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A residential building in Tucson, Arizona, was studied to evaluate opportunities for reducing cooling energy use in a hot dry climate. The reduction of solar heat gain was strongly influenced by spectrally selective windows, architectural shading, and site shading from adjacent buildings. The study emphasized accurately modeling these features to account for effects on the energy load. Building performance was modeled using a detailed hourly energy simulation tool and was measured while unoccupied for a period of 12 days. Model inputs included direct measurements of the net air exchange rate, surface reflectance, and window transmittance. Model results showed good agreement with the direct measurements of cooling loads and air-conditioning energy use. A parametric study of annual energy use is presented showing the impacts of glazing type, architectural shading, site shading, and building orientation. It is important to understand these interactions to optimize energy savings in community-scale housing developments.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is developing regulations that would establish requirements for discharging synthetic-based drill cuttings from offshore wells into the ocean. Justification for allowing discharges of these cuttings is that the environmental impacts from discharging drilling wastes into the ocean may be less harmful than the impacts from hauling them to shore for disposal. In the past, some onshore commercial facilities that disposed of these cuttings were improperly managed and operated and left behind environmental problems. This report provides background information on commercial waste disposal facilities in Texas, Louisiana, California, and Alaska that received or may have received offshore drilling wastes in the past and are now undergoing cleanup.

In July, 2000, the Controlled Materials Accountability and Tracking System (COMATS) Team, with the assistance of a representative of the Local Area Network Materials Accountability System (LANMAS) development team from Savannah River, performed an evaluation to enumerate and qualify differences between the current LANMAS functionality and LLNL requirements as implemented by COMATS. The differences found range from minor to serious deficiencies of LANMAS in relation to current LLNL MC&A practice. Therefore, we recommend a gradual integration of LANMAS into a hybrid system which uses LANMAS to satisfy DOE/NNSA MC&A and reporting requirements and uses COMATS to satisfy LLNL-specific MC&A and operational requirements.

The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory operates a number of research and development facilities for the U.S. Department of Energy in the Hanford Site's 300 Area. Process wastewater from these facilities is sent to and treated by the 300 Area Treated Effluent Disposal Facility before being discharged to the Columbia River. This report provides facility-specific information, wastewater characteristics, and describes the controls used to ensure compliance with the TEDF Waste Acceptance Criteria Program.

A design study is presented for a mobile, variable depth sampling system (MVDSS) that will support the treatment and immobilization of Hanford LAW and HLW. The sampler can be deployed in a 4-inch tank riser and has a design that is based on requirements identified in the Level 2 Specification (latest revision). The waste feed sequence for the MVDSS is based on Phase 1, Case 3S6 waste feed sequence. Technical information is also presented that supports the design study.

This is the final report for a research program which has been continuously supported by the AEC, ERDA, or USDOE since 1973. The neutron total and capture cross sections for n + {sup 88}Sr have been measured over the neutron energy range 100 eV to 1 MeV. The report briefly summaries our results and the importance of this work for nucleosynthesis and the optical model.

This report describes results achieved during phase 1 of a three-phase subcontract to develop and understand thin-film solar cell technology associated to CuInSe{sub 2} and related alloys, a-Si and its alloys, and CdTe. Modules based on all these thin films are promising candidates to meet DOE long-range efficiency, reliability, and manufacturing cost goals. The critical issues being addressed under this program are intended to provide the science and engineering basis for the development of viable commercial processes and to improve module performance. The generic research issues addressed are: (1) quantitative analysis of processing steps to provide information for efficient commercial-scale equipment design and operation; (2) device characterization relating the device performance to materials properties and process conditions; (3) development of alloy materials with different bandgaps to allow improved device structures for stability and compatibility with module design; (4) development of improved window/heterojunction layers and contacts to improve device performance and reliability; and (5) evaluation of cell stability with respect to illumination, temperature, and ambient and with respect to device structure and module encapsulation.

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Corrosion related damage (CRD) is probably the most important and costly damage mechanism for components operating in geothermal fields. This problem is further complicated as steam chemistry in such fields changes continuously with season, time, and load. Unfortunately, such changes are not predictable. The problem is further complicated in the area where early condensate (first moisture) forms. The chemistry of these first droplets is significantly different from that of built steam and this, again, cannot be predicted with reasonable accuracy. Therefore, a formidable challenge facing the geothermal field operators remains in knowing the chemistry of the condensate and, more importantly, how it affects specific field equipment such as rotor, piping, valves, etc. This project showed that testing in such an environment is feasible and concluded that continuous monitoring of steam conditions is needed to detect and prevent conditions leading to CRD of components. This project also developed tools and techniques for continuous monitoring of corrosion potential and detection of pitting events.

The project describes long-term research and development issues related to polycrystalline thin-film solar cells. The general research approach is based on combining activities aimed at improvement of cell performance and stability with activities aimed at increasing fundamental understanding of the properties of materials making up the cells: CdTe, CdS, multi-layer back contact, and transparent conducting oxide (TCO) front contact. The authors emphasize the relation between structural and electronic material properties and various processing procedures, as well as the microscopic mechanisms responsible for the cell performance and its degradation. Major results and conclusions of this project include: (1) Stress tests of the cells under various stress conditions revealed conditions providing the most severe degrading of different cell parameters; (2) Consecutive stress testing under different bias revealed some reversible effects; (3) Preliminary analysis of the data obtained demonstrated a significant role of electromigration of the charged defects/impurities; (4) Some new approaches for the cell characterization and the data analysis were developed and checked experimentally; (5) New stress test experiments were planned for continued studies of degradation mechanisms.

High pressure xenon ionization chamber detectors are possible alternatives to traditional thallium doped sodium iodide (NaI(Tl)) and hyperpure germanium as gamma spectrometers in certain applications. Xenon detectors incorporating a Frisch grid exhibit energy resolutions comparable to cadmium/zinc/telluride (CZT) (e.g. 2% {at} 662keV) but with far greater sensitive volumes. The Frisch grid reduces the position dependence of the anode pulse risetimes, but it also increases the detector vibration sensitivity, anode capacitance, voltage requirements and mechanical complexity. We have been investigating the possibility of eliminating the grid electrode in high-pressure xenon detectors and preserving the high energy resolution using electronic risetime compensation methods. A two-electrode cylindrical high pressure xenon gamma detector coupled to time-to-amplitude conversion electronics was used to characterize the pulse rise time of deposited gamma photons. Time discrimination was used to characterize the pulse rise time versus photo peak position and resolution. These data were collected to investigate the effect of pulse rise time compensation on resolution and efficiency.

The Penasco Shugart Queen Sand Unit located in sections 8, 9, 16 & 17, T18S, 31E Eddy County New Mexico is operated by MNA Enterprises Ltd. Co. Hobbs, NM. The first well in the Unit was drilled in 1939 and since that time the Unit produced 535,000 bbl of oil on primary recovery and 375,000 bbl of oil during secondary recovery operations that commenced in 1973. The Unit secondary to primary ratio is 0.7, but other Queen waterfloods in the area had considerably larger S/P ratios. On June 25 1999 MNA was awarded a grant under the Department of Energy's ''Technology Development with Independents'' program. The grant was used to fund a reservoir study to determine if additional waterflood reserves could be developed. A total of 14 well bores that penetrate the Queen at 3150 ft are within the Unit boundaries. Eleven of these wells produced oil during the past 60 years. Production records were pieced together from various sources including the very early state production records. One very early well had a resistivity log, but nine of the wells had no logs, and four wells had gamma ray-neutron count-rate perforating logs. Fortunately, recent offset deep drilling in the area …

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The aim of the work here was to understand both the yield anomaly in FeAl, which was first noted by the P.I. and collaborators, and the effect of environment on the fracture of FeAl. The progress in these areas is outlined below. A model for the yield anomaly developed as part of this work served as the basis for a successful proposal to NSF to study the yield anomaly in other B2 compounds. The effects of vacancies and of boron on flow and fracture at room temperature were also addressed. Recrystallization and grain growth were studied In both FeAl and Ni{sub 3}Al. Strain-induced ferromagnetism was studied in FeAl and a model for the paramagnetic-to-ferromagnetic transition was developed based on antiphase boundary tubes. A successful proposal was also submitted to NSF on this topic. Finally, in addition to a number of papers and Presentations on our experimental work, several invited presentations and published reviews, including a major review in International Material Reviews, on the mechanical properties of either FeAl or B2 compounds were made.