamics of geochemically important fluids, fluid-mineral interfaces, and confined fluids using computational modeling and experimental methods. Molecular scale knowledge about fluid structure and dynamics, how these are affected by mineral surfaces and molecular-scale (nano-) confinement, and how water molecules and dissolved species interact with surfaces is essential to understanding the fundamental chemistry of a wide range of low-temperature geochemical processes, including sorption and geochemical transport. Our principal efforts are devoted to continued development of relevant computational approaches, application of these approaches to important geochemical questions, relevant NMR and other experimental studies, and application of computational modeling methods to understanding the experimental results. The combination of computational modeling and experimental approaches is proving highly effective in addressing otherwise intractable problems. In 2006-2007 we have significantly advanced in new, highly promising research directions along with completion of on-going projects and final publication of work completed in previous years. New computational directions are focusing on modeling proton exchange reactions in aqueous solutions using ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD), metadynamics (MTD), and empirical valence bond (EVB) approaches. Proton exchange is critical to understanding the structure, dynamics, …

Proteins of a serine/arginine-rich (SR) family are part of the spliceosome and are implicated in both constitutive and alternative splicing of pre-mRNAs. With the funding from DOE we have been studying alternative of splicing of genes encoding serine/arginine-rich (SR) proteins and the roles of SR proteins that interact with U1-70K in regulating basic and alternative splicing. Alternative splicing of pre-mRNAs of Arabidopsis serine/arginine-rich proteins and its regulation by hormones and stresses: We analyzed the splicing of all 19 Arabidopsis genes in different tissues, during different seedling stages and in response to various hormonal and stress treatments. Remarkably, about 90 different transcripts are produced from 15 SR genes, thereby increasing the transcriptome complexity of SR genes by about five fold. Using the RNA isolated from polysomes we have shown that most of the splice variants are recruited for translation. Alternative splicing of some SR genes is controlled in a developmental and tissue-specific manner (Palusa et al., 2007). Interestingly, among the various hormones and abiotic stresses tested, temperature stress (cold and heat) and ultraviolet light dramatically altered alternative splicing of pre-mRNAs of several SR genes whereas hormones altered the splicing of only two SR genes (Palusa et al., 2007). Localization and dynamics …

Phagocytosis is the central process by which macrophage cellsinternalize and eliminate infectious microbes as well as apoptoticcells. During maturation, phagosomes containing engulfed particlesfuse with various endosomal compartments through theaction of regulatory molecules on the phagosomal membrane. Inthis study, we performed a proteomic analysis of the membranefraction from latex bead-containing (LBC) phagosomes isolatedfrom macrophages. The profile, which comprised 546 proteins,suggests diverse functions of the phagosome and potential connectionsto secretory processes, toll-like receptor signaling, andautophagy. Many identified proteins were not previously knownto reside in the phagosome. We characterized several proteins inLBC phagosomes that change in abundance on induction of autophagy,a process that has been previously implicated in the hostdefense against microbial pathogens. These observations suggestcrosstalk between autophagy and phagocytosis that may be relevantto the innate immune response of macrophages.

The objective of this project is to develop anovel technique for remote, non-destructive, non-radiation-based detection of materials of interest to Nonproliferation Programs. We propse the development of a detection system based on magnetic resonance principles (NAR), which would work where radiation detection is not possible. The approach would be non-intrusive, penetrating, applicable to many materials of interest for Nonproliferation, and be able to identify the nuclear samples under investigation.

Portable, single-sided NMR sensors can operate under conditions inaccessible to conventional NMR while featuring lower cost, portability, and the ability to analyze arbitrary-sized objects. Such sensors can nondestructively probe the interior of samples by collecting images and measuring relaxation and diffusion constants,and, given careful shimming schemes, even perform chemical analysis. The inherently strong magnetic-field gradients of single-sided sensors developed so far has prevented imaging of materials with high water content, such as biological tissues, over large volumes whereas designs with more homogeneous fields suffer from low field strength and typically cannot probe volumes larger than 10 cm3. We present a design with a continuously adjustable sensitive volume, enabling the effective volume to be enlarged several fold. This process allows for imaging in reasonable times of much bigger objects and opens the door to the possibility of clinical imaging with portable sensors. We demonstrate MRI in axial and saggital planes, at different depths of the sensitive volume and T1-weighted contrast in a tissue sample.

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This document presents an As Low As Reasonably Achievable Control Technology (ALARACT) demonstration for evaluating corrosion on the I-beam supporting filter housing No.9 for the 291-A-l emission unit of the Plutonium-Uranium Extraction (PUREX) Facility, located in the 200 East Area of the Hanford Site. The PUREX facility is currently in surveillance and maintenance mode. During a State of Washington, Department of Health (WDOH) 291-A-l emission unit inspection, a small amount of corrosion was observed at the base of a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter housing. A series of internal and external inspections identified the source of the corrosion material as oxidation of a small section of one of the carbon steel I-beams that provides support to the stainless steel filter housing. The inspections confirmed the corrosion is isolated to one I-beam support location and does not represent any compromise of the structural support or filter housing integrity. Further testing and inspections of the support beam corrosion and its cause were conducted but did not determine the cause. No definitive evidence was found to support any degradation of the housing. Although no degradation of the housing was found, a conservative approach will be implemented. The following actions will be taken: (1) …

Development of advanced hydrogen separation membranes in support of hydrogen production processes such as coal gasification and as front end gas purifiers for fuel cell based system is paramount to the successful implementation of a national hydrogen economy. Current generation metallic hydrogen separation membranes are based on Pd-alloys. Although the technology has proven successful, at issue is the high cost of palladium. Evaluation of non-noble metal based dense metallic separation membranes is currently receiving national and international attention. The focus of the reported work was to develop a scaled reactor with a VNi-Ti alloy membrane to replace a production Pd-alloy tube-type purification/diffuser system.

It is recognized that hydrogen separation membranes are a key component of the emerging hydrogen economy. A potentially exciting material for membrane separations are bulk metallic glass materials due to their low cost, high elastic toughness and resistance to hydrogen 'embrittlement' as compared to crystalline Pd-based membrane systems. However, at elevated temperatures and extended operation times structural changes including partial crystallinity may appear in these amorphous metallic systems. A systematic evaluation of the impact of partial crystallinity/devitrification on the diffusion and solubility behavior in multi-component Metallic Glass materials would provide great insight into the potential of these materials for hydrogen applications. This study will report on the development of time and temperature crystallization mapping and their use for interpretation of 'in-situ' hydrogen permeation at elevated temperatures.

The K East (KE) Basin facilities are located near the north end of the Hanford Site's 100 K area. The facilities were built in 1950 as part of the KE Reactor complex and constructed within 400 meters of the Columbia River, which is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest and by volume the fourth largest river in the United States. The basin, located adjacent to the reactor, was used for the underwater storage of irradiated nuclear fuel discharged from the reactor. The basin was covered by a superstructure comprising steel columns and beams, concrete, and cement asbestos board (CAB) siding. The project's mission was to complete demolition of the structure over the K East basin within six months of tumover from facility deactivation activities. The demolition project team implemented open-air demolition techniques to demolish the facility to slab-on-grade. Several innovative techniques were used to control contamination and maintain contamination control within the confines of the demolition exclusion zone. The techniques, which focused on a defense-in-depth approach, included spraying fixatives on interior and exterior surfaces before demolition began; applying fixatives; misting using a fine spray of water during demolition; and demolishing the facility systematically. Another innovation that aided demolition was …

Fast intermittent transport has been observed in the scrape-off layer (SOL) of major tokamaks including Alcator C-Mod, DIII-D, and NSTX. This kind of transport is not diffusive but rather convective. It strongly increases plasma flux to the chamber walls and enhances the recycling of neutral particles in the main chamber. We discuss anomalous cross-field convection (ACFC) model for impurity and main plasma ions and its relation to intermittent transport events, i.e. plasma density blobs and holes in the SOL. Along with plasma diffusivity coefficients, our transport model introduces time-independent anomalous cross-field convective velocity. In the discharge modelling, diffusivity coefficients and ACFC velocity profiles are adjusted to match a set of representative experimental data. We use this model in the edge plasma physics code UEDGE to simulate the multi-fluid two-dimensional transport for these three tokamaks. We present simulation results suggesting the dominance of anomalous convection in the far SOL transport. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that the chamber wall is an important source of impurities and that different impurity charge states have different directions of anomalous convective velocity.

A SQUID based beam current meter has the capability of measuring the current of a beam with as little as 30 x 155 antiprotons (with a signal to noise ratio of 2). If low noise dc current is used to cancel most of the beam or an up-down counter is used to count auto-resets this sensitivity will be available at any time in the acumulation process. This current meter will therefore be a unique diagnostic tool for optimizing the performance of several Tev I components. Besides requiring liquid helium it seems that its only drawback is not to follow with the above sensitivity a sudden beam change larger than 16 ..mu..A, something that could be done using a second one in a less sensitive configuration.

We review models for spin-weighted parton distributions in a proton. Sum rules involving the nonsinglet components of the structure function xg{sub 1}{sup p} help narrow the range of parameters in these models. The contribution of the {gamma}{sub 5} anomaly term depends on the size of the integrated polarized gluon distribution and experimental predictions depend on its size. We have proposed three models for the polarized gluon distributions, whose range is considerable. These model distributions give an overall range is considerable. These model distributions give an overall range of parameters that can be tested with polarized beam experiments. These are discussed with regard to specific predictions for polarized beam experiments at energies typical of UNK.

A time dependent, bounce-averaged Fokker-Planck code, with quasi-linear diffusion at fundamental and second harmonic frequencies, has been used to study cold plasma trapping and heating of hot electrons in mirror geometry. Both electron-electron and electron-ion Coulomb collisions are included. The code can model either cavity heating (electric field throughout cavity as in EBT) or beam controlled heating (electric field spatially restricted as in the TMX-Upgrade tandem mirror). The heating method has implications for the equilibrium energy and anisotropy of the hot electrons. In TMX-Upgrade, off-midplane heating at the second harmonic in the thermal barrier is planned as a means to control anisotropy (T/sub parallel//T/sub perpendicular/. By spatially limiting (limit in B) the microwave beam and with strong single-pass absorption, the mean hot electron energy may also be controlled since the heating rate decreases at high energy due to the relativistic mass shift of the resonance to higher magnetic field.

The 9968 package is designed for surface shipment of fissile and other radioactive materials where a high degree of double containment is required. The use of the 9968 radioactive material package for a one time shipment of a 32 watt heat source versus the SARP approved maximum 30 watt heat source is addressed in this report. The analyses show that the small increase in heat load from 30 watts to 32 watts does not substantially increase internal temperatures or pressures that would approach limits for the package. Also, the weight of the content is within the current 9968 package limits. It is concluded that the 32-watt heat source can be safely shipped in the 9968 package and therefore a waiver to ship the source is justified.

The Plutonium Immobilization Facility will immobilize plutonium in ceramic pucks and seal the pucks inside welded cans. Remote equipment will place these cans in magazines and the magazines in a Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) canister. The DWPF will fill the canister with glass for permanent storage. This report summarizes FY98 Can Loading work completed for the Plutonium Immobilization Project and it includes summaries of reports on Can Size, Equipment Review, Preliminary Concepts, Conceptual Design, and Preliminary Specification. Plant trip reports for the Greenville Automation and Manufacturing Exposition, Rocky Flats BNFL Pu repackaging glovebox line, and vendor trips are also included.

This report discusses the Plutonium Immobilization can loading preliminary equipment specifications and includes a process block diagram, process description, equipment list, preliminary equipment specifications, plan and elevation sketches, and some commercial catalogs. This report identifies loading pucks into cans and backfilling cans with helium as the top priority can loading development areas.