Annual report submitted by the Girl Scouts of the United States of America to Congress describing highlights from 1962, activities, organizational leadership, and other information about scouting programs.

A small, lightweight, uranium carbide-fueled reactor with a beryllium reflector surrounding the core was mocked up as Assembly 40. It was determined that the presence of beryllium in the axial and radial reflectors did not endanger the safe loading and operation of the' critical assembly. The actual experiment consisted of determination of the critical mass, measurement of the reactivity coefficients for a large number of fissile and nonfissile materials, the performance of radial and axial fission traverses, and measurement of central fission ratios. The effectiveness of the radial beryllium reflectcr as a control mechanism was determined and the Rossialpha was measured. (auth)

This report addresses the decay heat cooling analysis of a nuclear rocket engine.

A process was developed for the destruction of HNO/sub 3/ in Purex-type waste solutions using sugar. Polyhydroxy compounds such as sucrose, fructose, glucose, and crude syrups such as black strap molasses rapidly and controllably decompose HNO/sub 3/ in aqueous solutions at temperatures above approximately 85 deg C. The number of moles of HNO/sub 3/ destroyed per mole of sugar fed is a function of the temperature of reaction and the moles of dissolved multivalent metal cations (such as iron and chromium). The efficiency of HNO/sub 3/ destruction does not vary with acid concentration over the range of 0.5 to 8 M. However, destruction of acid does vary with iron concentration. Approximately 12 to 20 moles of HNO/sub 3/ are destroyed per mole of sucrose fed as the iron concentration increases from 0 to 1 M. Products of the denitration reaction are all gaseous, consisting of oxides of carbon and nitrogen. The process was successfully tested in the high level hot cells, the cold pilot plant denitration unit, and in the Purex plant. (P.C.H.)

The Fuel Cycle Facility for the Second Experimental Breeder Reactor (EBR- II), the process equipment, and the operations to be conducted in the facility are described. The Fuel Cycle Facility is a plant for reprocessing, by pyrometallurgical methods, the core and blanket material discharged from EBR-II. The reactor core alloy is uranium-5% fissium and contains about 46 wt.% U/sup 235/ . The blanket material consists of U in which plutonium is bred. Core and blanket subassemblies contained in transfer coffins are transferred between EBR- II and the Fuel Cycle Facility, which is in an adjacent building. The Fuel Cycle Facility consists primarily of an argon-atmosphere cell where fuel processing is done, an adjacent air-atmosphere cell where reactor subassemblies are assembled and disassembled, and an operating area (for personnel) which surrounds the two cells. Because of the high levels of activity expected, the fuel-handling-and- processing equipment is designed for remote operation. Remote processing is accomplished with the aid of bridge cranes, electromagnetic bridge manipulators, and master-slave manipulators. Transfer ports and air locks are used in the transfer of materials and equipment into the air-atmosphere cell and between the two cells. The walls between the argon-atmosphere and air-atmosphere cells and the operating …

A series of in-pile experiments was designed for evaluation of a prototype fuel element to operate under approximate ASCR conditions. The fuel surface temperature will be automatically controlled by means of a BF/sub 3/ thermal neutron flux control system. Complete design calculations and results are presented, which should be adequate for presentation of the experiment to the ETR safety committee. (auth)

The United States and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom), on May 29, and June 18, 1958, signed an agreement which provides a basis for co-operation in programs for the advancement of the peaceful applications of atomic energy. The work described in this report represents the Joint U.S.-Euratom effort. The over-all development program is designed to obtain the test data and operating experience necessary to eventually realize a 50 percent increase in the output of the Garigliano Nuclear Power Station located at Sessa Aurunca (Campania, Italy). Two tasks are in progress: Task III-F involves the preparation of test specimens of reactor vessel material for irradiation; Task IV consists of the formulation of specification for a complete data logging and computer system.

Thermodynamic considerations indicate that sodium should be favorable for the one-step reduction of UF/sub 6/ to uranium metal. A reaction vessel was developed for the continuous reduction of UF/sub 6/ to metal with batch collection of the products, and several experimental tests established the chemical feasibility of this direct and continuous reduction. Up to 93.5% of the uranium content of UF/sub 6/ continuously reduced by sodium in a reaction vessel was recovered as massive uranium metal in the form of a metal button of acceptable purity. A remaining problem is development of compatible materials of construction. (auth)

The effect of irradiation on the hydrolytic behavior of uranium monocarbide as related to the aqueous chemical processing of these reactor fuels is being investigated. The fabrication, evaluation, and encapsulation of the UC in niobium prior to irradiation is described. Uranium monocarbide buttons were prepared by arc-melting 1.51%enriched uranium metal with the stoichiometric quantity of spectroscopic-grade carbon. The buttons were then remelted and drop- cast into graphite thimbles 3/8 in. dia, and 3 in. long. The cylindrical castings were surface ground and cut into 0.17 in.-thick pellets, which were then polished. Preirradiation evaluation included metallography, chemical analysis, and hydrolysis studies. Microstructures of the final pellets indicated that the monocarbide was nearly stoichiometric; however, some alpha -uranium was present along with carbon contamination from the graphite thimbles. The use of tungsten- tipped electrodes in the arc-melting operation introduced about 0.3% of tungsten impurity. The composition of the pellets, as estimated from hydrolysis studies and chemical analyses was 92% UC, 3.5% UC/sub 2/, 4.0% uranium metal, and 0.3% WC. The UC pellets were encapsulated in niobium and subsequently shrunk-fit into a stainless steel cladding. The capsules were sealed by heliarc welding in a helium atmosphere chamber. (auth)

Three separate irradiation experiments were completed with Th and Th--U alloys. In the first experiment, threerolled plates of Th and Th--5 wt% U alloy irradiated to total atom burnups up to 1.5% at 200 deg C showed no anisotropic growth and decreased in density at a rate of 1% per at.% burnup. In the second experiment, 15 swaged specimens of Th and of the alloys Th--0.1 wt% U, Th--1.4 wt% U, and Th--5.5 wt% U were irradiated to burnups ranging from 0.3 to 3.6% of all atoms at temperatures in the range of 45 to 200 deg C. Again, no anisotropic growth was observed and densities decreased at rates near 1% per at.% burnup. A Th--1.4 wt% U alloy specimen with 2.0 at.% burnup was found to have retained significant room-temperature ductility. In the final experiment, a group of 44 chill-cast specimens of Th alloys containing 10, 15, 20, 25, and 31 wt% U were irradiated to burnups ranging from 0.16 to 10.1% of all atoms. Maximum irradiation temperatures ranged from 260 to over 1000 deg C. Surface roughening occurred in the alloys cortaining 25 and 31 wt% U. Volume increases at any given temperature for all alloys were linear …

The density and purity of fused UO/sub 2/ from several suppliers was evaluated. Densities of large pieces varied widely, but variations in pycnometer and bulk densities of crushed UO/sub 2/ powder were small. Average oxygen- touranium ratios ranged from 1.94 to 2.14. Impurities visible as microscopic inclusions were U/sub 4/O/sub 9/, metallic uranium, UC, and UN/sub 2/. The chief trace metallic contaminants were aluminum, iron, and silicon. Hydrogen, nitrogen, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide were evolved during vacuum extraction. (auth)

The corrections required to deduce unperturbed neutron fluxes from measurements with foil absorbers were determined experimentally for the case of gold foils exposed in a light-water medium. The results are in good agreement with the theoretical predictions of Dalton and Osborn and of Ritchie and Eldridge. (auth)

Progress is reported on developments in the treatment of Purex waste solutions, the extraction of ruthenium from nitric acid solutions using TPP, the calibration and performance analysis of gamma-source calorimeters, and the adsorption of iodine-131 from aqueous solutions. (B.O.G.)

Even though VBWR shutdowns were required for location and removal of five failed fuel assemblies (HPD Program), the increase in fuel exposure was good. Fuel exposures wili pass the values at which cold worked stainless steel cladding was failing under the HPD Program. Failure of the 0.005-inch cold worked stainless steel clad fuel rods in assembly 8L was traced to strain cycling fatigue. A study of tapered fuel rods indicates a potential advantage for us of a variable water/fuel ratio along the flow channel. Natural circulation tests in the hydraulic stability loop were conducted over a range of conditions from stable, to oscillatory with exponential decay, to self-sustaining oscillation of constant amplitude, to unstable oscillations with divergent amplitude. The response to impulses in power input shows the effect of the time delay for transporting steam voids up through the riser. The data permit calculation of oscillation frequency, damping coefficient, time lags, and show the magnitude and character of pressure and velocity changes. The data, which have an experimental scatter of plus or minus 10% maximum, show that burnout heat fiux: decreases with increasing flow up to 2 x 10/sup 8/ lb/hr-ft/sup 2/; has a maximum for hydraulic diameter between 0.25 …

It is the purpose of this document to provide the scope of piping changes that are needed to supply gravity-fed water to the reactor storage basins on an unattended basis following complete reactor discharge of metal into these basins.

Report that summarizes multiple laboratories' reports on global fallout deposition. Reports include data on Strontium-90 deposition recorded by the Health and Safety Laboratory, data from other laboratories, related interpretive reports, and recent publications related to fallout.

Metals ---technology of high-temperature liquid, review; Systems for Nuclear Auxiliary Power (SNAP-2) ---coolant boiling research for; Nuclear Power Plants ---development research on thermionic, Los Alamos Molten Plutonium Reactor Experiments ---fuel element analysis; Heat Transfer Systems ---conference on liquid metal; Bearings --coating for liquid metal, performance of; Systems for Nuclear Auxiliary Power (SNAP-8) ---component development; Sodium---heat transfer research on; Mercury --heat transfer research on; Potassium ---heat transfer research on; Nitrogen Systems ---Hg --N, flow characteristics for two-phase; Mercury Systems ---Hg --N, flow characteristics for two-phase; Nuclear Power Plants ---heat transfer rejection by space, research on; Alkali Metals ---heat transfer research on; Turbines ---development of twostage potassium; Bearings --- development of liquid-metal lubricated; Niobium Alloys ---properties for alkali metal containment, research on; Rubidium ---thermophysical properties of; Los Alamos Molten Plutonium Reactor Experiments ---design of LAMPRE-1. (D.C.W.)

ABS>The purpose of the Fast Reactor Test (FARET) program is reviewed. Studies of engineering performance and reactor dynamics and safety are summarized. Design considerations are discussed, including basic core plan, core parameter operating data, instrumentation, coolant, and blanket. Experiments are being planned to study reactivity effects of fuel temperatures, physics irradiation, engineering irradiation, and coolant chemistry. Development of cladding materials, metallic fuel, ceramic fuel, and fuel for reactivity test is described. PERT scheduling is discussed. (M.C.G.)

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A survey of the,N. S. Savannah reactor shield was carried out during the report period. The results showed that the shield effectively meets design specifications. Tests of 12 removal by a charcoal unit in the N. S. Savannah reactor emergency ventilation system using 80 to 90% water-saturated air showed a unit efficiency of 99.86 plus or minus 0.07% at the 95% confidence level. Simplified procedures were devised for using shipboard equipment to screen personnel suspected of having body burdens of radioactive materials. Other work in connection with N. S. Savannah is reported on accidental activity release, port survey visits, and physics calculations. Continued trouble-free operation of the ORR pressurized-water loop is reported. Emphasis during the period was placed on water-borne radioactive contaminants. Advanced core developmental work was devoted to physics calculations, fuel development, fuel irradiation and postirradiation examinations, and evaluation of nonsintered UO/sub 2/ fuel for N. S. Savannah. (J.R.D.)

A mathematical model for an associative memory is proposed that uses associative addressing and distributed storage. Associative addressing is accomplished by mapping from a space with relatively few dimensions (input variables) to the vertices of a binary-valued hypercube embedded in a much higher dimensional space. The dimension of the image space is chosen to be sufficiently grent that a hyperplane can be passed through the origin such that the relative distances to the image points are the relative functional values that are to be stored. The distributed memory is achieved in the n-tuple representation of the hyperplane, since each element will in general be used in calculating the distance to many points (images), and hence in storing many functional values. A technique formulated for solving the large linear systems that arise in such a problem and a proof of the convergence of such a procedure are included. Unfortunately, the basic form of an associative memory imposes the restriction that only a single linear expression be available at any one time, and that further its relation to other expressions not be known. This generally imposes a iurther restriction that the linear expressions be randomly drawn from the linear system and returned. …

The KER loops are four pressurized water-cooled in-reactor testing loops in which fuel, coolant and corrosion tests are being conducted for the N Reactor program. Two of the loops, KER-3 and KER-4, are equipped with N-size Zr-2 process tubes and have sufficient pumping and heat dissipation capacity to permit testing of 14-element charges of N fuel. The other two loops, HER-1 and KER-2, are fitted with Zr-2 process tubes of 2.1 in. inner diameter (vs 2.7 in. for N). The small loops can be used to test charges of N inner tubes or other elements sized at about 1.8 in. outer diameter or less. An inert sleeve must be used with N inner tubes to assure adequate coolant flow over both surfaces of the elements. The KE reactor active zone is 28 in. long com pared to 35 in. for N so the length of test charges is somewhat shorter than actual N charges will be. The purpose of this report is to review the testing environment, to discuss the testing program and to present the schedule as presently seen.

Using a theory of electron transfers which takes cognizance of reorganization of the medium outside the inner coordination shell and of changes of bond lengths inside it, relations between electrochemical and related chemical rate constants are deduced and compared with the experimental data. A correlation is found, without the use of arbitrary parameters. Effects of weak complexes with added electrolytes are included under specified conditions. The deductions offer a way of coordinating a variety of data in the two fields, internally as well as with each those in another. For example, the rate of oxidation or reduction of a series of related reactants by one reagent is correlated with that of another and with that of the corresponding electrochemical oxidation-reduction reaction, under certain specified conditions. These correlations may also provide a test for distinguishing an electron from an atom transfer mechanism. (auth)