Some useful information has been obtained regarding the potential use of the echelle spectrometer system for Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) monitoring applications, despite the AOTF-computer operational problems during the Sandia site-test. Currently, the use of the echelle spectrometer with the LIBS system is not suitable for trace-level analyte detection. This is due, in part, to the lower light throughput of the echelle spectrometer system compared to the SpectraPro-275. The low duty cycle of the LIBS system, which results from the use of a low-repetition-rate (but low-cost and portable) laser, also limits the detection sensitivity achievable using a high-resolution spectrometer. At high analyte concentrations, the echelle spectrometer is able to resolve spectral interferences including the Cd-As line pair at 228.8-nm and other LIBS emission features not resolved using the SpectraPro-275. A definite positive result obtained is the determination that at the high resolution of the echelle spectrometer, time-gating of the CCD detector is not necessary to discriminate analyte spectral signals from the LIBS background emission. The cost of the gated CCD and associated electronics is a significant portion of the cost of the Sandia LIBS system. Incorporation of a low-cost version of the echelle spectrometer for process monitoring applications not requiring …

Two thermal convection loops (TCLs) fabricated from 316L stainless steel and containing mercury and a variety of 316L coupons representing variable surface conditions and heat treatments have been operated continuously for 2000 h. Surface conditions included surface ground, polished, gold-coated, chemically etched, bombarded with Fe to simulate radiation damage, and oxidized. Heat treatments included solution treated, welded, and sensitized. In addition, a nitrogen doped 316L material, termed 316LN, was also examined in the solution treated condition. Duplicate TCLs were operated in this experiment--both were operated with a 305 C peak temperature, a 65 C temperature gradient, and mercury velocity of 1.2 m/min--but only one included a 36 h soak in Hg at 310 C just prior to operation to encourage wetting. Results indicate that the soak in Hg at 310 C had no lasting effect on wetting or compatibility with Hg. Further, based on examination of post-test wetting and coupon weight loss, only the gold-coated surfaces revealed significant interaction with Hg. In areas wetted significantly by Hg, the extreme surface of the stainless steel (ca 10 {micro}m) was depleted in Ni and Cr compared to the bulk composition.

The VRFurnace is a unique VR application designed to analyze a complete coal-combustion CFD model of a power plant furnace. Although other applications have been created that analyze furnace performance, no other has included the added complications of particle tracking and the reactions associated with coal combustion. Currently the VRFurnace is a versatile analysis tool. Data translators have been written to allow data from most of the major commercial CFD software packages as well as standard data formats of hand-written code to be uploaded into the VR application. Because of this almost any type of CFD model of any power plant component can be analyzed immediately. The ease of use of the VRFurnace is another of its qualities. The menu system created for the application not only guides first time users through the various button combinations but it also helps the experienced user keep track of which tool is being used. Because the VRFurnace was designed for use in the C6 device at Iowa State University's Virtual Reality Applications Center it is naturally a collaborative project. The projection-based system allows many people to be involved in the analysis process. This type of environment opens the design process to not only …

When Fluor Fernald took over the management of the Fernald Environmental Management Project in 1992, the estimated closure date of the site was more than 25 years into the future. Fluor Fernald, in conjunction with DOE-Fernald, introduced the Accelerated Cleanup Plan, which was designed to substantially shorten that schedule and save taxpayers more than $3 billion. The management of Fluor Fernald believes there are three fundamental concerns that must be addressed by any contractor hoping to achieve closure of a site within the DOE complex. They are relationship management, resource management and contract management. Relationship management refers to the interaction between the site and local residents, regulators, union leadership, the workforce at large, the media, and any other interested stakeholder groups. Resource management is of course related to the effective administration of the site knowledge base and the skills of the workforce, the attraction and retention of qualified a nd competent technical personnel, and the best recognition and use of appropriate new technologies. Perhaps most importantly, resource management must also include a plan for survival in a flat-funding environment. Lastly, creative and disciplined contract management will be essential to effecting the closure of any DOE site. Fluor Fernald, together with …

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Permanent Magnet Motors with either sinusoidal back emf (permanent magnet synchronous motor [PMSM]) or trapezoidal back emf (brushless dc motor [BDCM]) do not have the ability to alter the air gap flux density (field weakening). Since the back emf increases with speed, the system must be designed to operate with the voltage obtained at its highest speed. Oak Ridge National Laboratory's (ORNL) Power Electronics and Electric Machinery Research Center (PEEMRC) has developed a dual mode inverter controller (DMIC) that overcomes this disadvantage. This report summarizes the results of tests to verify its operation. The standard PEEMRC 75 kW hard-switched inverter was modified to implement the field weakening procedure (silicon controlled rectifier enabled phase advance). A 49.5 hp motor rated at 2800 rpm was derated to a base of 400 rpm and 7.5 hp. The load developed by a Kahn Industries hydraulic dynamometer, was measured with a MCRT9-02TS Himmelstein and Company torque meter. At the base conditions a current of 212 amperes produced the 7.5 hp. Tests were run at 400, 1215, and 2424 rpm. In each run, the current was no greater than 214 amperes. The horsepower obtained in the three runs were 7.5, 9.3, and 8.12. These results verified …

Thermodynamics has been studied systematically for the high temperature cuprate superconductor La{sub 2-x}Sr{sub x}CuO{sub 4-{delta}}, La-214, in the entire superconductive region from strongly underdoped to strongly overdoped regimes. Magnetization studies with H {parallel} c have been made in order to investigate the changes in free energy of the system as the number of carriers is reduced. Above the superconducting transition temperature, the normal-state magnetization exhibits a two-dimensional Heisenberg antiferromagnetic behavior. Below T{sub c}, magnetization data are thermodynamically reversible over large portions of the H-T plane, so the free energy is well defined in these regions. As the Sr concentration is varied over the wide range from 0.060 (strongly underdoped) to 0.234 (strongly overdoped), the free energy change goes through a maximum at the optimum doped in a manner similar to the T{sub c0} vs. x curve. The density of states, N(0), remains nearly constant in the overdoped and optimum doped regimes, taking a broad maximum around x = 0.188, and then drops abruptly towards zero in the underdoped regime. The La{sub 2-x}Sr{sub x}CuO{sub 4} (La-214) system displays the fluctuating vortex behavior with the characteristic of either 2D or 3D fluctuations as indicated by clearly identifiable crossing points T* close to …

Laser-induced fluorescence detection is one of the most sensitive detection techniques and it has found enormous applications in various areas. The purpose of this research was to develop detection approaches based on laser-induced fluorescence detection in two different areas, heterogeneous catalysts screening and single cell study. First, the author introduced laser-induced imaging (LIFI) as a high-throughput screening technique for heterogeneous catalysts to explore the use of this high-throughput screening technique in discovery and study of various heterogeneous catalyst systems. This scheme is based on the fact that the creation or the destruction of chemical bonds alters the fluorescence properties of suitably designed molecules. By irradiating the region immediately above the catalytic surface with a laser, the fluorescence intensity of a selected product or reactant can be imaged by a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera to follow the catalytic activity as a function of time and space. By screening the catalytic activity of vanadium pentoxide catalysts in oxidation of naphthalene, they demonstrated LIFI has good detection performance and the spatial and temporal resolution needed for high-throughput screening of heterogeneous catalysts. The sample packing density can reach up to 250 x 250 subunits/cm{sup 2} for 40-{micro}m wells. This experimental set-up also can screen …

Plasma immersion ion implantation (PIII) offers high throughput and efficiency in the synthesis of silicon-on-insulator (SOI) materials. In the separation by plasma implantation of oxygen (SPIMOX) process, the spatial and time variation of the sample temperature must be known and well controlled to ensure uniform buried oxide and silicon overlying layer thicknesses over the entire silicon wafer. In this paper, we describe a two-dimensional model and derive the temperature distribution on the silicon wafer with respect to time and other process parameters. Our results show laterally non-uniform heating by the incoming ions and the local temperature is influenced more by the sample voltage and thermal irradiation coefficient of the target than the pulse duration and plasma density. The model provides a simple and quick means to determine whether external heating will be needed to maintain the sample temperature at 600 C during the SPIMOX process.

The myriad of human activities including strategic and energy development at various DOE installations have resulted in the contamination of soils and waterways that can seriously threaten human and ecosystem health. Development of efficacious and economical remediation technologies is needed to ameliorate these immensely costly problems. Bioremediation (both plant and microbe-based) has promising potential to meet this demand but still requires advances in fundamental knowledge. For bioremediation of heavy metals, the three-way interaction of plant root, microbial community, and soil organic matter (SOM)1 in the rhizosphere is critically important for long-term sustainability but often underconsidered. Particularly urgent is the need to understand processes that lead to metal ion stabilization in soils, which is crucial to all of the goals of bioremediation: removal, stabilization, and transformation. This project will build on the knowledge that we have generated on the role of root exudation and metabolism for metal mobilization and accumulation, to address the following objectives: (1) Identify molecular markers and characterize the chemical nature of recalcitrant SOM pools that are involved in below ground metal ion interactions, which are likely to be markers for sustainable sequestration; (2) Utilize (1) to determine plant and microbial factors that contribute to sustainable metal sequestration …

The Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) project is a collaborative effort between Brookhaven, Argonne, Jefferson, Lawrence Berkeley, Los Alamos and Oak Ridge National Laboratories. Los Alamos is responsible for the design of the linac for this accelerator complex. The code PARMILA, developed at Los Alamos is widely used for proton linac design and beam dynamics studies. The most updated version includes superconducting structures among others. In recent years, some other codes have also been developed which primarily focuses on the studies of the beam dynamics. In this paper, we compare the simulation results and discuss physics aspects of the different linac design and beam dynamics simulation codes.

This report summarizes the accomplishment made during the second year of this cooperative research effort between Washington University, Ohio State University and Air Products and Chemicals. The technical difficulties that were encountered in implementing Computer Automated Radioactive Particle Tracking (CARPT) in high pressure SBCR have been successfully resolved. New strategies for data acquisition and calibration procedure have been implemented. These have been performed as a part of other projects supported by Industrial Consortium and DOE via contract DE-2295PC95051 which are executed in parallel with this grant. CARPT and Computed Tomography (CT) experiments have been performed using air-water-glass beads in 6 inch high pressure stainless steel slurry bubble column reactor at selected conditions. Data processing of this work is in progress. The overall gas holdup and the hydrodynamic parameters are measured by Laser Doppler Anemometry (LDA) in 2 inch slurry bubble column using Norpar 15 that mimic at room temperature the Fischer Tropsch wax at FT reaction conditions of high pressure and temperature. To improve the design and scale-up of bubble column, new correlations have been developed to predict the radial gas holdup and the time averaged axial liquid recirculation velocity profiles in bubble columns.

The objective of this program is to develop innovative DNA detection technologies to achieve fast mutation screening and to reveal the linkage between gene mutation and contaminants. The specific approach are (1) to develop innovative multiplexing hybridization detection for DNA mutation detection, (2) to develop sequence-proof microarray hybridization technology (3) to develop hybridization on disk and (4) to apply these new DNA detection technology for mutation analysis of contaminated fish and to validate the pollution-mediated mutation can be used for sound risk analysis for setting up the priorities for waste cleanup.

Methods are being developed for demonstrating that nonstandard high-level radioactive waste (HLW) forms meet the intent of the product consistency requirement in the Waste Acceptance System Requirements document (WASRD). That requirement was established for borosilicate HLW glasses ''to ensure a consistent glass product by controlling the vitrification process, consistency is necessary to reflect consideration for the waste package designs.'' [1] The test method specified in the WASRD for HLW glasses is the 7-day product consistency test (PCT). To meet the WASRD requirement, the response of an HLW glass in the PCT must be less than that of the environmental assessment (EA) glass. The EA glass is used as a benchmark ''so that conservative but realistic assessments of the engineered barrier system performance can be made.'' [1] The PCT and the WASRD requirement were developed to bound the behaviors of the wide range of borosilicate HLW glasses that will be produced at DOE facilities for the purpose of repository design. However, the need to demonstrate that the physical, chemical, and radiological properties of HLW forms have been constrained within acceptable (i.e., as-qualified) ranges will probably apply to all HLW waste forms. The PCT may not be the appropriate method for nonstandard …

Studies were performed of the Au/SiC interface, as well as the interfaces between SiC and several Au alloys. A contact angle of 133{+-}1{sup o} for pure Au on SiC was obtained after equilibration at 800 C. Au containing 3at%Sn was studied, and wetting was improved as evidenced by a decrease in contact angle from 133{sup o} for pure Au to 117{sup o} for the Au-Sn alloy. Sn segregation was observed at the surface of Au. Measurements were also performed on Au-Ge alloys. It was found that the contact angle is decreased to 115{sup o} and 107{sup o} at Ge concentrations of 1 and 2 at%, respectively. Studies of Au containing a low concentration of Si ({approx}0.5 at%) were conducted and showed a decrease in contact angle from 133{sup o} to 107{sup o}. The equilibrium crystal shape of Au was determined. Results showed that the presence of C at the Au surface has a measurable effect on the anisotropy of surface energy. Finally, the wetting of graphite by Pb(Ni) alloys was investigated. The results showed that contact angles of 100{sup o} and 80{sup o} coexist in the vicinity of the limit of solubility of Ni in Pb ({approx}0.17%Pb), without intermediate contact …

Seven full-sized Peach Bottom Reactor. fuel elements were fabricated in a cooperative effort by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Gulf General Atomic (GGA) as part of the National HTGR Fuel Recycle Development Program. These elements contain bonded fuel rods and loose beds of particles made from several combinations of fertile and fissile particles of interest for present and future use in the High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (HTGR). The portion of the fuel prepared for these elements by ORNL is described in detail in this report, and it is in conjunction with the GGA report (GA-10109) a complete fabrication description of the test. In addition, this report describes the results obtained to date from postirradiation examination of the first two elements removed from the Peach Bottom Reactor, RTE-7 and -4. The fuel examined had relatively low exposure, up to about 1.5 x 10{sup 21} neutrons/cm* fast (>0.18 MeV) fluence, compared with the peak anticipated HTGR fluence of 8.0 x 10{sup 21}, but it has performed well at this exposure. Dimensional data indicate greater irradiation shrinkage than expected from accelerated test data to higher exposures. This suggests that either the method of extrapolation of the higher exposure data back to low exposure …

This is the final report on the research program ''Development of a Thermionic Magnicon Amplifier at 11.4 GHz,'' which was carried out by the Plasma Physics Division of the Naval Research Laboratory. Its goal was to develop a high-power, frequency-doubling X-band magnicon amplifier, an advanced scanning-beam amplifier, for use in future linear colliders. The final design parameters were 61 MW at 11.424 GHz, 59 dB gain, 59% efficiency, 1 microsecond pulselength and 10 Hz repetition rate. At the conclusion of this program, the magnicon was undergoing high-power conditioning, having already demonstrated high-power operation, phase stability, a linear drive curve, a small operational frequency bandwidth and a spectrally pure, single-mode output.

Calcium and chloride are necessary cofactors for the proper function of the oxygen-evolving complex (OEC) of Photosystem II (PS II). Located in the thylakoid membranes of green plants, cyanobacteria and algae, PS II and the OEC catalyze the light-driven oxidation of water into dioxygen (released into the biosphere), protons and electrons for carbon fixation. The actual chemistry of water oxidation is performed by a cluster of four manganese atoms, along with the requisite cofactors Ca{sup 2+} and Cl{sup -}. While the Mn complex has been extensively studied by X-ray absorption techniques, comparatively less is known about the Ca{sup 2+} cofactor. The fewer number of studies on the Ca{sup 2+} cofactor have sometimes relied on substituting the native cofactor with strontium or other metals, and have stirred some debate about the structure of the binding site. past efforts using Mn EXAFS on Sr-substituted PSII are suggestive of a close link between the Mn cluster and Sr, within 3.5 {angstrom}. The most recent published study using Sr EXAFS on similar samples confirms this finding of a 3.5 {angstrom} distance between Mn and Sr. This finding was base3d on a second Fourier peak (R {approx} 3 {angstrom}) in the Sr EXAFS from functional …

The goal of this three-year project was to improve the production systems in use by steel foundries in the United States. Improvements in the production systems result in less rework, less scrap, and less material handling, all of which would significantly reduce the energy demands of the process. Furthermore, these improvements would allow the companies to be more competitive, more responsive to customers' needs, deliver products with less lead time and require less capital. The ultimate result is a stronger domestic steel casting industry, which uses less energy. A major portion of this research involved the deployment of student researchers at steel foundries, to study their production systems and collect data.

A weekly publication, the Texas Register serves as the journal of state agency rulemaking for Texas. Information published in the Texas Register includes proposed, adopted, withdrawn and emergency rule actions, notices of state agency review of agency rules, governor's appointments, attorney general opinions, and miscellaneous documents such as requests for proposals. After adoption, these rulemaking actions are codified into the Texas Administrative Code.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In response to a shortage of math and science teachers and reductions in U.S. military personnel, Congress created the Troops to Teachers (TTT) program in 1992. Until 1995, the program, which was run by the Defense Department, offered stipends to program participants and incentive grants to school districts to hire TTT teachers. Congress transferred the program from DOD to the Department of Education in 1999. This report reviews the program from its beginning in January 1994 until its transfer to Education. GAO found that 13,756 former military personnel applied to the program and were accepted. Of these, 3,821 were hired as teachers from 1994 through 2000; more than 90 percent of those applicants hired as teachers remained in teaching after the first year. However, these participation figures most likely represent the minimum number of former military personnel who used the program's services and became teachers because the figures include only those persons who formally applied to the TTT program and who completed follow-up surveys. Compared with all teachers nationwide, a higher percentage of TTT teachers overall taught math, science, special education, and vocational education and taught …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "For federal agencies to become high-performing organizations, top management needs to foster performance-based cultures, find ways to measure performance, and use performance information to make decisions. GAO's survey of federal managers found wide differences in how well individual agencies demonstrated a results-based climate. However, transforming organizational cultures is an arduous and long-term effort. Managers' responses suggest that although some agencies are clearly showing signs of becoming high-performing organizations, others are not. The survey provides important information that agency leadership can use to build higher-performing organizations throughout government. GAO will continue to work with senior leadership in the individual agencies to help address the issues raised by their managers in responding to the survey. Congress has a vital role to play as well. As part of its confirmation, oversight, authorization, and appropriation responsibilities, Congress could use the information from GAO's survey, as well as information from agencies' performance plans and reports and GAO's January 2001 Performance and Accountability Series and High-Risk Series, to emphasize performance-based management and to underscore Congress' commitment to addressing long-standing challenges."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Standards for discipline and safety in schools are set primarily by local school districts. Federal and local regulations provide additional protections to special education students who misbehave to ensure that they are not unfairly deprived of their rights to an appropriate education. GAO reviewed regular and special education discipline policies to determine whether there were any differences in how disabled and non-disabled students were disciplined. GAO found the rate of misconduct among special education students was higher than that of regular education students. Despite little difference in the actions taken by schools to discipline regular education and special education students, a sizeable minority of principals voiced concern that their schools' discipline policies impeded proper disciplinary action. Although the 1997 Individuals With Disabilities Education Act amendments and final federal regulations gave schools more flexibility in handling discipline issues, GAO's analysis showed that local school district policies can provide additional protections when compared with provisions in the final regulations. Restrictive local policies may alter the balance between protecting the rights of disabled students and ensuring that administrators are able to maintain a safe and orderly environment. Because the …

Direct measurement of the coherence time of a high-intensity laser beam (600 ps, 10{sup 14} W.cm{sup -2}) after plasma propagation is achieved using a Michelson interferometer. Through plasma of interest for indirect-drive fusion (0.1 x n{sub c}, 1 mm long), a large decrease of the coherence time is observed, from 100 ps to {approx} 10 ps, induced by the interaction between the intense beam and the plasma. This decrease is even stronger as the light is scattered at larger angles from the initial beam angular distribution and as the plasma density is increased. The results coincide with trends observed in recent numerical simulations.