The objective of this paper is to introduce the process and philosophies used to develop LLNL methodology for performing nonnuclear safety bases. Our former approach needed revision in order to implement the new Work Smart Standard (WSS), 'Safety Basis Requirements for Nonnuclear Facilities at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Site Specific Standard' (UCRL-ID-150214), approved in 2003 and revised January, 2004. This work relates directly to the following workshop theme: 'Improvements in Chemical, Biological, and Non-nuclear Safety analysis.' A requirements document, Environmental Safety and Health Manual, Document 3.1 provides safety bases methodology 'how-to' for LLNL personnel. This methodology document had to undergo a major revision, and essentially was completely re-written, since the nonnuclear requirements underwent a major change due to the new standard. The new methodology was based on a graded approach respective to risk level for each hazard type and facility classification. The development process included input from a cross-section of representatives of LLNL organizations at every step in the process. The initial methodology was tested in a pilot project that resulted in completed safety basis analyses and documentation for a major facility at LLNL. Feedback from the pilot was used to refine the methodology. The new methodology promotes a graded …

Recent progress in simulation methodologies and high-performance parallel computers have made it is possible to perform detailed simulations of multidimensional reacting flow phenomena using comprehensive kinetics mechanisms. As simulations become larger and more complex, it becomes increasingly difficult to extract useful information from the numerical solution, particularly regarding the interactions of the chemical reaction and diffusion processes. In this paper we present a new diagnostic tool for analysis of numerical simulations of reacting flow. Our approach is based on recasting an Eulerian flow solution in a Lagrangian frame. Unlike a conventional Lagrangian view point that follows the evolution of a volume of the fluid, we instead follow specific chemical elements, e.g., carbon, nitrogen, etc., as they move through the system . From this perspective an ''atom'' is part of some molecule of a species that is transported through the domain by advection and diffusion. Reactions cause the atom to shift from one chemical host species to another and the subsequent transport of the atom is given by the movement of the new species. We represent these processes using a stochastic particle formulation that treats advection deterministically and models diffusion and chemistry as stochastic processes. In this paper, we discuss the …

In an ongoing project to relate surface hydrothermal alteration to structurally controlled geothermal aquifers, we mapped a 16 km swath of the eastern front of the Stillwater Range using Hyperspectral fault and mineral mapping techniques. The Dixie Valley Fault system produces a large fractured aquifer heating Pleistocene aged groundwater to a temperature of 285 C at 5-6 km. Periodically over the last several thousand years, seismic events have pushed these heated fluids to the surface, leaving a rich history of hydrothermal alteration in the Stillwater Mountains. At Dixie Hot Springs, the potentiometric surface of the aquifer intersects the surface, and 75 C waters flow into the valley. We find a high concentration of alunite, kaolinite, and dickite on the exposed fault surface directly adjacent to a series of active fumaroles on the range front fault. This assemblage of minerals implies interaction with water in excess of 200 C. Field spectra support the location of the high temperature mineralization. Fault mapping using a Digital Elevation Model in combination with mineral lineation and field studies shows that complex fault interactions in this region are improving permeability in the region leading to unconfined fluid flow to the surface. Seismic studies conducted 10 km …

The early nonlinear phase of Rayleigh-Taylor growth is typically described in terms of the classic Layzer model in which bubbles of light fluid rise into the heavy fluid at a constant rate determined by the bubble radius and the gravitational acceleration. However, this model is strictly valid only for planar interfaces and hence ignores any effects which might be introduced by the spherically converging interfaces of interest in inertial confinement fusion. Here a generalization of the Layzer nonlinear bubble rise rate is given for a self-similar spherically converging flow of the type studied by Kidder. A simple formula for the bubble amplitude is found showing that, while the bubble initially rises with a constant velocity similar to the Layzer result, during the late phase of the implosion, an acceleration of the bubble rise rate occurs. The bubble rise rate is verified by comparison with numerical hydrodynamics simulations.

Heulandite is a common rock-forming zeolite that exhibits wide solid solution of extra framework cations, presumably due to ready ion exchange with aqueous solutions. In order to provide a quantitative basis for interpreting and predicting the distribution of aqueous species between heulandite and aqueous solutions, ion exchange equilibrium between heulandite and aqueous solutions with respect to the binary cation pairs Ca{sup 2+} - K{sup +}, Ca{sup 2+} - Na{sup +}, K{sup +} - Na{sup +}, K{sup +} - Sr{sup 2+}, Na{sup +} - Sr{sup 2+}, and Ca{sup 2+} - Sr{sup 2+} was investigated. Homoionic Ca-, K-, and Na-heulandites prepared from natural heulandite were equilibrated with 0.1 N Cl{sup -} solutions containing various proportions of the cations in a given binary pair at 55 and 85 C to define isotherms describing partitioning of the cations over a wide range of heulandite and solution composition with respect to the cations in each pair. In general, the experiments equilibrated rapidly, within 11-15 weeks at 55 C and 3-4 weeks at 85 C. The exception was the Ca{sup 2+} - Sr{sup 2+} binary exchange, which did not equilibrate even after 3 months at 55 C and 4 weeks at 85 C. Slow exchange of …

The Microsensors Program was born out the need for enhanced sensor technology in support of the Weapons Program. In the interest of expanded diagnostic capabilities to provide true performance characteristics of weapon assemblies in flight and ground tests, a suite of sensor requirements was proposed. These potential new sensor technologies were envisioned to be completely unobtrusive and allow for the development of test vehicles (mock warheads and bomb assemblies) that were designed to mechanical and electrical specifications as close to the stockpile weapon design configuration as possible. The closeness of a test vehicle design to the respective stockpile weapon design is referred to as ''fidelity,'' with the term ''high-fidelity'' to mean all components are designed to emulate, very closely, the true system design. These efforts were in line with many activities associated with Stockpile Stewardship and were intended to enable better modeling and performance assessment without the need for underground testing. Several weapons are currently undergoing Life Extension Programs (LEP) to lengthen each weapon system's respective service life. The ability to assess the projected life of these complex assemblies is crucial to the success of the LEP activities.

Once primarily a European phenomenon, community wind power development--defined here as one or more locally owned, utility-scale wind turbines interconnected on either the customer or utility side of the meter--is gaining a foothold in an increasing number of states throughout the United States. This article describes the various policies and incentives that Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Massachusetts are using to support community wind power development, and how state and federal support influences the types of projects and ownership structures that are being developed. Experience in these states demonstrates that, with an array of incentives and creative financing schemes targeted at community-scale projects, there are opportunities to make community wind work in the United States.

NASA's recent CRYSTAL-FACE field experiment focused on anvil cirrus clouds, an important but poorly understood element of our climate system. Data obtained include the first comprehensive measurements of aerosols and cloud particles throughout the atmospheric column during the evolution of multiple deep convective storm systems. Coupling these new measurements with detailed cloud simulations that resolve the size distributions of aerosols and cloud particles, we find several lines of evidence that most anvil crystals form on mid-tropospheric rather than boundary layer aerosols. This result defies conventional wisdom and indicates that distant pollution sources may impact anvil clouds more than local sources.

We report the results of variational calculations of elastic electron scattering by tetrafluoroethene, C{sub 2}F{sub 4}, with incident electron energies ranging from 0.5 to 20 eV, using the complex Kohn method and effective core potentials. These are the first fully calculations to reproduce experimental angular differential cross sections at energies below 10 eV. Low-energy electron scattering by C{sub 2}F{sub 4} is sensitive to the inclusion of electronic correlation and target-distortion effects. We therefore present results that describe the dynamic polarization of the target by the incident electron. The calculated cross sections are compared with recent experimental measurements.

High fidelity continuous surface mineralogy maps are combined with local and regional structural models in order to define/refine exploration targets in Fish Lake Valley, NV. Surface mineralogy is derived from a 400 km{sup 2} airborne hyperspectral survey collected in July 2003. Smart and efficient first-tier algorithms consisting primarily of band indices were developed to process and 'spectrally strain' the large dataset for zones of prospective mineral assemblages. The reduced mineral targets then endured re-processing with more sophisticated spectral identification and mapping algorithms. A site at the intersection of the east-trending Coaldale Fault and north-northeast-trending Emigrant Peak Fault Zone was delineated and re-processed for further spectral identification. Populations of montmorillonite, kaolinite, jarosite, alunite and pyrophyllite in this region indicate anomalous geothermal gradients now or in the past and sustained hydrothermal discharge along faults, fractures and contacts in far northeastern Fish Lake Valley. Increased permeability and higher geothermal inputs at this locale are likely due to the transtensional deformation that focuses in this portion of the major right-stepover of the central Walker Lane deformation belt.

The roughness scaling of fracture surfaces in two-dimensional grain boundary networks is studied numerically. Grain boundary networks are created using a Metropolis method in order to mimic the triple junction distributions from experiments. Fracture surfaces through these grain boundary networks are predicted using a combinatorial optimization method of maximum flow - minimum cut type. We have preliminary results from system sizes up to N = 22500 grains suggesting that the roughness scaling of these surfaces follows a random elastic manifold scaling exponent {zeta} = 2/3. We propose a strong dependence between the energy needed to create a crack and the special boundary fraction. Also the special boundaries at the crack and elsewhere in the system can be tracked.