The (e,e'p) reaction was studies on targets of C, Fe, and Au at momentum transfers squared Q{sup 2} of 0.6, 1.3, 1.8 and 3.3 GeV{sup 2} in a region of kinematics dominated by quasifree electron-proton scattering. Missing energy and missing momentum distributions are reasonably well described by plane wave impulse approximation calculations with Q{sup 2} and A dependent corrections that measure the attenuation of the final state protons.

Experiments have been conducted by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory to determine the oxidation rate of damaged/corroded N-Reactor fuel material in moist air. Five SNF pieces (with regular geometrical shapes) sectioned from a damaged element stored in the K-West Basin were oxidized in flowing air containing moisture. The SNF oxidation behavior in moist air at a temperature of 198 C can best be fitted by parabolic oxidation kinetics. A linear rate equation gave the best fit to the oxidation data at 250 C and above. The results within the temperature range studied, therefore, show a transition from parabolic oxidation kinetics to linear oxidation kinetics. The transition temperature is somewhere between 198 C and 250 C. The tests at approximately 300 C gave results that were very different from the other tests at temperatures of 198 C, 250 C, and 349 C. The SNF sample weight change at this temperature showed erratic behavior. Visual examination indicated the sample fragmented into small pieces and powder as a result of rapid oxidation and hydration. Additional tests at temperatures close to 300 C (i.e., 300 {+-} 10 C) are recommended in order to fully understand the oxidation behavior of the damaged/corroded SNF samples in moist …

The safety and process analyses of the proposed Integrated Process Strategy (IPS) to move the N-Reactor spent nuclear fuel (SNF) stored at K-Basin to an interim storage facility require information about the oxidation behavior of the metallic uranium. Limited experiments have been performed on the oxidation reaction of SNF samples taken from an N-Reactor outer fuel element in various atmospheres. This report discusses studies on the oxidation behavior of SNF using two independent experimental systems: (1) a tube furnace with a flowing gas mixture of 2% oxygen/98% argon; and (2) a thermogravimetric system for dry air oxidation.

'The migration and entrapment of dense nonaqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs) at hazardous waste sites is typically believed to be controlled by physical heterogeneities. This belief is based upon the assumption that permeability and capillary properties are determined by soil texture. These transport properties however, also depend on porous media wettability characteristics, which may vary spatially in a formation due to variations in aqueous phase chemistry, contaminant aging, and/or variations in mineralogy and organic matter distributions. The overall objective of this research is to investigate the influence of such coupled physical and chemical heterogeneities on the migration and entrapment of DNAPLs in the saturated zone. This research includes laboratory and numerical investigations for a matrix of organic contaminants and solid media encompassing a range of wettability characteristics. Specific objectives include: (1) quantification of system wettability and interfacial tensions; (2) determination of transport property relations; (3) two-dimensional infiltration experiments; (4) modification of a continuum based multiphase flow simulator to account for physical heterogeneity, saturation independent and saturation dependent wettability, and concentration dependent wettability and interfacial tension; and (5) utilization of this model to explore the potential influence of coupled physical and chemical heterogeneities on the migration of DNAPLs and the development of …

This paper describes a new two-dimensional (2-D) cylindrical geometry to three-dimensional (3-D) rectangular x-y-z splice option for multi-dimensional discrete ordinates solutions to the neutron (photon) transport equation. Of particular interest are the simple transformations developed and applied in order to carry out the required spatial and angular interpolations. The spatial interpolations are linear and equivalent to those applied elsewhere. The angular interpolations are based on a high order spherical harmonics representation of the angular flux. Advantages of the current angular interpolations over previous work are discussed. An application to an intricate streaming problem is provided to demonstrate the advantages of the new method for efficient and accurate prediction of particle behavior in complex geometries.

Insulated pressure vessels are cryogenic-capable pressure vessels that can be fueled with liquid hydrogen (LIQ) or ambient-temperature compressed hydrogen (CH2). Insulated pressure vessels offer the advantages of liquid hydrogen tanks (low weight and volume), with reduced disadvantages (lower energy requirement for hydrogen liquefaction and reduced evaporative losses). This paper shows an evaluation of the applicability of the insulated pressure vessels for light-duty vehicles. The paper shows an evaluation of evaporative losses and insulation requirements and a description of the current experimental plans for testing insulated pressure vessels. The results show significant advantages to the use of insulated pressure vessels for light-duty vehicles.

This report sketches the constitutional standards that apply to public aid to sectarian schools and especially to programs of indirect assistance such as education vouchers.

The Court’s decisions permit a limited degree of public aid to be provided directly and a broader range of assistance indirectly. This report sketches the constitutional standards that apply to public aid to sectarian schools and especially to programs of indirect assistance such as education vouchers. It also summarizes recent significant state court decisions involving vouchers.

This report briefly summarizes Employment Division, Oregon Department of Human Resources v. Smith, the legislative history of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), the Supreme Court's decision in City of Boerne, Texas v. Flores, and RFRA's current legal status, and notes the introduction of the Religious Liberty Protection Act (RLPA).

The US Department of Energy (DOE) National Center of Excellence for Metals Recycle has recently been established. The vision of this new program is to develop a DOE culture that promotes pollution prevention by considering the recycle and reuse of metal as the first and primary disposition option and burial as a last option. The Center of Excellence takes the approach that unrestricted release of metal is the first priority because it is the most cost-effective disposition pathway. Where this is not appropriate, restricted release, beneficial reuse, and stockpile of ingots are considered. The Center has gotten off to a fast start. Current recycling activities include the sale of 40,000 tons of scrap metal from the East Tennessee Technology Park (formerly K-25 Plant) K-770 scrap yard, K-1064 surplus equipment and machinery, 7,000 PCB-contaminated drums, 12,000 tons of metal from the Y-12 scrap yard, and 1,000 metal pallets. In addition, the Center of Excellence is developing a toolbox for project teams that will contain a number of specific tools to facilitate metals recycle. This Internet-based toolbox will include primers, computer software, and case studies designed to help sites to perform life cycle analysis, perform ALARA (As Low As is Reasonably Achievable) …

The Commercial Light Water Reactor (CLWR) Production of Tritium is one of two options being investigated by the DOE for producing tritium, an essential element of our nation`s nuclear stockpile.

'In this project, the authors perform a detailed study of the volatilization behavior of U, Pu and possibly Am and Np under conditions relevant to the thermal treatment (destruction) of actinide-containing organic-based mixed and radioactive wastes. The primary scientific goal of the proposed work is to develop a basic thermochemical understanding of actinide volatilization and partitioning/speciation behavior in the thermal processes that are central to DOE/EM''s mixed waste treatment program. This subject addresses several technical needs/problem areas recently identified by DOE/EM''s Office of Science and Technology. In the Low-Level and Mixed Low-Level Waste problem area, emission-free destruction of organic wastes is listed as the first exemplary science need. In the TRU Waste, Plutonium Materials, and Spent Nuclear Fuel problem areas, interactions between actinides and organic residues and materials stabilization are listed as exemplary science needs. Both of these needs require high-temperature thermodynamic studies of actinides and actinide-organic interactions. A sound basis for designing safe and effective thermal treatment systems and the ability to allay public concerns about radioactive fugitive emissions are the principal benefits of the project. The proposed work is a combination of experimental studies and thermodynamic modeling. Vapor pressure measurements will be made to determine U, Pu and …

A preliminary analysis was performed for two selected Accelerator Production of Tritium (APT) generated mixed and low-level waste streams to determine if one mixed low-level waste (MLLW) stream that includes the Mixed Waste Lead (MWL) can be disposed of at the Nevada Test Site (NTS) and at the Hanford Site and if one low-level radioactive waste (LLW) stream, that includes the Tungsten waste stream (TWS) generated by the Tungsten Neutron Source modules and used in the Target/Blanket cavity vessel, can be disposed of in the LLW Vaults at the Savannah River Plant (SRP). The preliminary disposal analysis that the radionuclide concentrations of the two selected APT waste streams are not in full compliance with the Waste Acceptance Criteria (WAC) and the Performance Assessment (PA) radionuclide limits of the disposal sites considered.

This paper summaries the processes and methods APT used for the identification and classification of the waste streams, the characterization and certification of the waste streams, and waste minimization.

First, the author defines generalized Bloom-Gilman duality and Bjorken-like scaling for inclusive photoproduction of pions, relating Quark-Parton Model description in the deep-inelastic region to the properties of exclusive resonance excitation. Secondly, connection between inclusive and exclusive processes is established in the formalism of Nonforward Parton Densities used here to predict deviations from dimensional scaling for a variety of observables: nucleon and pion elastic form factors, and pion Compton scattering.

'The concentrated caustic waste slurries stored in waste tanks at Hanford and Savannah River have large amounts of aluminate along with nitrate, nitrite, hydroxide, carbonate, and phosphate-all species are present both in solution and as solids. The dominant cation is sodium with few percent potassium and other species. These slurries have sodium concentrations on the order of 10--15 mol/L and therefore very high ionic strengths and low water activities. These slurries have been the source of many safety problems at Hanford and Savannah River Sites and the slurry rheologies, gelling points, and gas retention properties are largely responsible for those safety issues. Even though both Hanford and Savannah River have produced large volumes of these slurry concentrates, the microstructural properties that are important for understanding slurry behavior are not well understood. For example, aluminate solid formation has been associated with Hanford concentrates, but is not observed at Savannah River. Another example is that although hydrogen gas retention in slurries is a prevailing safety issue at Hanford, it is only a relatively minor issue in SRS tanks.'

The equation of state of symmetric nuclear matter with the inclusion of non-strange dibaryons is studied. They pay special attention to the existence of a dibaryon condensate at zero temperature. These calculations have been performed in an extended quark-meson coupling model with density-dependent parameters, which takes into account the finite size of nucleons and dibaryons. A first-order phase-transition to pure dibaryon matter has been found. The corresponding critical density is strongly dependent on the value of the dibaryon mass. The density behavior of the nucleon and dibaryon effective masses and confining volumes have also been discussed.

Measured data and computer simulations have demonstrated the impact of roof albedo in reducing cooling energy use in buildings. Savings are a function of both climate and the amount of roof insulation. The cooling energy savings for reflective roofs are highest in hot climates. A reflective roof may also lead to higher heating energy use. Reflective coatings are also used in commercial buildings to protect the roofing membrane, and hence, maintain and prolong the useful life of the roof. Reflectivity of coatings changes with weathering and aging which in turn could have an effect on building cooling-energy savings. For that reason, reflective roof coatings are not primarily marketed for their energy savings potential. To monitor the field performance of reflective coatings, the authors initiated a demonstration project where three commercial buildings in California were painted with light-colored roof coatings. The buildings are two medical care centers and one drug store. At all sites, the roof reflectance, both fresh and aged, and cooling energy use were monitored. In addition, they measured temperature throughout the roof systems and inside the conditioned space. In the monitored buildings, increasing the roof reflectance from an initial value of about 20% to 60%, dropped the roof …

A number of research and development (R and D) activities are planned at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) in FY98 in support of the Department of Energy Office of Fissile Materials Disposition (DOE-MD). During the past few years, the ability to fabricate mixed oxide (MOX) nuclear fuel using surplus-weapons plutonium has been researched, and various experiments have been performed. This research effort will be continued in FY98 to support further development of the technology required for MOX fuel fabrication for reactor-based plutonium disposition. R and D activities for FY98 have been divided into four major areas: (1) feed qualification/supply, (2) fuel fabrication development, (3) analytical methods development, and (4) gallium removal. Feed qualification and supply activities encompass those associated with the production of both PuO{sub 2} and UO{sub 2} feed materials. Fuel fabrication development efforts include studies with a new UO{sub 2} feed material, alternate sources of PuO{sub 2}, and determining the effects of gallium on the sintering process. The intent of analytical methods development is to upgrade and improve several analytical measurement techniques in support of other R and D and test fuel fabrication tasks. Finally, the purpose of the gallium removal system activity is to develop and integrate …

'Beryllium reactive T-lymphocytes can be used as an indicator of sensitization. Traditionally, their presence is detected by an in vitro proliferation assay. However, this test is capricious (results varying from day to day in the same laboratory) and insensitive (rarely positive before clinical symptoms ). The objective of this project is to obtain and characterize beryllium reactive T-cells from peripheral blood using the hprt T-cell mutation assay. T-cells are selected on the basis of their mutation of the hprt gene which renders them insensitive to 6-thioguanine in culture. Such mutant populations are expected to be enriched for cells which are proliferating in vivo as a result of the sensitizing process. This hypothesis has been verified in a number of studies. The seven specific aims of this study will: (i) identify the in vivo proliferating T-cell clones in sensitized individuals by selecting for hprt mutants, (ii) determine T-cell receptor (TCR) gene usages and commonalities among these clones, (iii) demonstrate reactivity to beryllium of these clones, (iv) generate beryllium sensitized T-cells in vitro from peripheral blood of the same individual, (v) determine TCR gene usages and commonalities for these in vitro derived cells, (vi) compare TCR gene patterns between the in vivo …

In this paper we describe the concept, and the basic scaling relation ships of solid state heat capacity lasers. Intermediate between single shot and average power systems, the heat capacity concept scales solid state lasers to MW levels of burst power.

A survey was conducted to determine operation and maintenance (O and M)-related materials needs in geothermal power plants and to identify future research and development to address these needs. A total of 44 questionnaires was mailed to geothermal plant operators and industry consultants. The response rate was 54%. The participants were asked to describe type and frequency of materials problems, strategies currently used to mitigate such problems, barriers to using new or alternative materials and technologies, sources of information and give their views research and development priorities. A. wide range of opinions was obtained, reflecting each individual respondent's perspective and the site-specific nature of some problems. However, the consensus is that corrosion and scaling remain major issues and that components requiring performance improvements include pipelines, well casing, turbines, heat exchangers, condensers, valves and cooling towers. It is recommended that appropriate research and development continue to be directed at reducing O and M costs associated with materials failure or inadequate service. There should be a balance between optimizing existing materials through better design and understanding of behavior in geothermal environments and development of new materials. Life extension of existing equipment, service life prediction, education of plant personnel in materials and methods …

A survey was conducted to determine operation and maintenance (O and M)-related materials needs in geothermal power plants and to identify future research and development to address these needs. A total of 44 questionnaires was mailed to geothermal plant operators and industry consultants. The response rate was 54%. The participants were asked to describe type and frequency of materials problems, strategies currently used to mitigate such problems, barriers to using new or alternative materials and technologies, sources of information and give their views on research and development priorities. A wide range of opinions was obtained, reflecting each individual respondent`s perspective and the site-specific nature of some problems. However, the consensus is that corrosion and scaling remain major issues and that components requiring performance improvements include pipelines, well casing, turbines, heat exchangers, condensers, valves and cooling towers. It is recommended that appropriate research and development continue to be directed at reducing O and M costs associated with materials failure or inadequate service. There should be a balance between optimizing existing materials through better design and understanding of behavior in geothermal environments and development of new materials. Life extension of existing equipment, service life prediction, education of plant personnel in materials and …

Currently, intermetallic compounds are being studied as potential high-temperature structural materials. Most of these studies are on phases such as Ni{sub 3}Al, TiAl, NiAl, and Ti{sub 3}Al, which have structures that are crystallographic derivatives of fcc, bcc, or hcp structures. However, most intermetallics have more complex crystal structures, and little is known about their deformation mechanisms and mechanical properties. By far the largest class of such compounds is that of the Laves phases, AB{sub 2} compounds having three different crystal structures: C15 (cubic), C14 (hexagonal), and C36 (dihexagonal). This research program explored room-temperature compressive deformation of two-phase alloys containing substantial amounts of Laves phase, and, by transmission electron microscopy, characterized the deformation-induced defects in these alloys. The results include: transmission electron microscopy analysis of defect structures to determine deformation mechanisms, use of indentation experiments to gain deeper understanding of deformation mechanisms, systematic study of effects of ternary alloying additions on mechanical properties, and assessment of effects of departure from stoichiometry on phase stability and mechanical properties of Laves phases.