Numerous laboratory and field studies have shown that the chemical form (i.e., speciation) of many metals and radionuclides is affected by the presence of naturally occurring organic matter (OM) and its degradation products. The effects of OM (e.g., wood products) on the speciation and, therefore, the mobility of Am, Bk, Cf, Cm, Cs, Ni, NpO{sub 2}, Rb, Sr. UO{sub 2}, and Zr were estimated through use of geochemical and groundwater flow modeling. Due to the complex mixture nature of naturally occurring OM, the OM system was simplified through use of surrogate compounds (citric acid and ethylenedinitrilotetraacetic acid (EDTA)) to estimate effects of OM on radionuclide mobility. Using this approach, OM was found to have no effect on the inventory limits for Cs, NpO{sub 2}, Rb and Zr. The inventory limits for the isotopes of Am, Bk, Cf, Cm, Ni, Pd, PuO{sub 2}, Sr, and UO{sub 2} calculated in the presence of OM decreased over a range of 26 percent for U-233 to 48 percent for Pu-240. The information in this report will be included in the next revision of the E-Area Vaults Performance Assessment.

Past claims of the suitability of the MA-8 multianvil press as a deformation apparatus may have been overstated. On the basis of measurements of final octahedron size and of guide block displacement as a function of time, using the 10/5, 14/8, and 18/11 assemblies (octahedron edge length in mm/truncation edge length in mm) with MgO octahedra and pyrophyllite gasketing, it appears that at run conditions of interest to most researchers there is no appreciable time-dependent creep of gaskets and octahedra. All inelastic deformation occurs at rather low pressures: below about 10 GPa for the 10/5, 7 GPa for the 14/8, and 6 GPa for the 18/11 assemblies, with substantial uncertainties in these pressures. Above these limits all deformation of the pressure medium is elastic. Pressure stepping as a means of increasing the inelastic deformation rate of a sample is probably ineffective. Displacement measured at the guide blocks, previously believed to indicate deformation of the gaskets and octahedron, appears now to be unrelated to creep of these components. The calibrations have not been exhaustive and there is considerable scatter in some of the size measurements, so the above conclusions are not unequivocal. The calibrations do not exclude the possibility of deformation …

Eight wells of the LFW series monitor groundwater quality in the Steed Pond Aquifer (Water Table) beneath the Interim Sanitary Landfill at the Savannah River Site (SRS). These wells are sampled biannually to comply with the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control Modified Municipal Solid Waste Permit 025500- 1120 (formerly DWP-087A) and as part of the SRS Groundwater Monitoring Program. Trichlorofluoromethane was elevated in one downgradient and one sidegradient well during 1995. Barium, 1, 1- dichloroethylene, specific conductance, and zinc exceeded standards in one well each. The elevated level of 1, 1-dichloroethylene occurred in a downgradient well. The groundwater flow direction in the Steed Pond Aquifer (Water Table) beneath the Sanitary Landfill was to the southeast (universal transverse Mercator coordinates). The flow rate in this unit was approximately 190 ft/year during first quarter 1995 and 150 ft/yr during third quarter 1995.

SECTION 608 of the Clean Air Act Amendments has altered much of the refrigeration service contracting industry. MCLR Project Number 660-52502 was established to examine two areas where the Amendments are influencing contractors to determine if more cost-effective service procedures might be developed. One area where existing service procedures are being revisited involves the removal of contaminants from a refrigeration system after a motor burnout. At one time, a Class 1 substance such as CFC-11 or CFC-113 was used as a flushing agent for cleaning a system after a burnout. On large systems, the compressor was disassembled, and the parts were cleaned using 1,1,1-trichloroethane (TCA) or a TCA-containing mixture. Such alternatives are seldom possible today, as the manufacture of Class 1 substances was banned on January 1, 1996. This report describes processes for mineral oil removal, process alternatives for servicing burnouts, solvents, and laboratory retrofit tests.

Advanced reservoir characterization techniques are being applied to selected reservoirs in the Frio Fluvial-Deltaic Sandstone (Vicksburg Fault Zone) trend of South Texas in order to maximize the economic producibility of resources in this mature oil play. This project is developing interwell-scale geological facies models and assessing engineering attributes of Frio fluvial-deltaic reservoirs in selected fields in order to characterize reservoir architecture, flow-unit boundaries, and the controls that these factors exert on the location and volume of unrecovered mobile and residual oil. The goals of the Industrial Associates program that is the source of industry cofunding to this project are to (1) develop an understanding of sandstone architecture and permeability structure in a spectrum of fluvial-deltaic reservoirs deposited in high- to low-accommodation settings and (2) translate this understanding into more realistic, geologically constrained reservoir models to maximize recovery of hydrocarbons. Project work during the first quarter of 1996 consisted of Phase 3 tasks related to the transfer of technologies to industry. The two primary vehicles for transferring technologies evaluated in the Frio Fluvial-Deltaic Sandstone play (Vicksburg Fault Zone) are a series of two short courses and a microcomputer-based geologic advisor software program. In Rincon field, a three-dimensional (3-D) reservoir model is …

The brittle and ductile rheology of ices of water, ammonia, methane, and other volatiles, in combination with rock particles and each other, have a primary influence of the evolution and ongoing tectonics of icy moons of the outer solar system. Laboratory experiments help constrain the rheology of solar system ices. Standard experimental techniques can be used because the physical conditions under which most solar system ices exist are within reach of conventional rock mechanics testing machines, adapted to the low subsolidus temperatures of the materials in question. The purpose of this review is to summarize the results of a decade-long experimental deformation program and to provide some background in deformation physics in order to lend some appreciation to the application of these measurements to the planetary setting.

The characterization of laser-produced plasmas has required the application of spectroscopic techniques to non-standard conditions where kinetics models have not been extensively tested. The plasmas are produced by the Nova laser for the study of inertial confinement fusion, can be mm in size, and evolve on sub-nanosecond time scales. These targets typically achieve electron temperatures from 2-4 keV and electron densities of 10{sup 20}-10{sup 22} cm{sup {minus}3}. The authors have measured the electron temperature of two types of targets: bags of gas and hohlraums, Au cylinders with laser entrance holes in the flat ends. By comparing data from different targets, they examine the time-dependence of spectroscopic plasma diagnostics.

This work plan addresses the activities necessary to complete the data quality objectives process for the purpose of providing sufficient characterization information to successfully stage, pretreat, and immobilize low-activity waste per the requirements and specifications identified in the Tank Waste Remediation System Privatization Request for Proposal. The scope of this task is to complete the data quality objectives process, the results of which will provide a technical basis for sampling and characterization needs related to privatization of pretreatment and low-activity waste immobilization.