In situ design verification activities am being conducted in the North Ramp Starter Tunnel of the Yucca Mountain Project Exploratory Studies Facility. These activities include: monitoring the peak particle velocities and evaluating the damage to the rock mass associated with construction blasting, assessing the rock mass quality surrounding the tunnel, monitoring the performance of the installed ground support, and monitoring the stability of the tunnel. In this paper, examples of the data that have been collected and preliminary conclusions from the data are presented.

The operating limits for radionuclides in sanitary and industrial wastes were determined for a proposed landfill at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP), Kentucky. These limits, which may be very small but nonzero, are not mandated by law or regulation but are needed for rational operation. The approach was based on analyses of the potential contamination of groundwater at the plant boundary and the potential exposure to radioactivity of an intruder at the landfill after closure. The groundwater analysis includes (1) a source model describing the disposal of waste and the release of radionuclides from waste to the groundwater, (2) site-specific groundwater flow and contaminant transport calculations, and (3) calculations of operating limits from the dose limit and conversion factors. The intruder analysis includes pathways through ingestion of contaminated vegetables and soil, external exposure to contaminated soil, and inhalation of suspended activity from contaminated soil particles. In both analyses, a limit on annual effective dose equivalent of 4 mrem (0.04 mSv) was adopted. The intended application of the results is to refine the radiological monitoring standards employed by the PGDP Health Physics personnel to determine what constitutes radioactive wastes, with concurrence of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

The impacts of thermal and seismic loads on the stability of the Exploratory Studies Facility North Ramp at Yucca Mountain were assessed using both empirical and analytical approaches. This paper presents the methods and results of the analyses. Thermal loads were first calculated using the computer code STRES3D. This code calculates the conductive heat transfer through a semi-infinite elastic, isotropic, homogeneous solid and the rafts thermally-induced stresses. The calculated thermal loads, combined with simulated earthquake motion, were then modeled using UDEC and DYNA3D, numerical codes with dynamic simulation capabilities. The thermal- and seismic-induced yield zones were post-processed and presented for assessment of damage. Uncoupled bolt stress analysis was also conducted to evaluate the seismic impact on the ground support components.

Drift-emplaced waste canisters are under consideration for the long-term storage of high-level spent fuel in the proposed underground repository at Yucca Mountain. These canisters will be placed on pedestals above the floor of the drifts and exchange heat with the walls of the drift and with air circulating through the repository. To assess the requirements of the repository ventilation system, values of the dimensionless convective heat transfer coefficient and the pressure drop across individual canisters were measured in a experimental model of a drift. The results were curvefitted as functions of the spacing between the canisters and the Reynolds number of the flow. Both natural and forced convection effects were investigated.

Direct disposal of spent nuclear fuel in deep underground geologic repositories (vaults) is being pursued by several countries. Isolation relies on multiple barriers consisting of the site geology, engineered barriers including containers to surround the fuel, and the spent fuel itself. These barriers are intended to inhibit dissolution and transport of radionuclides by groundwater, which is virtually the only mechanism available to release radionuclides from the repository. Performance assessment studies are needed to demonstrate the adequacy of the various repository designs. Essential to this performance assessment is an understanding of the dissolution behavior of the spent fuel. Since the dissolution behavior of spent fuel in an actual repository cannot be adequately approximated in a laboratory, laboratory tests and data must be used to develop a mechanistic model that can predict long-term behavior in a repository. Three different laboratories have performed flowthrough dissolution tests at room temperature on portions of the same batch of unirradiated UO{sub 2} powder, and good agreement was achieved between the different test results. Dissolution rates obtained from electrochemical studies conducted with UO{sub 2} electrodes at Whiteshell Laboratories are compared with the flowthrough test results.

The conference sprang from discussions on the current climate that women face in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology. The conference (and this document) is a beginning, not a culmination, of women`s learning leadership skills. Conferees were active, articulate, energetic, and ready to learn leadership qualities, some of which seem universal, others that appear to require skills in specific fields. After the introduction, the workshops and presentations are arranged under vision and direction, barriers, alignment and communication, and motivation and inspiration. Some statistics are presented on women degrees and employment in various fields.

In device structures with dimensions comparable to carrier inelastic scattering lengths, the quantum nature of carriers will cause interference effects that cannot be modeled by conventional techniques. The basic equations that govern these ``quantum`` circuit elements present significant numerical challenges. The authors describe the block recursion method, an accurate, efficient method for solving the quantum circuit problem. They demonstrate this method by modeling dirty inversion layers.

We examine the processes and methods used to facilitate collaboration in software development between two organizations at separate locations -- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in California and Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) in New Mexico. Our software development process integrated the efforts of these two laboratories. Software developed at LLNL to model corrosion and failure of waste packages and subsequent releases of radionuclides was incorporated as a source term into SNLs computer models for fluid flow and radionuclide transport through the geosphere.

The second preliminary total-system performance assessment for the potential radioactive-waste-repository site at Yucca Mountain has recently been completed. This paper summarizes results for nominal aqueous and gaseous releases using the composite-porosity flow model. The results are found to be sensitive to the type of unsaturated-zone flow, to percolation flux and climate change, to saturated-zone dilution, to container-wetting processes and container-corrosion processes, to fuel-matrix alteration rate and radionuclide solubilities (especially for {sup 237}Np), and to bulk permeability and retardation of gaseous {sup 14}C. These are areas that should be given priority in the site-characterization program. Specific recommendations are given in the full report of the study.

Fracture-matrix interaction is investigated through combined physical and numerical experimentation. Two slabs of Topopah Spring Tuff are mated to form a vertical saw cut fracture to which water is supplied. X-ray imaging is used to obtain the matrix porosity field and transient saturation fields as water moves from the fracture into the matrix. Porosity, hydraulic conductivity, and pressure/saturation relations of the matrix are measured on small cores taken from adjacent rock. Correlations between hydraulic properties and porosity are developed and modeled. Numerical simulations using TOUGH2 are accomplished with a series of property fields of increasing detail. Property fields are modeled using the measured porosity field divided into 1, 3, 5, 11, and 21 porosity groups with the hydraulic properties assigned from the developed correlations and the average porosity within each group. Comparison with experimental results allows us to begin to evaluate current matrix property measurement techniques, specific matrix property models, property estimation procedures, and effects of matrix property variability.

The Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project is investigating the feasibility of locating a high level radioactive nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. The bore hole and the in-drift waste emplacement schemes are under evaluation as potential repository drift geometries. This paper presents a two-dimensional finite element thermal analysis of the nuclear waste canister placed horizontally in a drift. Simulation has been carried out for 1000 years and the peak temperatures at the walls of the drift and at the center of the canister have been determined. The effect of the three modes of heat transfer, conduction, natural convection and radiation, is also discussed.

The drift of a High Level Nuclear Waste (HLNW) Repository were subjected to 2-D thermal loading resulting from the horizontal emplacement of 125 Ton Multi-Purpose Canisters (MPC). Ten 2-D temperature profiles, resulting from 57 Kw/acre and 114 Kw/acre thermal loading conditions, were used in a finite element analysis of the drift; in which a quadrant of the drift and surrounding rock {plus_minus}100m above and below the drift were modeled. Our analysis shows that the 114 Kw/acre thermal loading results in compressive stresses around the drift, 60 years after emplacement, that exceed the unconfined compressive strength of the TSW tuff analyzed. Stresses resulting from a 57 Kw/acre thermal loading are within the acceptable limit in tunnel rock. A parametric analysis of the invert backfill material showed that Young`s modulus for the invert backfill should closely match that of the surrounding unconfined rock in the tunnel in order to prevent an unacceptable stress rise in both rock and backfill.

The Office of Science and Technology Policy has established the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) to help solve problems, to improve economic competitiveness, and to provide stimulus for education. Within the NSTC, the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources Research is responsible for seven environmental issues, including all research relating to global change. The US Global Change Research Program supports international protocols and conventions relating to ozone, climate, and biodiversity. It contributes to the advancement of knowledge in science, education, and technology transfer by providing scientific understanding for policy. This program supports the mission of federal agencies in the areas of forecasts, regulations, services, etc.

The heating and current drive (H and CD) system proposed for the TPX tokamak will consist of ion cyclotron, neutral beam, and lower hybrid systems. It will have 17.5 MW of installed H and CD power initially, and can be upgraded to 45 MW. It will be used to explore advanced confinement and fully current-driven plasma regimes with pulse lengths of up to 1,000 s.

The ZGS people went off in every direction: to universities, to other laboratories, to universities and laboratories in other countries, and to other occupations in the private sector or federal agencies. Some people even cycled around through one or more of the above and eventually would up back to Argonne. As a good pupil of the David Manson school of weasel words. I recognize the need to insert a {open_quotes}to the best of my knowledge{close_quotes} disclaimer statement here. It became clear to me that I couldn`t vouch for the accuracy of all of the information shown below when, to my surprise and delight, I found on the official registration list for this conference the names of people I really, really, never expected to see again!

The primary goal of the experiment was to evaluate the long-term, low-dose effect of radiation to the environment, particularly to vegetation i.e., fescue and insects in the event of a nuclear attack. In 1968, {sup 137}Cs was fused at high temperatures with silica sand particles (100 uCi/g) and applied to the surface of four 33 x 33 ft plots. Four other plots were constructed at the site to serve as background controls and were not contaminated with {sup 137}Cs. The particles ranged from 88 to 177 {micro}m in diameter and were spread at a load of 72 g/m{sup 2} over the plots. The particle size distribution was selected to simulate particle diameters characteristic of weapons fallout. Each plot received approximately 2.2 Ci of {sup 137}Cs, which resulted in a total of 8.8 Ci applied to the site. The cesium plots occupy approximately 6 acres of grassy fields 330 ft north of the Clinch River. The plots are enclosed by a perimeter fence approximately 1,000 ft x 250 ft. Each of the eight plots was enclosed with sheet metal that extended 18 in. below and 24 in. above the ground surface. ORNL researchers involved with the application of the cesium (circa …

Under the sponsorship of the US Department of Energy`s (DOE`s) Transportation Management Division (EM-261), the Transportation Technologies Group at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has designed and developed an expert system prototype application of the hazardous materials transportation regulations. The objective of this task was to provide a proof-of-concept for developing a computerized expert system that will ensure straightforward, consistent, and error-free application of the hazardous materials transportation regulations. The expert system prototype entailed the analysis of what an expert in hazardous materials shipping information could/should do. From the analysis of the different features required for the expert system prototype, it was concluded that the developmental efforts should be directed to a Windows{trademark} 3.1 hypermedia environment. Hypermedia technology usually works as an interactive software system that gives personal computer users the ability to organize, manage, and present information in a number of formats--text, graphics, sound, and full-motion video.

This document presents a summary of results of a joint EPA/DOE project aimed at establishing a suite of standard cost and performance criteria for evaluating environmental cleanup technologies for DOE sites. Project findings include: (1) decisionmakers have quite different perspectives with interests and information needs varying among decisionmaker groups, (2) previous criteria development efforts may be too narrowly focused to apply to all decisionmakers, (3) criteria must include social/political/economic interests of decisionmakers as well as site-specific variations, and (4) there are 5 core questions that all decisionmakers are likely to ask when considering a technology for use at a site. The resource developed in the project offers decisionmakers a first-time comprehensive assessment of major technology evaluation issues.

This paper describes recent development of the UEDGE code in three important areas. (1) Non-orthogonal grids allow accurate treatment of experimental geometries in which divertor plates intersect flux surfaces at oblique angles. (2) Radating impurities are included by means of one or more continuity equations that describe transport and sources, and sinks due to ionization and recombination processes. (3) Advanced iterative methods that reduce storage and execution time allow us to find fully converged solutions of larger problems (i.e., finer grids). Sample calculations are presented to illustrate these development.

A search for cosmological supernovae has discovered a number of a type Ia supernovae. In particular, one at z = 0.458 is the most distant supernovae yet observed. There is strong evidence from measurements of nearby type Ia supernovae that they can be considered as {open_quotes}standard candles{close_quotes}. The authors plan to use these supernovae to measure the deceleration in the general expansion of the universe. The aim of their experiment is to try and observe and measure about 30 such distant supernovae in order to obtain a measurement of the deceleration parameter q{sub o} which is related to {Omega}. Here {Omega} is the ratio of the density of the universe to the critical density, and they expect a measurement with an accuracy of about 30%.

We measured the optical nonlinearity of fullerene thin films (C{sub 60},C{sub 70}) from 710--850 nm and determined the figure of merit for all-optical switching. We also demonstrated, to our knowledge, the first fullerene-based all-optical switch.

A method is presented of absolute energy measurement with an accuracy of {triangle}{Epsilon} {approximately} 10{sup {minus}4}{Epsilon}{sub o} by direct measurement of the bend angle in a high-precision magnetic dipole using two opposite-direction short (about 2 mm long) high-field-intensity magnets ({bar {Beta}} {sub dipole} {much_lt} {Beta}{sub short mag}) installed at each end and two K-edge absorption spectrometers. Using these spectrometers and the hard x-ray synchrotron radiation created by the short magnets, a bend angle of 4.5 arc deg for the CEBAF energy bandwidth can be measured with an accuracy of a few units of 10{sup {minus}6} rad, and the main sources of systematic errors are the absolute measurement of the field integral and the determination of the centroid of the synchrotron beam at a wavelength equal to the K-edge absorption of the chosen substance.

New precision data for the magnetic form factor of the proton in the time-like region is found to be well represented by a {open_quotes}dipole{close_quotes} vector meson dominance model for both space- like and time-like momentum transfers (for {vert_bar}q{sub 2}{vert_bar} up to {approx} 15 GeV{sup 2}), if the first excited {rho}-meson is taken into account. The authors' result gives a counter example to the previous claim that the new data is only well described by perturbative QCD.

The authors solve perturbative constraints and eliminate gauge freedom for Ashtekar's gravity on de Sitter background. They show that the reduced phase space consists of transverse, traceless, symmetric, fluctuations of the triad and of transverse, traceless, symmetric fluctuations of the connection. A part of gauge freedom corresponding to the conformal Killing vectors of the three-manifold can be fixed only by imposing conditions on Lagrange multiplier. The reduced phase space is equivalent to that of ADM gravity on the same background.