This plan describes the performance standards met and closure activities conducted to achieve clean closure of the 2401-W Waste Storage Building (2401-W) (Figure I). In August 1998, after the last waste container was removed from 2401-W, the U.S. Department of Energy, Richland Operations Office (DOE-RL) notified Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) in writing that the 2401-W would no longer receive waste and would be closed as a Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976 treatment, storage, and/or disposal (TSD) unit (98-EAP-475). Pursuant to this notification, closure activities were conducted, as described in this plan, in accordance with Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 173-303-610 and completed on February 9, 1999. Ecology witnessed the closure activities. Consistent with clean closure, no postclosure activities will be necessary. Because 2401-W is a portion of the Central Waste Complex (CWC), these closure activities become the basis for removing this building from the CWC TSD unit boundary. The 2401-W is a pre-engineered steel building with a sealed concrete floor and a 15.2-centimeter concrete curb around the perimeter of the floor. This building operated from April 1988 until August 1998 storing non-liquid containerized mixed waste. All waste storage occurred indoors. No potential existed for 2401-W operations …

During the past year this component of the Advanced Nuclear Measurements LDRD-DR has focused on emerging safeguards problems and proliferation risk by investigating problems in two domains. The first is related to the analysis, quantification, and characterization of existing inventories of fissile materials, in particular, the minor actinides (MA) formed in the commercial fuel cycle. Understanding material forms and quantities helps identify and define future measurement problems, instrument requirements, and assists in prioritizing safeguards technology development. The second problem (dissertation research) has focused on the development of a theoretical foundation for sensor array anomaly detection. Remote and unattended monitoring or verification of safeguards activities is becoming a necessity due to domestic and international budgetary constraints. However, the ability to assess the trustworthiness of a sensor array has not been investigated. This research is developing an anomaly detection methodology to assess the sensor array.

Monthly newsletter discussing news and activities related to the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program, articles about weather and atmospheric phenomena, and other related topics.

Mulliview Annulus Liquid Level Gauge Level Switch Low.

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the Congressional Award Foundation's fiscal year (FY) 1998 financial statements, focusing on: (1) the Foundation's need to establish and document control requirements and appropriate procedures in certain internal control areas identified during prior audits; and (2) internal control matters identified during GAO's FY 1998 audit."

The Corridor One project is a three-year integrated research project that combines the forces of six leading-edge laboratory and university groups working in the area of visualization, distributed computing and high-performance networking to develop and to deploy the most advanced, integrated distance visualization environment.

Component reliability and long-term trouble-free performance of structural materials are essential in power-generating and gasification processes that utilize coal as a feedstock. During combustion and conversion of coal, the environments encompass a wide range of oxygen partial pressures, from excess-air conditions in conventional boilers to air-deficient conditions in 10W-NO{sub x} and gasification systems. Apart from the environmental aspects of the effluent from coal combustion and conversion, one concern from the systems standpoint is the aggressiveness of the gaseous/deposit environment toward structural components such as waterwall tubes, steam superheaters, syngas coolers, and hot-gas filters. The corrosion tests in the program described in this paper address the individual and combined effects of oxygen, sulfur, and chlorine on the corrosion response of several ASME-coded and noncoded structural alloys that were exposed to air-deficient and excess-air environments typical of coal-combustion and gasification processes. Data in this paper address the effects of preoxidation on the subsequent corrosion performance of structural materials such as 9Cr-1Mo ferritic steel, Type 347 austenitic stainless steel, Alloys 800, 825, 625, 214, Hastelloy X, and iron aluminide when exposed at 650 C to various mixed-gas environments with and without HCI. Results are presented for scaling kinetics, microstructural characteristics of corrosion products, …

Cooling of advanced nuclear designs with heavy liquid metals such as lead or lead-bismuth eutectic offers the potential for plant simplifications and higher operating efficiencies compared to previously considered liquid metal coolants such as sodium or NaK. Such applications would however also introduce additional safety concerns and design challenges, therefore necessitating a verifiable computational tool for transient design-basis analysis of heavy liquid metal coolant (HLMC) systems. This capability would enable analysts to compare operational and safety characteristics of design alternatives, and to evaluate relative performance advantages with a consistent, deterministic measure.

Hydrogen atom - hydrogen atom scattering is a prototype for many of the fundamental principles of atomic collisions. In this work we present an approximation to the H+H system for scattering in the intermediate energy regime of 1 to 100 keV. The approximation ignores electron exchange and two-electron excitation by assuming that one of the atoms is frozen in the 1s state. We allow for the evolution of the active electron by numerically solving the 3D Schroedinger equation. The results capture many features of the problem and are in harmony with recent theoretical studies. Excitation and ionization cross sections are computed and compared to other theory and experiment. New insight into the mechanism of excitation and ionization is inferred from the solutions.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Department of Army (DA) are conducting an evaluation to identify the appropriate response action to address groundwater contamination at the Weldon Spring Chemical Plant (WSCP) and the Weldon Spring Ordnance Works (WSOW), respectively. The two areas are located in St. Charles County, about 48 km (30 rni) west of St. Louis. The groundwater operable unit (GWOU) at the WSCP is one of four operable units being evaluated by DOE as part of the Weldon Spring Site Remedial Action Project (WSSRAP). The groundwater operable unit at the WSOW is being evaluated by the DA as Operable Unit 2 (OU2); soil and pipeline contamination are being managed under Operable Unit 1 (OU1). Remedial activities at the WSCP and the WSOW are being conducted in accordance with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). Consistent with DOE policy, National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) values have been incorporated into the CERCLA process. A remedial investigation/feasibility study (RI/FS) work plan summarizing initial site conditions and providing site hydrogeological and exposure models was published in August of 1995 (DOE 1995). The remedial investigation (RI) and baseline risk assessment (BRA) have also recently been completed. The …

Phase II efforts to develop very low friction (polished) small radius cutters for drill bits are discussed. Key developments under this contract include: (1) improvements to robustness of polycrystalline diamond coatings enabling their use on sharper cutter shapes; (2) polishable coating materials which exhibit improved polish retention; and (3) a means of polishing a non-planar polycrystalline diamond surface economically. Field tests have shown acceptability of new small radius cutters, but have yet to show benefits of polishing. Further field tests are planned.

Fouling is a complex phenomenon that (1) encompasses formation and transportation of precursors, and (2) attachment and possible removal of foulants. A basic understanding of fouling mechanisms should guide the development of effective mitigation techniques. The literature on fouling in complex flow passages of compact heat exchangers is limited; however, significant progress has been made with enhanced tubes.

Backfills have been part of Sandia National Laboratories' [Sandia's] Waste Isolation Pilot Plant [WIPP] designs for over twenty years. Historically, backfill research at Sandia has depended heavily on the changing mission of the WIPP facility. Early testing considered heat producing, high level, wastes. Bentonite/sand/salt mixtures were evaluated and studies focused on developing materials that would retard brine ingress, sorb radionuclides, and withstand elevated temperatures. The present-day backfill consists of pure MgO [magnesium oxide] in a pelletized form and is directed at treating the relatively low contamination level, non-heat producing, wastes actually being disposed of in the WIPP. It's introduction was motivated by the need to scavenging CO{sub 2} [carbon dioxide] from decaying organic components in the waste. However, other benefits, such as a substantial desiccating capacity, are also being evaluated. The MgO backfill also fulfills a statutory requirement for assurance measures beyond those needed to demonstrate compliance with the US Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] regulatory release limits. However, even without a backfill, the WIPP repository design still operates within EPA regulatory release limits.

Micromachined beams are commonly used to measure material properties in MEMS. Such measurements are complicated by the fact that boundary effects at the ends of the beams have a significant effect on the properties being measured. In an effort to improve the accuracy and resolution of such measurements, we are conducting a study of support post compliance in cantilever and fixed-fixed beams. Three different support post designs have been analyzed by finite element modeling. The results are then compared to measurements made on actual devices using interferometry. Using this technique, the accuracy of measurements of Young's modulus has been improved. Continuing work will also improve the measurement of residual stress.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the operations of the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) Office of the National Taxpayer Advocate and the Problem Resolution Program (PRP) that it administers, focusing on: (1) challenges the Taxpayer Advocate faces in managing program resources; (2) the potential effects of workload fluctuations on program operations; (3) information available to help the Advocate determine the causes of taxpayer problems and prevent their recurrence; and (4) the adequacy of performance measures the IRS uses to gauge program effectiveness."

UCRL- JC- 134975 PREPRINT code offering 3- D, axisymmetric, and ''transverse slice'' (steady flow) geometries, with a hierarchy of models for the ''lattice'' of focusing, bending, and accelerating elements. Interactive and script- driven code steering is afforded through an interpreter interface. The code runs with good parallel scaling on the T3E. Detailed simulations of machine segments and of complete small experiments, as well as simplified full- system runs, have been carried out, partially benchmarking the code. A magnetoinductive model, with module impedance and multi- beam effects, is under study. experiments, including an injector scalable to multi- beam arrays, a high- current beam transport and acceleration experiment, and a scaled final- focusing experiment. These ''phase I'' projects are laying the groundwork for the next major step in HIF development, the Integrated Research Experiment (IRE). Simulations aimed directly at the IRE must enable us to: design a facility with maximum power on target at minimal cost; set requirements for hardware tolerances, beam steering, etc.; and evaluate proposed chamber propagation modes. Finally, simulations must enable us to study all issues which arise in the context of a fusion driver, and must facilitate the assessment of driver options. In all of this, maximum advantage …

The prospect of using computer simulations to calculate radiation-induced defect production and its influence on microstructure evolution and mechanical property changes during prolonged irradiation of nuclear materials has been a beckoning, yet elusive goal for many years. However, the enormous progress achieved in computational physics for calculating reliable, yet tractable interatomic potentials, coupled with vast improvements in computational power have brought this hope to near reality. In order to develop modeling and simulation tools for predicting the irradiation response of nuclear structural materials, models must be implemented and tested across all relevant length and time scales. We discuss the development and implementation of a modeling methodology that consists of the linkage and hierarchical use of ab initio electronic structure calculations, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, and kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) simulations. This methodology can describe length and time scales from nanometers to hundreds of microns and from picoseconds to years, respectively. The ideas are demonstrated in two applications. First, we describe simulations that describe the irradiation and subsequent isochronal annealing of Pb, a low melting point fcc metal, and compare the results to experiments. Second, we show how these methods can be used to investigate damage production and freely migrating defect …

A condenser for a ring-field extreme ultra-violet (EUV) projection lithography camera is presented. The condenser consists of a gently undulating mirror, that we refer to as a ripple plate, and which is illuminated by a collimated beam at grazing incidence. The light is incident along the ripples rather than across them, so that the incident beam is reflected onto a cone and subsequently focused on to the arc of the ring field. A quasistationary illumination is achieved, since any one field point receives light from points on the ripples, which are distributed throughout the condenser pupil. The design concept can easily be applied to illuminate projection cameras with various ring-field and numerical aperture specifications. Ray-tracing results are presented of a condenser for a 0.25 NA EUV projection camera.

This invention is a process for the passivation or deactivation with respect to oxygen of a carbonaceous material by the exposure of the carbonaceous material to an oxygenated gas in which the oxygenated gas pressure is increased from a first pressure to a second pressure and then the pressure is changed to a third pressure. Preferably a cyclic process which comprises exposing the carbonaceous material to the gas at low pressure and increasing the pressure to a second higher pressure and then returning the pressure to a lower pressure is used. The cycle is repeated at least twice wherein the higher pressure may be increased after a selected number of cycles.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on how foreign governments perform procurement activities that in the United States fall under the responsibility of the General Services Administration's Federal Supply Service (FSS) and Federal Technology Service (FTS)."

Using the EBIT facility in Livermore we produce definitive atomic data for input into spectral synthesis codes. Recent, measurements of line excitation and dielectronic recombination of highly charged K-shell and L-shell ions are presented to illustrate this point.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Department of the Army (DA) are conducting cleanup activities at two properties--the DOE chemical plant area and the DA ordnance works area (the latter includes the training area)--located in the Weldon Spring area in St. Charles County, Missouri. These areas are on the National Priorities List (NPL), and cleanup activities at both areas are conducted in accordance with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), as amended. DOE and DA are conducting a joint remedial investigation (RI) and baseline risk assessment (BRA) as part of the remedial investigation/feasibility study (RI/FS) for the groundwater operable units for the two areas. This joint effort will optimize further data collection and interpretation efforts and facilitate overall remedial decision making since the aquifer of concern is common to both areas. A Work Plan issued jointly in 1995 by DOE and the DA discusses the results of investigations completed at the time of preparation of the report. The investigations were necessary to provide an understanding of the groundwater system beneath the chemical plant area and the ordnance works area. The Work Plan also identifies additional data requirements for verification of the evaluation presented.

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO identified the reported year 2000 status of the nation's 21 largest cities."

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the prospect of nuclear materials entering the world market has become an ever-increasing threat. The Second Line of Defense (SLD) program was developed by the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Nuclear Transfer and Supplier Policy Division (NN-43) to assist the Russian Federation State Customs Committee (RFSCC) in strengthening its capability to prevent illicit trafficking of nuclear materials across Russia's borders. The SLD program is a natural complement to the Material Protection Control and Accounting (MPC and A) program, which represents a first line of defense against the theft and diversion of nuclear materials. The SLD program is the first U.S.-Russian cooperative program to combat the illicit trafficking of nuclear and nuclear-related materials to would-be proliferators across Russia's borders.