A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on community-based, long-term care for severely disabled adults, focusing on: (1) the number and characteristics of adults with severe disabilities; (2) the federal assistance available to such individuals; (3) Medicaid coverage of personal care and related services; and (4) how a sample of selected states have implemented Medicaid policies that allow consumers to select their own caregivers, an approach called consumer direction."

This paper details the analysis of vibration monitoring for end-point control in oxide CMP processes. Two piezoelectric accelerometers were integrated onto the backside of a stainless steel polishing head of an IPEC 472 polisher. One sensor was placed perpendicular to the carrier plate (vertical) and the other parallel to the plate (horizontal). Wafers patterned with metal and coated with oxide material were polished at different speeds and pressures. Our results show that it is possible to sense a change in the vibration signal over time during planarization of oxide material on patterned wafers. The horizontal accelerometer showed more sensitivity to change in vibration amplitude compared to the vertical accelerometer for a given polish condition. At low carrier and platen rotation rates, the change in vibration signal over time at fixed frequencies decreased approximately ½ - 1 order of magnitude (over the 2 to 10 psi polish pressure ranges). At high rotation speeds, the vibration signal remained essentially constant indicating that other factors dominated the vibration signaL These results show that while it is possible to sense changes in acceleration during polishing, more robust hardware and signal processing algorithms are required to ensure its use over a wide range of process …

We used polarized attenuated total reflection (ATR) measurements together with Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy to investigate the vibrational spectra of hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-SiH{sub x}) films 0.5-1.0 microns in thickness. We deposited the films using hot-wire or plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition methods (HWCVD or PECVD, respectively) on crystalline silicon and cadmium telluride substrates. Our ATR technique gave a spectral range from 2100-400 cm{sup -1}, although the Si-H wagging mode absorption band at 640 cm{sup -1} was somewhat distorted in the a-SiHx/Si samples by impurity and lattice absorption in the silicon ATR substrates. We report the identification of a Si-O-C impurity band with maximum intensity at 1240-1230 cm{sup -1}. The assignment of this band to a Si-O-C vibration is supported by secondary-ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) measurements. Our polarized FTIR-ATR spectra of HWCVD and PECVD a-SiH{sub x} films on <111> Si ATR substrates show that the impurity dipoles ar e oriented strongly parallel to the film growth direction. The wagging mode absorbance band is more intense in the film plane. This trend is less pronounced for the Si-H stretching vibrations. These observations are consistent with some degree of anisotropy or medium-range order in the films. The anisotropy in the Si-H bands …

The main objective of this research is to develop an analysis program which can accurately simulate ratcheting in piping components subjected to seismic or other cyclic loads. Ratcheting is defined as the accumulation of deformation in structures and materials with cycles. This phenomenon has been demonstrated to cause failure to piping components (known as ratcheting-fatigue failure) and is yet to be understood clearly. The design and analysis methods in the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code for ratcheting of piping components are not well accepted by the practicing engineering community. This research project attempts to understand the ratcheting-fatigue failure mechanisms and improve analysis methods for ratcheting predictions. In the first step a state-of-the-art testing facility is developed for quasi-static cyclic and seismic testing of straight and elbow piping components. A systematic testing program to study ratcheting is developed. Some tests have already been performed an d the rest will be completed by summer'99. Significant progress has been made in the area of constitutive modeling. A number of sophisticated constitutive models have been evaluated in terms of their simulations for a broad class of ratcheting responses. From the knowledge gained from this evaluation study two improved models are developed. These models …

The trivariate tensor-product B-spline solid is a direct extension of the B-spline patch and has been shown to be useful in the creation and visualization of free-form geometric solids. Visualizing these solid objects requires the determination of the boundary surface of the solid, which is a combination of parametric and implicit surfaces. This paper presents a method that determines the implicit boundary surface by examination of the Jacobian determinant of the defining B-spline function. Using an approximation to this determinant, the domain space is adaptively subdivided until a mesh can be determined such that the boundary surface is close to linear in the cells of the mesh. A variation of the marching cubes algorithm is then used to draw the surface. Interval approximation techniques are used to approximate the Jacobian determinant and to approximate the Jacobian determinant gradient for use in the adaptive subdivision methods. This technique can be used to create free-form solid objects, useful in geometric modeling applications.

The purpose of this document is to list the Characterization equipment drawings that are classified as Essential Drawings and Support Drawings. Essential Drawings: Are those drawings identified by the facility staff as necessary to directly support the safe operation of the facility or equipment (HNF 1997a). Support Drawings: Are those drawings identified by facility staff that further describe the design details of structures, systems, or components shown on essential drawings. (HNF 1997a) The Characterization equipment drawings identified in this report are deemed essential drawings as defined in HNF-PRO-242, Engineering Drawing Requirements (HNF 1997a). These drawings will be prepared, revised, and maintained per HNF-PRO-440, Engineering Document Change Control (HNF 1997b). All other Characterization equipment drawings not identified in this document will be considered General drawings until the Characterization Equipment Drawing Evaluation Report (Wilson 1998) is updated during fiscal year 1999. Trucks 1 and 2 drawings are not included in this revision of the essential drawing list due to uncertainty about future use.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the implementation of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), focusing on states': (1) initial SCHIP design choices, including the use of the statutory flexibility to design their programs; (2) pursuit of statutory options, particularly extending coverage to adults in families with children; (3) development of innovative outreach strategies to enroll eligible children; and (4) tailoring of strategies to avoid the crowd out of both private insurance and Medicaid coverage by SCHIP."

The 1990 Clean Air Act amendments established an operating permit system that is affecting many new and existing sources of air emissions, as well as state and local air pollution control agencies. After delays and early missteps, the operating permit program is moving ahead. All state and local programs have received interim or full approval, and permits are being issued, although at a slower rate than anticipated. However, a number of issues exist. These include the effect of key federal regulations, not yet promulgated, on permit programs and regulated sources; adequacy of state resources; gaining full approval for those permit programs that now have interim approval; and oversight.

This is the final report of a three-year, Laboratory-Directed Research and Development (LDRD) project at the Los Alamos national Laboratory (LANL). Hundreds of ceramic compounds possess the spinel crystal structure and exhibit a remarkable variety of properties, ranging from compounds that are electrical insulators to compounds that are superconducting, or from compounds with ferri- and antiferromagnetic behavior to materials with colossal magnetoresistive characteristics. The unique crystal structure of spinel compounds is in many ways responsible for the widely varying physical properties of spinels. The objective of this project is to investigate the nature of chemical bonding, point defects, and electronic structure in compounds with the spinel crystal structure. Our goal is to understand and predict the stability of the spinel structure as a function of chemical composition, stoichiometry, and cation disorder. The consequences of cation disorder in spinel materials can be profound . The ferromagnetic characteristics of magnesioferrite, for instance, are entirely attributable to disorder on the cation sublattices. Our studies provide insight into the mechanisms of point defect formation and cation disorder and their effects on the electronic band structure and crystal structure of spinel-structure materials. our ultimate objective is to develop a more substantive knowledge of the spinel …

This report covers work performed under Order No. FA0000020 AN Contract DE-AC12-76SN00052 for deposition of refractory pure metals and alloys using the Directed Light Fabrication (DLF) process and represents the progress in depositing these materials through September 1998. In extending the DLF process technology to refractory metals for producing fully dense, structurally sound deposits, several problems have become evident. 1. Control of porosity in DLF-deposited refractory metal is difficult because of gases, apparently present in commercially purchased refractory metal powder starting materials. 2. The radiant heat from the molten pool during deposition melts the DLF powder feed nozzle. 3. The high reflectivity of molten refractory metals, at the Nd-YAG laser wavelength (1.06{micro}m), produces damaging back reflections to the optical train and fiber optic delivery system that can terminate DLF processing. 4. The current limits on the maximum available laser power to prevent back reflection damage limit the parameter range available for densification of refractory metals. The work to date concentrated on niobium, W-25Re, and spherodized tungsten. Niobium samples, made from hydride-dehydride powder, had minimal gas porosity and the deposition parameters were optimized; however, test plates were not made at this time. W-25Re samples, containing sodium and potassium from a precipitation …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the role of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) in shaping the national drug control budget that the President ultimately proposes to Congress to implement the National Drug Control Strategy, focusing on: (1) whether the process ONDCP followed to certify federal agencies' drug control budgets for fiscal year (FY) 1999 was consistent with statutory requirements; and (2) the system ONDCP has developed to assess the extent to which drug control agencies and programs achieve intended results."

The effects on electrochemical performance of the nitrogen content of disordered carbons derived from polymethacryonitrile (PMAN)-divinylbenzene (DVB) copolymers were examined in galvanostatic cycling tests between 2 V and 0.01 V vs. Li/Li+ in lM LiPF₆/ethylene carbonate (EC)-dimethyl carbonate (DMC). The first-cycle reversible capacities and coulombic efficiencies increased with increase in the level of nitrogen for samples prepared at 700°C. However, the degree of fade also increased. Similar tests were performed on materials that were additionally heated at 1,000° and 1,300°C for five hours. Loss of nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen occurred under these conditions, with none remaining at the highest temperature in all cases but one. The pyrolysis temperature dominated the electrochemical performance for these samples, with lower reversible and irreversible capacities for the first intercalation cycle as the pyrolysis temperature was increased. Fade was reduced and coulombic efficiencies also improved with increase in temperate. The large irreversible capacities and high fade of these materials makes them unsuitable for use in Li-ion cells.

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the audit report covering the financial statements of the National Society Daughters of the American Colonists for the fiscal year ended February 28, 1998, focusing on whether the audit report complied with the financial reporting requirements of the law."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the audit report covering the financial statements of the National Woman's Relief Corps, Auxiliary to the Grand Army of the Republic, Incorporated, for the fiscal year ended August 31, 1997, focusing on whether the audit report complied with the financial reporting requirements of the law."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the financial statements of the Congressional Award Foundation for the fiscal years ended September 30, 1998 and 1997, focusing on: (1) the Foundation management's assertions regarding the effectiveness of its internal controls as of September 30, 1998; and (2) GAO's evaluation of the Foundation's compliance with selected provisions of laws and regulations during fiscal year 1998."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) fiscal year (FY) 1998 financial audit report."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO commented on whether actions taken by employees of the Forest Service to implement a Communication Plan for the Forest Service Natural Resource Agenda violated section 303 of the 1998 Interior Department Appropriations Act, which prohibited the expenditure of funds for certain lobbying activities undertaken by covered federal officials. GAO noted that: (1) expenditure of funds by the Forest Service for certain activities undertaken to implement a Forest Service Natural Resource Agenda Communication Plan violated section 303 of the 1998 Interior Department Appropriations Act; and (2) activities included: (a) urging members of the public during a meeting and to contact Congress in support of road funding initiatives in legislation and in the budget; and (b) a campaign to promote public support for a budget proposal seeking to change the way certain payments to states from Forest Service revenues are calculated."

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A Generic Distributed Simulation Architecture is described that allows a simulation to be automatically distributed over a heterogeneous network of computers and executed with very little human direction. A prototype Framework is presented that implements the elements of the Architecture and demonstrates the feasibility of the concepts. It provides a basis for a future, improved Framework that will support legacy models. Because the Framework is implemented in Java, it may be installed on almost any modern computer system.

During calendar year (CY) 1998, the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) performed its customary radiological protection support services in support of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Richland Operations OffIce (RL) and the Hanford contractors. These services included: 1) external dosimetry, 2) internal dosimetry, 3) in vivo measurements, 4) radiological records, 5) instrument calibra- tion and evaluation, and 6) calibration of radiation sources traceable to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (MST). The services were provided under a number of projects as summarized here.

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The NGDRS steering committee met at Chevron's office on March 2, 1999 in Houston, Texas to review and discuss issues of data transfer and the future of the Stapleton prospect for establishment of a national core repository. Company representatives reaffirmed their commitment in principal to the NGDRS project. Given the downturn in oil prices and final results from the due diligence of the Stapleton property, AGI has decided to forego pursuing acquisition and build-out of the Stapleton Airport property. The major petroleum companies indicated that rising the $10-12 million endowment would be difficult in the current climate. The completion of the due diligence of the property also revealed major concerns about the environmental liability associated with the property, which would require indemnification of the AGI by the City of Denver. Given these complicating results, AGI officially terminated efforts regarding the Stapleton property effective March 31, 1999. Several steering committee members put forth a proposal that the companies make their non-proprietary holdings public and list them in the NGDRS GeoTrek metadata catalog. Most of these holdings are at C&M Storage in Schulemburg, Texas. The companies are discussing methods to allow for public access to these data with C&M.

The objective of this cooperative research effort between Washington University, Ohio State University and Exxon Research Engineering Company was to improve the knowledge base for scale-up and operation of slurry bubble column reactors for syngas conversion and other coal conversion processes by increased reliance on experimentally verified hydrodynamic models. During the first year (July 1, 1995--June 30, 1996) of this three year program novel experimental tools (computer aided radioactive particle tracking (CARPT), particle image velocimetry (PIV), heat probe, optical fiber probe and gamma ray tomography) were developed and tuned for measurement of pertinent hydrodynamic quantities, such as velocity field, holdup distribution, heat transfer and bubble size. The accomplishments were delineated in the First Technical Annual Report. The second year (July, 1996--June 30, 1997) was spent on further development and tuning of the novel experimental tools (e.g., development of Monte Carlo calibration for CARPT, optical probe development), building up the hydrodynamic data base using these tools and comparison of the two techniques (PIV and CARPT) for determination of liquid velocities. A phenomenological model for gas and liquid backmixing was also developed. All accomplishments were summarized in the Second Annual Technical Report. During the third and final year of the program (July …