The supersonic method of cleaning glassware is an outgrowth of the fact that it has been heretofore impossible to manually clean ground glass and quartz joints because the activity became lodged in the small pores of the ground surfaces. It has been theorized that the nature of the forces binding polonium to the glass is similar to that of the chemical bond but are less intense. The problem then becomes one of finding a force greater than this binding energy, capable of freeing the activity from the glass. This has been accomplished by using frequencies of 100 cycles to 20 kc at a power output from 2 to 20 watts, passing through a citric acid solution (pH-2) into which the contaminated article is placed. The optimum results, using a tank with the dimensions 7 in. {times} 7 in. {times} 7 in. and 3 liters of solution, has been found at 200 cycles or harmonics of 200 cycles. Citric acid was used because of the fact that it forms a soluble complex with polonium. The frequencies used have been kept within the sonic range until enough data has been obtained and correlated to warrant the design and construction of more costly …

The purpose of this review is to determine the adequacy of the High Flux Beam Reactor (HFBR) Technical Specifications for 40 MW operation by comparison with the HFBR Final Safety Analysis Report, particularly the accident analyses chapter. Specifically, the Technical Specifications were compared against the Design Basis Accident (DBA) Analyses presented in the Addendum to the HFBR FSAR for 60 MW Operation. The 60 MW DBA analyses was used since it is more current and complete than the analyses presented in the original FSAR which is considered obsolete. A listing of the required systems and equipment was made for each of the accidents analyzed. Additionally, the Technical Specification instrument setpoints were compared to the DBA analyses parametric values. Also included in this review was a comparison of the Technical Specification Bases against the FSAR and the identification of any differences. The HFBR Operations Procedures Manual (OPM) was also reviewed for any inconsistencies between the FSAR or the Technical Specifications. Upon completion of this review it was determined that the Technical Specifications are well written and the items commented on should not delay the low power restart (40 MW). Additionally, the OPM is also well written and does not require further …

Prior to April 1948 the generally accepted method of reducing the radioactive contamination of metal tools and laboratory apparatus was a series of rinses in aqua regia or various other concentrated acids. This method proved unsatisfactory for three reasons. (A) It was not a dependable method of removing activity. (B) It had a delecterious effect on tools in that it caused serious pitting, which resulted in weakened parts, and exposed a bare metal that was subject to very rapid corrosion. (C) Tools and apparatus once cleaned by this method could not readily be cleaned a second time. With the aforementioned limitations in mind, it became obvious that a new method was required. After considerable investigation into a electrochemical processes the present method was developed. Essentially, the new method is an electropolish bath to remove the activity lodged in the pores of the metal, and a ``follow-up`` chrome plate bath to render the surface impassive to corrosion.

Our efforts to develop novel technology for a rapid DNA sequencer and large fragment analysis system based upon gel electrophoresis are described. We are using microfabrication technology to build dense arrays of high speed micro electrophoresis lanes that will ultimately increase the sequencing rate of DNA by at least 100 times the rate of current sequencers. We have demonstrated high resolution DNA fragment separation needed for sequencing in polyacrylamide microgels formed in glass microchannels. We have built prototype arrays of microchannels having up to 48 channels. Significant progress has also been made in developing a sensitive fluorescence detection system based upon a confocal microscope design that will enable the diagnostics and detection of DNA fragments in ultrathin microchannel gels. Development of a rapid DNA sequencer and fragment analysis system will have a major impact on future DNA instrumentation used in clinical, molecular and forensic analysis of DNA fragments.

Recent studies have shown that high stress concentrations at moving crack tips in the intermetallic compound NiTi can induce a crystalline-to-amorphous (C-A) transformation of the crack tip region. This stress-induced C-A transformation has a temperature dependence and crystallization behavior similar to those of ion irradiation-induced C-A transformation of NiTi. The present study examines if these similarities between stress- and irradiation-induced amorphization hold true for two other intermetallic compounds, CuTi and Ni{sub 3}Ti. In situ straining was performed in an intermediate-voltage transmission electron microscope. The presence or absence of an amorphous phase was determined by dark field imaging and selected area diffraction of crack tip regions. Crack tips in both CuTi and Ni{sub 3}Ti were found to remain crystalline upon fracture. The observed absence of stress-induced amorphization in Ni{sub 3}Ti is consistent with its known absence during irradiation, but the absence in CuTi differs from its known irradiation-induced amorphization behavior. Reasons for the similarity and difference are discussed.

An experimental program has been designed to examine the chemical durability of glass compositions derived from the vitrification of simulated wastewater treatment sludges. These sludges represent the majority of low-level mixed wastes currently in need of treatment by the US DOE. The major oxides in these model glasses included SiO{sub 2}, Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}, B{sub 2}O{sub 3}, Na{sub 2}O, CaO and Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3}. In addition, three minor oxides, BaO, NiO, and PbO, were added as hazardous metals. The major oxides were each varied at two levels resulting in 32 experimental glasses. The chemical durability was measured by the 7-Day Product Consistency Test (PCT). The normalized sodium release rates (NRR{sub Na}) of these glasses ranged from 0.01 to 4.99 g/m{sup 2}. The molar ratio of the glass-former to glass-modifier (F/M) was found to have the greatest effect on PCT durability. Glass-formers included SiO{sub 2}, Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}, and B{sub 2}O{sub 3}, while Na{sub 2}O, CaO, BaO, NiO, and PbO were glass-modifiers. As this ratio increased from 0.75 to 2.0, NRR{sub Na} was found to decrease between one and two orders of magnitude. Another important effect on NRR{sub Na} was the Na{sub 2}O/CaO ratio. As this ratio increased from 0.5 to …

This test procedure provides the steps necessary to verify correct functional operation of controls, annunciators, alarms, protective relays and related systems impacted by CENRTC {number_sign}2F3E0A, Microwave Transfer Trip Project, modification work performed under work package 6B-93-00041/M. This procedure separates three tests into separate sections: energization of A-376 duplex panel and circuits; SCADA tests; and A-376 local trip tests.

The major topics covered in the investigation include: centrifugation; cake filtration; sedimentation and thickening; capillary suction operations; ceramics, slip casting; optimization studies; and wastewater. The research program was aimed at the specific areas of solid/liquid separation including sedimentation, thickening, cake filtration, centrifugation, expression, washing, deep-bed filtration, screening, and membrane separation. Unification of the theoretical approaches to the various solid/liquid separation operations was the principle objective of the research. Exploring new aspects of basic separation mechanisms, verification of theory with experiment, development of laboratory procedures for obtaining data for design, optimizing operational methods, and transferring the results to industry were part of the program.

ORNL has accumulated considerable quantitites of mixed wastes, many containing hazardous and radioactive components. Finding a suitable technique for treating mixed wastes is a challenging task. The Federal Facilities Compliance Act requires ODE to provide on-site treatment plans. A method of analysis was needed for quick, easy trade-off studies and alternatives evaluations. Evaluation of ORO management of mixed waste indicated that a systems analysis, including development of automated analysis tools and integrated models, was required. Integrated systems approach was needed because of the complexity. Risk, cost, performance, and uncertainty were considered. Resuts produced in these studies may be refined as more nearly accurate information is obtained about uncertanties in some treatment alternative.

DOE`s contract reform initiatives at Fernald and the performance-based system DOE is now using to evaluate FERMCO are key elements to the current and future success of DOE and FERMCO at Fernald. Final cleanup of the Fernald site is planned for completion by 2005 per an accelerated 10-year remediation plan which has been approved by DOE and endorsed by the US EPA, Ohio EPA, and the Fernald Citizens Task Force. Required funding of approximately $276 million plus inflation annually for 10 years to accomplish final cleanup is now being considered by US Congress. Contract reform initiatives and modified performance measurement systems, along with best business practices, are clearing the path for the expedited cleanup of Fernald.

One option for control and disposal of surplus fissile materials is the Glass Material Oxidation and Dissolution System (GMODS), a process developed at ORNL for directly converting Pu-bearing material into a durable high-quality glass waste form. This paper presents a preliminary assessment of the GMODS process flowsheet using FLOW, a chemical process simulator. The simulation showed that the glass chemistry postulated ion the models has acceptable levels of risks.

The purpose of this document is to provide information for the operation and maintenance of the Standards Hydrogen Monitoring System-B (SHMS-B) used in the 200E and 200W area tank farms on the Hanford site. This provides information specific to the mechanical operation of the system and is not intended to take the place of a Plant Operating Procedure. The primary function of the SHMS-B is to monitor specifically for hydrogen in the waste tank vapor space which may also contain unknown quantities of other gaseous constituents.

This manual covers the use of maintenance displays, maintenance procedures, system alarms and common system failures. This manual is intended to supplement the MICON maintenance training not replace it. It also assumes that the user is familiar with the normal operation of the MICON A/S system. The MICON system is a distributed control computer and, among other things, controls the HVAC system for the Plutonium Finishing Plant.

The Winter Fuels Report is intended to provide concise, timely information to the industry, the press, the policymakers, consumers, analysts, and State and local governments on the following topics: distillate fuel oil net production, imports and stocks on a US level and for all Petroleum Administration for Defense Districts (PADD) and product supplied on a US level; propane net production, imports and stocks on a US level and for PADD`s 1, 2, and 3; natural gas supply and disposition and underground storage for the US and consumption for all PADD`s, as well as selected National average prices; residential and wholesale pricing data for heating oil and propane for those States participating in the joint Energy Information Administration (EIA)/State Heating Oil and Propane Program; crude oil and petroleum price comparisons for the US and selected cities; and a 6--10 Day and 30-Day outlook for temperature and precipitation and US total heating degree-days by city. 36 figs., 13 tabs.

A burn rate test having several advantages for low gas-producing pyrotechnic compacts has been developed. The technique involves use of a high speed video motion analysis system that allows immediate turnaround and produces all required data for rate computation on magnetic tape and becomes immediately available on the display screen. The test technique provides a quick method for material qualification along with data for improved reliability and function. Burn rate data has been obtained for both UPI and Eagle Pitcher Iron/Potassium Perchlorate blends. The data obtained for the UPI blends cover a range of composition, pellet density, and ambient (before ignition) pellet temperature. Burn rate data for the E-P blends were extended to include surface conditions or particle size as a variable parameter.

The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board has advised the DOE to concentrate the near-term sampling and analysis activities on identification and resolution of safety issues. The data quality objective (DQO) process was chosen as a tool to be used to identify the sampling and analytical needs for the resolution of safety issues. Tank C-105 was on the Higher Heat Load Watch List. However, it is presently classified as a non-Watch List low heat load tank and is monitored weekly. This document is a plan which serves as the contractual agreement between the Characterization Program, Sampling Operations, and WHC 222-S Laboratory. The scope of this plan is to provide guidance for the sampling and analysis of samples from Tank 241-C-105.

The use of cross-borehole ground penetrating radar (GPR) imaging for determining g the two dimensional (2D) in situ moisture content distribution within the vadose zone is being investigated. The ultimate goal is to use the GPR images as input to a 2D hydrologic inversion scheme for recovering the van Genuchten parameters governing unsaturated ,hydraulic flow. Initial experiments conducted on synthetic data have shown that at least in theory, cross-borehole GPR measurements can provide realistic estimates of the spatial variation in moisture content that are needed for this type of hydrologic inversion scheme. However, the method can not recover exact values of moisture content due to the break down of the empirical expression often employed to convert GPR velocity images to moisture content, and to the smearing nature of the imaging algorithm. To test the applicability of this method in a real world environment cross- borehole GPR measurements were made at a hydrologic/geophysical vadose zone test site in Socorro, New Mexico. Results show that the GPR images compare well with the uncalibrated borehole neutron log data. GPR data acquisition will continue once an infiltration test has started, and the results from these measurements will be employed in a 2D hydrologic inverse …

LIGA fabricated materials and components exhibit several processing issues affecting their metallurgical and mechanical properties, potentially limiting their usefulness for MEMS applications. For example, LIGA processing by metal electrodeposition is very sensitive to deposition conditions which causes significant processing lot variations of mechanical and metallurgical properties. Furthermore, the process produces a material with a highly textured lenticular rnicrostructural morphology suggesting an anisotropic material response. Understanding and controlling out-of-plane anisotropy is desirable for LIGA components designed for out-of-plane flexures. Previous work by the current authors focused on results from a miniature servo-hydraulic mechanical test frame constructed for characterizing LIGA materials. Those results demonstrated microstructural and mechanical properties dependencies with plating bath current density in LIGA fabricated nickel (LIGA Ni). This presentation builds on that work and fosters a methodology for controlling the properties of LIGA fabricated materials through processing. New results include measurement of mechanical properties of LIGA fabricated copper (LIGA Cu), out-of-plane and localized mechanical property measurements using compression testing and nanoindentation of LIGA Ni and LIGA Cu.

The primary goal of this project is the engineering development of two advanced physical fine coal cleaning processes, column flotation and selective agglomeration, for premium fuel applications. The project scope includes laboratory research and bench-scale testing on six coals to optimize these processes, followed by design, and construction of a 2-t/hr process development unit (PDU). The PDU will then be operated to generate 200 ton lots of each of three project coals, by each process. The project began in October, 1992 and is scheduled for completion by March, 1997. During Quarter 9 (October--December, 1995), parametric and optimization testing was completed for the Taggart, Sunnyside, and Indiana VII coal using a 12-inch Microcel{trademark} flotation column. The detailed design of the 2-t/hr PDU grinding, flotation, and dewatering circuits neared completion with the specification of the major pieces of capital equipment to be purchased for these areas. Selective agglomeration test work investigated the properties of various industrial grades of heptane for use during bench- and PDU-scale testing. It was decided to use a hydrotreated grade of commercial heptane due to its low cost and low concentration of aromatic compounds. The final Subtask 6.4 CWF Formulation Studies Test Plan was issued. A draft version …

This paper describes the microseismic mapping of repeated injections of drill cuttings into two separate formations at a test site near Mounds, OK. Injections were performed in sandstone and shale formations at depths of 830 and 595 m, respectively. Typical injection disposal was simulated using multiple small-volume injections over a three-day period, with long shut-in periods interspersed between the injections. Microseismic monitoring was achieved using a 5-level array of wireline-run, triaxial- accelerometer receivers in a monitor well 76 m from the disposed well. Results of the mapped microseismic locations showed that the disposal domti W= generally aligns with the major horizontal stress with some variations in azimuth and that wide variations in height and length growth occurred with continued injections. These experiments show that the cuttings injection process cm be adequately monitored from a downhole, wireline-run receiver array, thus providing process control and environmental assurance.

InGaAsN is a new semiconductor alloy system with the remarkable property that the inclusion of only 2% nitrogen reduces the bandgap by more than 30%. In order to help understand the physical origin of this extreme deviation from the typically observed nearly linear dependence of alloy properties on concentration, we have investigated the pressure dependence of the excited state energies using both experimental and theoretical methods. We report measurements of the low temperature photohnninescence energy of the material for pressures between ambient and 110 kbar. We describe a simple, density-functional-theory-based approach to calculating the pressure dependence of low lying excitation energies for low concentration alloys. The theoretically predicted pressure dependence of the bandgap is in excellent agreement with the experimental data. Based on the results of our calculations, we suggest an explanation for the strongly non-linear pressure dependence of the bandgap that, surprisingly, does not involve a nitrogen impurity band. Addhionally, conduction-band mass measurements, measured by three different techniques, will be described and finally, the magnetoluminescence determined pressure coefficient for the conduction-band mass is measured.

Rolling contact fatigue experiments were performed on all-steel and hybrid Si{sub 3}N{sub 4}-M50 steel rolling bearing systems using particulate contaminated lubricants. The particulate contaminants used were glycothermally synthesized {alpha}-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} platelets or Arizona test dust. The effects of contaminant composition and morphology on rolling contact fatigue and wear behavior were explored. The effects of bearing element material properties on fatigue and wear behavior were also examined. Rolling wear behavior is related to bearing component material configuration and the type of particulate contaminant present in the lubricant. Component and particulate material properties such as hardness and elastic modulus are observed to affect rolling wear behavior. Wear mechanisms such as contact stress fatigue, indenting, cutting and plowing are observed.

Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and its subcontractors recently completed a nine-month legacy material clean-up effort. Legacy materials were defined as chemicals, hazardous, non-hazardous, and both hazardous and radioactive (mixed), that no longer served a programmatic use and had no identified individual owner within the Laboratory. Once personnel identified the legacy materials, the items were transferred to Solid Waste Operation`s (EM-SWO) control. Upon completing this process, the responsible division-level manager was required to certify that all non-radioactive hazardous and non-hazardous materials and acceptable mixed legacy materials had been identified and transferred to EM-SWO for proper handling or disposal. The major expense in this project was the cost of actual chemical and radiological analysis. This expense was the result of items not having an identified individual owner. The major benefit of this project is that LANL is now in an excellent position to implement its Integrated Safety Management (ISM) Plan, which requires the implementation of safe work practices, including requirements for removing unused items when vacating workspaces. Effective implementation of ISM will go a long way toward ensuring that legacy materials are no longer an issue at the Laboratory.

The effect of specimen size on the measured tensile creep behavior of a commercially available gas pressure sintered Si3N4 was examined. Button-head tensile test specimens were used for the testing, and were machined to a variety of different gage section diameters (ranging from 2.5 to 6.35 mm) or different surface-area-to-volume ratios. The specimens were then creep tested at 1350 Degrees C and 200 MPa with tensile creep strain continuously measured as a function of time. The steady-state creep rate increased and the lifetime decreased with an increase in diameter (or decrease in the ratio of gage section surface area to volume). The time and specimen size dependence of transformation of a secondary phase correlated with the observed creep rate and lifetime dependence.