A near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy system with a remote fiber-optic probe was developed and demonstrated to measure the water content of high-level radioactive wastes from the underground storage tanks at the Hanford Site in richland Washington. The technology was developed as a cost-effective and safer alternative to the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) technique in use as the baseline. This work was supported by the Tanks Focus Area (TFA) within the Department of Energy`s (DOE) Office of Science and Technology (OST) in cooperation with the Hanford Tank Waste Remediation System (TWRS) Program.

Ion exchange is a process that safely and efficiently removes radionuclides from tank waste. Cesium and strontium account for a large portion of the radioactivity in waste streams from US Department of Energy (DOE) weapons production. Crystalline silicotitanate (CST) is an inorganic sorbent that strongly binds cesium, strontium, and several other radionuclides. Developed jointly by Sandia National Laboratory and Texas A and M University, CST was commercialized through a cooperative research and development agreement with an industrial partner. Both an engineered (mesh pellets) and powdered forms are commercially available. Cesium removal is a baseline in HLW treatment processing. CST is very effective at removing cesium from HLW streams and is being considered for adoption at several sites. However, CST is nonregenerable, and it presents a significant secondary waste problem. Treatment options include vitrification of the CST, vitrification of the CST coupled with HLW, direct disposal, and low-temperature processes such as grouting. The work presented in this report demonstrates that it is effective to immobilize CST using a baseline technology such as vitrification. Vitrification produces a durable waste form. CST vitrification was not demonstrated before 1996. In FY97, acceptable glass formulations were developed using cesium-loaded CST obtained from treating supernatants from …

The Department of Energy (DOE) has developed this Standard to assist line managers in meeting their responsibilities for implementing occupational radiological control programs. DOE has established regulatory requirements for occupational radiation protection in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 835 (10 CFR 835), ``Occupational Radiation Protection``. Failure to comply with these requirements may lead to appropriate enforcement actions as authorized under the Price Anderson Act Amendments (PAAA). While this Standard does not establish requirements, it does restate, paraphrase, or cite many (but not all) of the requirements of 10 CFR 835 and related documents (e.g., occupational safety and health, hazardous materials transportation, and environmental protection standards). Because of the wide range of activities undertaken by DOE and the varying requirements affecting these activities, DOE does not believe that it would be practical or useful to identify and reproduce the entire range of health and safety requirements in this Standard and therefore has not done so. In all cases, DOE cautions the user to review any underlying regulatory and contractual requirements and the primary guidance documents in their original context to ensure that the site program is adequate to ensure continuing compliance with the applicable requirements. To assist …

Standardization of grant and contract awardee names has been an area of concern since the development of the Department`s Procurement and Assistance Data System (PADS). A joint effort was begun in 1983 by the Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI) and the Office of Procurement and Assistance Management/Information Systems and Analysis Division to develop a means for providing uniformity of awardee names. As a result of this effort, a method of assigning vendor identification codes to each unique awardee name, division, city, and state combination was developed and is maintained by OSTI. Changes to vendor identification codes or awardee names contained in PADS can be made only by OSTI. Awardee names in the Directory indicate that the awardee has had a prime contract (excluding purchase orders of $10,000 or less) with, or a financial assistance award from, the Department. Award status--active, inactive, or retired--is not shown. The Directory is in alphabetic sequence based on awardee name and reflects the OSTI-assigned vendor identification code to the right of the name. A vendor identification code is assigned to each unique awardee name, division, city, and state (for place of performance). The same vendor identification code is used for awards throughout the …

At the US Department of Energy (DOE) Fernald Environmental Management Project (FEMP), the Facilities Closure and Demolition Projects Integrated Remedial Design/Remedial Action (RD/RA) work plan calls for the removal of one inch (1 in) depth of concrete surface in areas where contamination with technetium-99 has been identified. This report describes a comparative demonstration between two concrete removal technologies: an innovative system using Centrifugal Shot Blasting (CSB) and a modified baseline technology called a rotary drum planer.

The development of this Standard reflects the fact that national consensus standards and other design criteria do not comprehensively or, in some cases, adequately address fire protection issues at DOE facilities. This Standard provides supplemental fire protection guidance applicable to the design and construction of DOE facilities and site features (such as water distribution systems) that are also provided for fire protection. It is intended to be used in conjunction with the applicable building code, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Codes and Standards, and any other applicable DOE construction criteria. This Standard replaces certain mandatory fire protection requirements that were formerly in DOE 5480.7A, ``Fire Protection``, and DOE 6430.1A, ``General Design Criteria``. It also contains the fire protection guidelines from two (now canceled) draft standards: ``Glove Box Fire Protection`` and ``Filter Plenum Fire Protection``. (Note: This Standard does not supersede the requirements of DOE 5480.7A and DOE 6430.1A where these DOE Orders are currently applicable under existing contracts.) This Standard, along with the criteria delineated in Section 3, constitutes the basic criteria for satisfying DOE fire and life safety objectives for the design and construction or renovation of DOE facilities.

'The report, Technical Basis for Safe Operations with Pu-239 Polymer in NMS S Operating Facilities (F H Areas), (WSRC-TR-99-00008) was issued in an effort to upgrade the Authorization Basis (AB) for H Area facilities relative to nuclear criticality. At the time, insufficient data were found in the literature to quantify the adsorption of Pu polymer onto the surfaces of stainless steel tanks. Additional experimental or literature information on the adsorption of Pu(IV) polymer and its removal was deemed necessary to support the H Area AB. The results obtained are also applicable to processing in F Area facilities.Additional literature sources suggest that adsorption on the tank walls should not be a safety concern. The sources show that the amount of Pu polymer that adsorbs from a solution comes to a limiting amount in 5 to 7 days after which no additional Pu is adsorbed. Adsorption increases with Pu concentration and decreases with acid concentration. The adsorbed amounts are small varying from 0.5 mg/cm2 for a 0.5 g/l Pu / 0.5M HNO3 solution to 11 mg/cm2 for a 1-3 g/l Pu / 0.1M HNO3 solution. Additionally, acid concentrations greater than 0.1M will remove a percentage of adsorbed Pu.The experimental results have generally …

'Leak detection from the transfer lines in the tank farm has been a concern for many years because of the need to minimize exposure of personnel and contamination of the environment. The leak detection box (LDB) is one line of defense, which must be maintained to meet this objective. The evaluation of a failed LDB was one item from an action plan aimed at minimizing the degradation of LDBs. The Tank 40 LDB, which failed in service, was dug up and shipped to SRTC for evaluation. During a video inspection while in service, this LDB was found to have black tubercles on the interior, which suggested possible microbial involvement. The failure point, however, was believed to have occurred in the drain line from the transfer line jacket. Visual, metallurgical, and biological analyses were performed on the LDB. The analysis results showed that there was not any adverse microbiological growth or significant localized corrosion. The corrosion of the LDB was caused by exposure to aqueous environments and was typical of carbon steel pipes in soil environments.'

Newsletter from the University of Texas System Cancer Center, M.D. Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute discussing cancer care and research to inform physicians of recent developments in the field.

Monthly report of the Texas A & M University Real Estate Center on statistics, recent news, and developments related to real estate.

Magazine for the state agency serving the needs of Texas veterans and their families in matters pertaining to veterans' benefits, rights, education, and employment.

The longitudinal and transverse components of the polarization of the outgoing proton were measured for the reaction {sup 16}O(e,e'p) at a four-momentum transfer squared of 0.8 GeV{sup 2} in quasifree kinematics. These were the first measurements of polarization transfer observables for a complex nucleus. Comparison of the ratio of the transverse and longitudinal polarization to theoretical predictions allows the study of modification of the proton's form factors in the nuclear medium.

The calculations presented in this report are performed to obtain seepage rates into drift and boreholes for two alternative designs of drift and waste emplacement at Yucca Mountain. The two designs are defined according to the Scope of Work 14012021M1, activity 399621, drafted October 6, 1998, and further refined in a conference telephone call on October 13, 1998, between Mark Balady, Jim Blink, Rob Howard and Chin-Fu Tsang. The 2 designs considered are: (1) Design A--Horizontal boreholes 1.0 m in diameter on both sides of the drift, with each borehole 8 m long and inclined to the drift axis by 30 degrees. The pillar between boreholes, measured parallel to the drift axis, is 3.3 m. In the current calculations, a simplified model of an isolated horizontal borehole 8 m long will be simulated. The horizontal borehole will be located in a heterogeneous fracture continuum representing the repository layer. Three different realizations will be taken from the heterogeneous field, representing three different locations in the rock. Seepage for each realization is calculated as a function of the percolation flux. Design B--Vertical boreholes, 1.0 m in diameter and 8.0 m deep, drilled from the bottom of an excavated 8.0 m diameter drift. …

The purpose of this Habitat Evaluation Procedures (HEP) study was to determine baseline habitat units and to estimate future habitat units for Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) mitigation projects on the Spokane Indian Reservation. The mitigation between BPA and the Spokane Tribe of Indians (STOI) is for wildlife habitat losses on account of the construction of Grand Coulee Dam. Analysis of the HEP survey data will assist in mitigation crediting and appropriate management of the mitigation lands.

The purpose of this calculation is to document (1) the Waste Package Degradation (WAPDEG) version 3.09 (CRWMS M&O 1998b, Software Routine Report for WAPDEG (Version 3.09)) simulations used to analyze degradation and failure of 2-cm thick titanium grade 7 corrosion resistant material (CRM) drip shields (that are placed over waste packages composed of a 2-cm thick Alloy 22 corrosion resistant material (CRM) as the outer barrier and an unspecified material to provide structural support as the inner barrier) as well as degradation and failure of the waste packages themselves, and (2) post-processing of these results into tables of drip shield/waste package degradation time histories suitable for use as input into the Integrated Probabilistic Simulator for Environmental Systems (RIP) version 5.19.01 (Golder Associates 1998) computer code. Performance credit of the inner barrier material is not taken in this calculation. This calculation supports Performance Assessment analysis of the License Application Design Selection (LADS) Enhanced Design Alternative V. Additional details concerning the Enhanced Design Alternative V are provided in a Design Input Request (CRWMS M&O 1999e, Design Input Request for LADS Phase II EDA Evaluations, Item 3).

The field effects of buoyancy on laminar and turbulent premixed v-flames have been studied by the use of laser Doppler velocimetry to measure the velocity statistics in +1g, -1g and {micro}g flames. The experimental conditions covered mean velocity, Uo, of 0.4 to 2 m/s, methane/air equivalence ratio, f, of 0.62 to 0.75. The Reynolds numbers, from 625 to 3130 and the Richardson number from 0.05 to 1.34. The results show that a change from favorable (+1g) to unfavorable (-1g) mean pressure gradient in the plume create stagnating flows in the far field whose influences on the mean and fluctuating velocities persist in the near field even at the highest Re we have investigated. The use of Richardson number < 0.1 as a criterion for momentum dominance is not sufficient to prescribe an upper limit for these buoyancy effects. In {micro}g, the flows within the plumes are non-accelerating and parallel. Therefore, velocity gradients and hence mean strain rates in the plumes of laboratory flames are direct consequences of buoyancy. Furthermore, the rms fluctuations in the plumes of {micro}g flames are lower and more isotropic than in the laboratory flames to show that the unstable plumes in laboratory flames also induce velocity …

The purpose of this calculation is to document the Waste Package Degradation (WAPDEG) version 3.09 (CRWMS M&O 1998b. 'Software Routine Report for WAPDEG' (Version 3.09)) simulations used to analyze degradation and failure of 2-cm thick titanium grade 7 corrosion resistant material (CRM) drip shields as well as degradation and failure of the waste packages over which they are placed. The waste packages are composed of two corrosion resistant materials (CRM) barriers. The outer barrier is composed of 2 cm of Alloy 22 and the inner barrier is composed of 1.5 cm of titanium grade 7. The WAPDEG simulation results are post-processed into tables of drip shield/waste package degradation time histories suitable for use as input into the Integrated Probabilistic Simulator for Environmental Systems (RIP) version 5.19.01 (Golder Associates 1998) computer code. This calculation supports Performance Assessment analysis of the License Application Design Selection (LADS) Enhanced Design Alternative IIIb.

Designs are described for implementing models for calculating the heat transfer and flow losses in porous debris in the lower head of a reactor vessel. The COUPLE model in SCDAP/RELAP5 represents both the porous and nonporous debris that results from core material slumping into the lower head. Currently, the COUPLE model has the capability to model convective and radiative heat transfer from the surfaces of nonporous debris in a detailed manner and to model only in a simplistic manner the heat transfer from porous debris. In order to advance beyond the simplistic modeling for porous debris, designs are developed for detailed calculations of heat transfer and flow losses in porous debris. Correlations are identified for convective heat transfer in porous debris for the following modes of heat transfer; (1) forced convection to liquid, (2) forced convection to gas, (3) nucleate boiling, (4) transition boiling, and (5) film boiling. Interphase heat transfer is modeled in an approximate manner. Designs are described for models to calculate the flow losses and interphase drag of fluid flowing through the interstices of the porous debris, and to apply these variables in the momentum equations in the RELAP5 part of the code. Since the models for …

The crystallographic orientations of individual grains in apassivated aluminum interconnect line of 0.7-mu m width were investigatedby using an incidentwhite x-ray microbeam at the Advanced Light Source,Berkeley National Laboratory. Intergrain orientation mapping was obtainedwith about 0.05o sensitivity by the micro Laue diffractiontechnique.

Several attempts have been made in past years to collate and present waste management technologies and solutions to waste generators. These efforts have been manifested as reports, buyers’ guides, and databases. While this information is helpful at the time it is assembled, their principal weakness is maintaining the timeliness and accuracy of the information over time. In many cases, updates have to be published or developed as soon as the product is disseminated. The recently developed National Low-Level Waste Management Program’s Technologies Database is a vendor-updated Internet based database designed to overcome this problem. The National Low-Level Waste Management Program’s Technologies Database contains information about waste types, treatment technologies, and vendor information. Information is presented about waste types, typical treatments, and the vendors who provide those treatment methods. The vendors who provide services update their own contact information, their treatment processes, and the types of wastes for which their treatment process is applicable. This information is queriable by a generator of low-level or mixed low-level radioactive waste who is seeking information on waste treatment methods and the vendors who provide them. Timeliness of the information in the database is assured using time clocks and automated messaging to remind featured vendors …

Designs are described for implementing models for calculating the heat transfer and flow losses in porous debris in the lower head of a reactor vessel. The COUPLE model in SCDAP/RELAP5 represents both the porous and nonporous debris that results from core material slumping into the lower head. Currently, the COUPLE model has the capability to model convective and radiative heat transfer from the surfaces of nonporous debris in a detailed manner and to model only in a simplistic manner the heat transfer from porous debris. In order to advance beyond the simplistic modeling for porous debris, designs are developed for detailed calculations of heat transfer and flow losses in porous debris. Correlations are identified for convective heat transfer in porous debris for the following modes of heat transfer; (1) forced convection to liquid, (2) forced convection to gas, (3) nucleate boiling, (4) transition boiling, and (5) film boiling. Interphase heat transfer is modeled in an approximate manner. Designs are described for models to calculate the flow losses and interphase drag of fluid flowing through the interstices of the porous debris, and to apply these variables in the momentum equations in the RELAP5 part of the code. Since the models for …

The Decision Support System for Agriculture (DSS4Ag) is an expert system being developed by the Site-Specific Technologies for Agriculture (SST4Ag) precision farming research project at the INEEL. DSS4Ag uses state-of-the-art artificial intelligence and computer science technologies to make spatially variable, site-specific, economically optimum decisions on fertilizer use. The DSS4Ag has an open architecture that allows for external input and addition of new requirements and integrates its results with existing agricultural systems’ infrastructures. The DSS4Ag reflects a paradigm shift in the information revolution in agriculture that is precision farming. We depict this information revolution in agriculture as an historic trend in the agricultural decision-making process.

Designs are described for implementing models for calculating the heat transfer and flow losses in porous debris in the lower head of a reactor vessel. The COUPLE model in SCDAP/RELAP5 represents both the porous and nonporous debris that results from core material slumping into the lower head. Currently, the COUPLE model has the capability to model convective and radiative heat transfer from the surfaces of nonporous debris in a detailed manner and to model only in a simplistic manner the heat transfer from porous debris. In order to advance beyond the simplistic modeling for porous debris, designs are developed for detailed calculations of heat transfer and flow losses in porous debris. Correlations are identified for convective heat transfer in porous debris for the following modes of heat transfer; (1) forced convection to liquid, (2) forced convection to gas, (3) nucleate boiling, (4) transition boiling, and (5) film boiling. Interphase heat transfer is modeled in an approximate manner. Designs are described for models to calculate the flow losses and interphase drag of fluid flowing through the interstices of the porous debris, and to apply these variables in the momentum equations in the RELAP5 part of the code. Since the models for …

The purpose of this analysis is to identify and analyze concepts for the acquisition of data in support of the Performance Confirmation (PC) program at the potential subsurface nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. This analysis is being prepared to document an investigation of design concepts, current available technology, technology trends, and technical issues associated with data acquisition during the PC period. This analysis utilizes the ''Performance Confirmation Plan'' (CRWMS M&O 2000b) to help define the scope for the PC data acquisition system. The focus of this analysis is primarily on the PC period for a minimum of 30 years after emplacement of the last waste package. The design of the data acquisition system shall allow for a closure deferral up to 300 years from initiation of waste emplacement. (CRWMS M&O 2000h, page 5-1). This analysis is a revision to and supercedes analysis, ''Performance Confirmation Data Acquisition System'', DI No. BCAI00000-017 17-0200-00002 Rev 00 (CRWMS M&O 1997), and incorporates the latest repository design changes following the M&O & DOE evaluation of a series of Enhanced Design Alternatives (EDAs), as described in the ''Enhanced Design Alternatives II Report'' (CRWMS M&O 1999d). Significant design changes include: thermal line loading of the emplacement …