Progress is reported for a program whose goals are to demonstrate an experimental upgraded gas turbine powered automobile which meets the 1978 Federal Emissions Standards, has significantly improved fuel economy, and is competitive in performance, reliability, and potential manufacturing cost with the conventional piston engine powered, compact-size American automobile. Initial running of the upgraded engine took place on July 13, 1976. The engine proved to be mechanically sound, but was also 43% deficient in power. A continuing corrective development effort has to date reduced the power deficiency to 32%. Compressor efficiency was increased 2 points by changing to a 28-channel diffuser and tandem deswirl vanes; improved processing of seals has reduced regenerator leakage from about 5 to 2.5% of engine flow; a new compressor turbine nozzle has increased compressor turbine stage efficiency by about 1 point; and adjustments to burner mixing ports has reduced pressure drop from 2.8 to 2.1% of engine pressure. Key compressor turbine component improvements are scheduled for test during the next quarterly period. During the quarter, progress was also made on development of the Upgraded Vehicle control system; and instrumentation of the fourth program engine was completed by NASA. The engine will be used for development …

The seafloor nuclear power supply (SNPS) concept has been proposed by Atomics International (AI) and Lockheed Petroleum Services, Ltd. (LPS) as a source of electrical energy for subsea pumping of petroleum products. It consists of a small nuclear reactor, moderated by zirconium hydride (ZrH) and cooled by liquid metal (NaK), which drives a 3-MW turbine/generator system using toluene as the working fluid. Arthur D. Little, Inc., was selected to assess the technical and economic feasibility of a SNPS, and to determine if potential applications for a SNPS might exist in offshore-oil-field development schemes where conventional power supplies could not be used. It was determined that the concept is technically feasible, with regard to the nuclear, marine, electrical, and petroleum engineering aspects. However, its initial cost of $14 million and operating expenses of $900,000 per year are considerably more in each case than the costs of conventional alternative power supplies. For the type of field development proposed as an example by LPS, a combination of gas turbines and dc cables would cost about $8 million. Fuel in the form of gas from the wells would be available at near-zero cost in almost all cases of field development, so that operating expenses …

Radiation shielding is a key subsystem in tokamak reactors. Design of this shield must evolve from economic and technological trade-off studies that account for the strong interrelations among the various components of the reactor system. These trade-offs are examined for the bulk shield on the inner side of the torus and for the special shields of major penetrations. Results derived are applicable for a large class of tokamak-type reactors.

In February 1976, the Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA) announced a greatly expanded waste management program for defense and commercial radioactive waste. In that announcement, ERDA indicated that the Oak Ridge Operations Office (ORO) of ERDA would have lead responsibility for overall coordination of the expanded commercial geologic disposal program and that an Office of Waste Isolation (OWI) would be created within Union Carbide Corporation-Nuclear Division (UCC-ND) with the responsibility for program management of that activity. This bibliography lists many of the documents authored since 1958 by UCC-ND's technical personnel, consultants, and subcontractors as part of the geologic waste disposal programs at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the current National Waste Terminal Storage (NWTS) Program. Future editions will contain new documents as well as other prior-year documents which, because of our schedule, we were unable to identify, locate, and include in this first edition. Longer-range plans include broadening the scope of coverage to include documents authored by other NWTS Program participants. This edition, as well as future editions, will list only those documents that have been processed through ERDA's Technical Information Center for public availability from the National Technical Information Service, Springfield, Virginia. Full reference and citation information appears …

Progress in a program for optimizing automotive accessory systems to achieve greater vehicle fuel economy and improved accessory performance is reported. The major technical accomplishments during this reporting period were: all candidate advanced air conditioning concepts were evaluated; advanced air conditioning and hybrid accessory drive component trade-studies were completed; improved alternator, water pump and power steering system concepts were evaluated; the vehicle integrated accessory systems trade-study was completed; and the technical summary report for the Phase V Automotive Accessory Systems Optimization Program was initiated. (LCL)

The results of experimental work and economic analyses carried out during the first 12 months of this contract (Phase I) have led to Battelle's concentration on development of the zinc reduction of silicon tetrachloride on seed particles in a fluidized bed. A second year program (Phase II) has been initiated which consists of the design of a 25 MT/year experimental facility and supporting experiment effort. During this quarter, the effort in the plant design portion of the program has been devoted to the (1) preparation of a detailed process schematic diagram; (2) determination of material flow and energy requirements; (3) conceptual design of major equipment items, including those unique to the facility; (4) contacts with industrial companies on equipment and processes for which experience is available; and (5) initiation of contacts with Battelle pilot plant design specialists, a distillation consultant, and engineering firms. The effort in the experimental support portion of the program has included a continuation of the following studies: (1) operating parameter optimization in the miniplant, (2) reactor design, and (3) condenser system design, including supplemental condensation experiments. In addition, a new zinc feed system has been devised and evaluated, and the construction of a system sufficiently large …

Progress is reported in the following LMFBR piping design studies: development of a long range plan to secure piping integrity, collection of piping failure and construction defect data, analysis of systems with prior successful operating history, evaluation of sensitivity of piping design margins to variability in materials and geometry, and high cycle fatigue behavior at elevated temperature.

The program is designed to investigate how certain metallurgical characteristics control the hydrogen absorption and desorption processes in intermetallic compounds. The status of the following studies is reported: hydrogen safety precautions, development of special equipment, preparation and characterization of hydride alloy materials, magnetic property measurements, and theoretical modeling of hydriding mechanisms. (LK)

Purex Sludge Supernatant (PSS) contains significant amounts of /sup 137/Cs left after removal of strontium from fission product bearing Purex wastes. To remove cesium from PSS, an Ion Exchange Recovery system has been set up in Cells 17-21 at B Plant. The cesium that is recovered is stored within B Plant for eventual purification through the Cesium Purification process in Cell 38 and eventual encapsulation and storage in a powdered form at the Waste Encapsulation Storage Facility. Cesium depleted waste streams from the Ion Exchange processes are transferred to underground storage.

The program consists generally of development of advanced conversion systems, with strong emphasis on a systems approach to find solutions of the problems of scale formation, corrosion/erosion of materials, spent brine disposal and solids handling, and development of reliable, efficient energy conversion systems with strong emphasis on development of the total flow concept. The status of the various parts of this program is reviewed briefly. (MHR)

The PBXN-5 and PBX-9604 shock Hugoniots, longitudinal and shear sound velocities, and response to long and short duration shocks have been determined. At a density of 1.66 Mg/m/sup 3/, PBXN-5 requires a minimum copper flyer kinetic energy of 382 kJ/m/sup 2/ for initiation at a flyer velocity of 0.8 km/s. At a density of 1.49 Mg/m/sup 3/, PBX-9604 requires a minimum flyer energy of 201 kJ/m/sup 2/ for initiation at the same velocity.

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.

Calculations show the probability of a tornado striking a plutonium area at Rocky Flats is 2.2 x 10/sup -4/ per year. The source term (expected value of plutonium release) should such an event occur is calculated at 3.3 x 10/sup -7/ grams. The source term for high-velocity, downslope winds is higher--2.2 x 10/sup -3/ grams. The probability of a meteorite that weighs one or more pounds (453 grams) striking a plutonium area is estimated at 8.88 x 10/sup -7/ per year. Because of this small probability and the remote chance that a plutonium release would occur even if a meteorite hit occurred, the hazard from meteorite impact is considered negligible. Conservative assumptions result in all calculated frequencies being almost certainly too high. Empirical observations have indicated lower frequencies than those calculated.

Titles of the five sections are: program description; program plans and results; energy-conversion engineering; brine chemistry and materials; and earth sciences program. The last three sections were abstracted and indexed individually for ERA/EDB. (JGB)

Lathe coolant oil, contaminated with plutonium and having a carbon tetrachloride diluent, is generated in plutonium machining areas at Rocky Flats. A research program was initiated to determine the nature of plutonium in this mixture of oil and carbon tetrachloride. Appropriate methods then could be developed to remove the plutonium and to recycle the oil and carbon tetrachloride. Studies showed that the mixtures of spent oil and carbon tetrachloride contained particulate plutonium and plutonium species that are soluble in water or in oil and carbon tetrachloride. The particulate plutonium was removed by filtration; the nonfilterable plutonium was removed by adsorption on various materials. Laboratory-scale tests indicated the lathe-coolant oil mixture could be separated by distilling the carbon tetrachloride to yield recyclable products.

This document summarizes the amount of radioactive materials that have been buried in the burial grounds at the Hanford site 200 area. In addition to data for 1976, cumulative data since plant startup are presented. Also, in this document is a listing of decayed activity to the various plant burial sites.

A conceptual design report is given for 400 x 400 GeV proton-proton storage rings. A facility is described with twice the energy capability of the recently proposed ISABELLE. The basic accelerator lattice was modified so that the circumference of the magnet rings can be increased substantially without an increase in the transition energy. Each 400 GeV ring uses superconducting magnets of the type described in the ISABELLE Proposal, but energized to 50 kG. Other technical features are not significantly different from the 200 GeV design, and are described. The beams will collide in six interaction regions where up to 60 m of space is available for the installation of experimental equipment. The research possibilities that are provided by the increased center-of-mass energy are briefly described. Finally, a cost estimate of 238 million dollars for the research facility is outlined. This is nearly 40% more than the cost of the 200 GeV ISABELLE, but this facility would provide twice the energy available for exploring new regions of high energy physics.

A special vacuum version of an adiabatic surface thermometer for automatically controlling a critical temperature-time cycle of a production vacuum-brazing process is described. This thermometer touches the surface and uses a differential thermocouple and heater to measure surface temperature without heat flow, thereby minimizing large errors caused by conduction losses common to conventional spring-loaded thermocouples. Some important advantages of our design for vacuum chamber use are: continuous operation at 850/sup 0/C, intermittent operation to 1300/sup 0/C, no outgassing or plating-off at high temperature in a vacuum system, and an integral connector that permits easy replacement of broken probes.

Present lower limits on the mass of a neutral fermion N coupled with full strength to an electron via the right-handed weak current are set only by the absence of the decay K/sup +/ ..-->.. Ne/sup +/: m(N) approximately greater than 0.5 GeV/c/sup 2/. It is shown that searches for the decays tau ..-->.. ..nu../sub tau/Ne or F ..-->.. Ne, followed by N ..-->.. e..pi.., can raise the lower bound on m(N) to well over 1 GeV/c/sup 2/ if no signal is seen in present or soon-to-be-acquired data. Estimates for the branching ratios for these processes are given. If N couples to e cos phi + ..mu.. sin phi with full strength, reference to phi may be eliminated by summing over e and ..mu.. in all final states.

The simultaneous measurement of mass flow rate and quality of low-quality steam-water flows is of primary interest in evaluating and monitoring the flow from geothermal resources. The experience acquired at LLL in attempting to perform such measurements with a double flash (meter-valve-meter) arrangement using orifices and venturis is related. The mass flow correlations proposed in the literature are reviewed and a new correlation based on the energy equation is introduced. The data are presented and evaluated in light of these correlations. Directions for future research in this area are suggested.

This material was generated as part of a seismic case review of the NFS Reprocessing Plant. This study is documented in UCRL-52266. The material is divided into two parts: mathematical model information, and ultimate load calculations and comparisons. (DLC)

Dynamic tests and modeling studies were made on the chemical-energy-storage portion of an electrical energy conversion and storage system proposed for leveling the load of an electric utility company. The concept utilizes off-peak power to produce hydrogen by electrolyzing water, storing the hydrogen as iron-titanium hydride, FeTiH/sub x/, and subsequently releasing the hydrogen to a fuel cell where the reaction with air generates electrical power. The hydrogen storage portion of the system was tested on a small scale using a 6-in.-diam by 30-in.-long test bed containing 84 lb of FeTi alloy. Hydrogen reacts with this alloy at ordinary temperatures, with the release of heat, producing the hydride FeTiH/sub x/; and hydrogen is released by heating the hydride to decompose it. In the six hydriding-dehydriding cycles that were studied, the times that hydrogen flow rates of 40 to 10 standard liters per minute (SLPM) could be sustained were determined. Water temperatures of 30/sup 0/C and 50/sup 0/C were used; and the terminal hydrogen pressures used were 500 psia during hydriding and about 16 psia during dehydriding. Under these conditions the dynamic working capacity of the test bed was 1 lb of hydrogen as the composition varied between FeTiH/sub 0.175/ and FeTiH/sub …

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.

This is a report of the sixth quarter's work on the web-dendritic ribbon growth process at the University of South Carolina. The goal of the program is to develop a multivariate semi-empirical computer model for use in understanding the web-dendritic process and defining the basic limitations of the process with particular regard to the growth rate and width. A brief description of the work carried-out and the results achieved during the past quarter are given.