An Exploratory Studies Facility (ESF) is planned to support the characterization of a potential site for a high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, NV. The selection of a design for the ESF is a critical decision, because the ESF design may affect the accuracy of characterization testing and subsequent repository design. The assist the design process, a comparative evaluation was conducted to rank 34 alternative relied on techniques from formal decision analysis, including decision trees and multiattribute utility analysis (MUA). The results helped to identify favorable design features and convinced the Department of Energy to adopt the top-ranked option as the preferred ESF design.

The North Endcap Calorimeter (NEC) is to be moved from the clean room to the north sidewalk in preparation for the final installation on the DO detector center beam. In order to make this move, the cable bridge must be 'flattened' and the NEC lifted to move over it. The detector is moved west, approximately 24 feet, while the moveable counting house remains stationary. This movement allows the cable bridge to 'flatten' i.e. become horizontal. The cable bridge lowering is steadied and stabilized by 7.5 ton hoist mounted on the moveable counting house. By moving the detector to lower the bridge, a vacancy has been created in the pit that must be filled to the level of the clean room rail elevation. This filler will consist of concrete shield blocks, stacked in two rows. These rows are spaced appropriately to match the wheel base of the EC transporter. A steel plate is placed on top of each row of shield blocks and leveled to the elevation of the clean room rails. Steel plates will be installed and leveled on the north sidewalk similar to those used on the south sidewalk for the CC installation. These plates are used as rails …

The argon excluder is designed to reduce the media density of the dead space between the internal modules of the end calorimeters and the concave convex head to less than that of argon. The design of the excluder includes a thin circular stainless steel plate welded to the inner side of the convex pressure vessel head at a radius of 26 and 15/16 inches. It is estimated that this plate will experience a pressure differential of approximately 40 pounds per square inch. A inner foam core is incorporated into the design of the excluder as structural support. This engineering note outlines the compression data for the foam used in the north end calorimeter argon excluder. Four test samples of approximately the same dimensions were cut and machined from large blocks of the poured foam. Two of these test samples were then subjected to varying compression magnitudes until failure. For this test failure was taken to mean plastic yielding or the point at which deformation increases without a corresponding increase in loading. The third sample was subjected to a constant compressive stress for an extended period of time, to identify any 'creeping' effects. Finally, the fourth sample was cooled to cryogenic …

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A generalized economic model was developed to predict the breakeven price of HDR generated electricity. Important parameters include: (1) resource quality--average geothermal gradient ({sup o}C/km) and well depth, (2) reservoir performance--effective productivity, flow impedance, and lifetime (thermal drawdown rate), (3) cost components--drilling, reservoir formation, and power plant costs and (4) economic factors--discount and interest rates, taxes, etc. Detailed cost correlations based on historical data and results of other studies are presented for drilling, stimulation, and power plant costs. Results of the generalized model are compared to the results of several published economic assessments. Critical parameters affecting economic viability are drilling costs and reservoir performance. For example, high gradient areas are attractive because shallower well depths and/or lower reservoir production rates are permissible. Under a reasonable set of assumptions regarding reservoir impedance, accessible rock volumes and surface areas, and mass flow rates (to limit thermal drawdown rates to about 10 C per year), predictions for HDR-produced electricity result in competitive breakeven prices in the range of 5 to 9 cents/kWh for resources having average gradients above 50 C/km. Lower gradient areas require improved reservoir performance and/or lower well drilling costs.

During the accelerator studies period of 12/90-1/91 efforts were made to improve the efficiency of crossing transition in the Accumulator. E760 wishes to measure the product of the branching ratios for {bar p}p {yields} {eta}{sub c} {yields} {gamma}{gamma} and the mass and width of the {eta}{sub c}. Since resonance production of the {eta}{sub c} requires a beam momentum of 3.67 Gev/c which is below the Accumulator design transition momentum, and since the above process is rare, it is required to cross transition efficiently (> 90%) with 30 mA of beam. In the past, transition crossing efficiency has been intensity-dependent, with never more than 10 mA getting through transition. At 8 mA or less, transition crossing efficiency was typically 100%. The beam loss is due to a large longitudinal beam blow-up which has been observed many times during transition crossing.

Westinghouse Savannah River Company (WSRC) has established a configuration management (CM) plan to execute the SRS CM Policy and the requirements of the DOE Order 4700.1. The Reactor Restart Division (RRD) has developed its CM Plan under the SRS CM Program and is implementing it via the RRD CM Program Plan and the Integrated Action Plan. The purpose of the RRD CM program is to improve those processes which are essential to the safe and efficient operation of SRS production reactors. This document provides details of this plan.

Semiempirical interatomic potentials are developed for silicon and carbon by modeling the total energy of the system using tight-binding approaches. The parameters of the models were obtained by fitting to results from accurate first-principles Local Density Functional calculations. Applications to the computation of phonons as a function of volume for diamond-structured silicon and carbon and the thermal expansions for silicon and diamond yields results which agree well with experiment. The physical origin of the negative thermal expansion observed in silicon is explained. A tight-binding total energy model is generated capable of describing carbon systems with a variety of atomic coordinations and topologies. The model reproduces the total energy versus volume curves of various carbon polytypes as well as phonons and elastic constants of diamond and graphite. The model has also been used in the molecular-dynamics simulation of the properties of carbon clusters. The calculated ground-state geometries of small clusters (C{sub 2}--C{sub 10}) correlates well with results from accurate quantum chemical calculations, and the structural trend of clusters from C{sub 2} to C{sub 60} are investigated. 67 refs., 19 figs.

A conceptual design for ITER was completed last year. The author developed a suitable cryogenic system for ITER as part of this conceptual design effort. An overview of the design is reported. Emphasis is on the fact that cryogenics is a mature science, and a system supporting ITER needs can be made from time-proven components without loss of efficiency or reliability. Because of the large size of the ITER cryogenic system, large numbers of compressors and expanders must be used. Very high reliability is assured by arranging these components in parallel banks where servicing of individual components can be done without interruption of operations. This and other ideas based on the author's experience with Mirror Fusion Test Facility (MFTF) operations are described. 5 refs., 3 figs.

This report presents current data on production, consumption, stocks, imports, exports, and prices of the principal energy commodities in the United States. Also included are data on international production of crude oil, consumption of petroleum products, petroleum stocks, and production of electricity from nuclear-powered facilities. 36 figs., 57 tabs.

This Interim Report summarizes the findings of our first twenty in-depth interviews in the Advanced Nuclear Reactor Public Opinion Project. We interviewed 6 industry trade association officials, 3 industry attorneys, 6 environmentalists/nuclear critics, 3 state officials, and 3 independent analysts. In addition, we have had numerous shorter discussions with various individuals concerned about nuclear power. The report is organized into the four categories proposed at our April, 1991, Advisory Group meeting: safety, cost-benefit analysis, science education, and communications. Within each category, some change of focus from that of the Advisory Group has been required, to reflect the findings of our interviews. This report limits itself to describing our findings. An accompanying memo draws some tentative conclusions.

A realistic'' model for the time evolution of the SSC luminosity is given. The SDC instrumentation and physics strategy should be informed by this profile. 1 ref.

The stability margins of the US-Demonstration Poloidal Coil (US-DPC) and the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) TF coils have been modeled numerically using the computer program CICC. The computed US-DPC limiting current, I{sub lim}, compares favorably with the values determined experimentally. Using the detailed program CICC output, we investigated the DPC quench initiation mechanism in each of the three stability regions. In the ill-cooled region, the imposed heat pulse heats the conductor to the current-sharing temperature, T{sub cs}. In the transition region, the resistance heating after the pulse must be strong enough to overcome the induced flow reversal. In the well-cooled region, good heat transfer heats the helium during the pulse. After the pulse, these high helium temperatures along with poor heat transfer cause the conductor to quench. Changes in I{sub lim} agree with Dresner's relationship. I{sub lim} can be improved by decreasing the copper resistivity, the helium fraction, or the conductor diameter. Preliminary results show the ITER and TF coil operating point is in the well-cooled region. 10 refs., 7 figs., 1 tab.

A conceptual design has been developed for a reference current drive and heating system for a HARD (High Aspect Ratio Design) option for ITER. Twelve neutral beam modules, each rated at 1.3MeV and 9.2MW, perform plasma heating and current drive. An electron cyclotron system is used for initiating the plasma and for disruption control. An alternate system has been defined which is comprised of a lower hybrid and ion cyclotron system for heating and current drive, augmented by the same electron cyclotron system proposed for the reference system. 7 refs., 8 figs., 1 tab.

The performance of a Cray system is highly dependent on the tuning techniques used by individuals on their codes. Many of our users were not taking advantage of the tuning tools that allow them to monitor their own programs by using the Hardware Performance Monitor (HPM). We therefore modified UNICOS to collect HPM data for all processes and to report Mflop ratings based on users, programs, and time used. Our tuning efforts are now being focused on the users and programs that have the best potential for performance improvements. These modifications and some of the more striking performance improvements are described.

The Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant Security and Police Operations Department is responsible for protecting the US Department of Energy interests at the Portsmouth Plant from theft, sabotage, and other hostile acts that may adversely affect national security, the public health and safety, or property at the Department of Energy facility. This audit's purpose was to evaluate Martin Marietta Energy Systems, Inc.'s staff management at the Portsmouth Plant Security Department. The Portsmouth Plant Security Department could reduce operating cost up to an estimated $4.4 million over 5 years by: (1) Eliminating up to 14 unnecessary staff positions, and (2) reducing the length of relief breaks. These economies could be realized through implementing written operating procedures and negotiating removal of certain labor union restrictions. 2 tabs.

The requirements for steady state operation of a High Aspect Ratio Design (HARD) option for ITER using noninductive current driven by Neutral Beam (NB) injection, Lower Hybrid (LH) slow waves, and Fast Waves (FW) have been examined. For the higher field (B{sub T} = 7.1 T) and moderate density (<n{sub e}> = 1.1 {times} 10{sup 20} m{sup {minus}3}) in this HARD steady state operating point, NB injection provides the optimal current drive subject to the constraints of minimizing the total input power and achieving a high plasma internal inductance (1{sub i} = 0.75; i.e. a peaked current drive profile). An alternate scenario uses FW current drive in the plasma core combined with LH waves in the outer plasma regions in place of the neutral beams, with approximately 30% higher power requirement. Finally, Electron Cyclotron (EC) resonance current drive is used in either scenario to provide localized perturbation of the current profile at the q = 2 surface for disruption stabilization. 7 refs., 5 figs., 1 tab.

The objective of proposed research is development of catalysts with enhanced slurry phase activity and better selectivity to fuel range products, through a more detailed understanding and systematic studies of the effects of pretreatment procedures and promoters/binders (silica) on catalyst performance.

The relation between the parameters of a differential equation and corresponding discrete maps are becoming increasingly important in the study of nonlinear dynamical systems. Maps are well adopted for numerical computation and several universal properties of them are known. Therefore some perturbation methods have been proposed to deduce them for physical systems, which can be modeled by an ordinary differential equation (ODE) with a small nonlinearity. A new iterative, rigorous algebraic method for the calculation of the coefficients of a Taylor expansion of a stroboscopic map from ODE's with not necessarily small nonlinearities is presented. It is shown analytically that most of the coefficients are small for a small integration time and grow slowly in the course of time if the flow vector field of the ODE is polynomial and if the ODE has fixed point in the origin. Approximations of different orders respectively of the rest term are investigated for several nonlinear systems. 31 refs., 16 figs.

The objectives of this study are to establish the mechanisms and rates of basic steps in coal conversion processes, to integrate and incorporate this information into comprehensive computer models for coal conversion processes, to evaluate these models and to apply them to gasification, mild gasification and combustion in heat engines. (VC)

The Network File System (NFS) is used in UNIX-based networks to provide transparent file sharing between heterogeneous systems. Although NFS is well-known for being weak in security, it is widely used and has become a de facto standard. This paper examines the user authentication shortcomings of NFS and the approach Sandia National Laboratories has taken to strengthen it with Kerberos. The implementation on a Cray Y-MP8/864 running UNICOS is described and resource/performance issues are discussed. 4 refs., 4 figs.

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)

An Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved sampling and analysis protocol was developed and executed to verify atmospheric emissions compliance for the new Savannah River Site (SRS) F/H area Effluent Treatment Facility. Sampling equipment was fabricated, installed, and tested at stack monitoring points for filtrable particulate radionuclides, radioactive iodine, and tritium. The only detectable anthropogenic radionuclides released from Effluent Treatment Facility stacks during monitoring were iodine-129 and tritium oxide. This paper only examines the collection and analysis of tritium oxide.