The changes in the patterns of energy use and expenditures by population group are analyzed by using the 1993 and 1997 Residential Energy Consumption Surveys. Historically, these patterns have differed among non-Hispanic White households, non-Hispanic Black households, and Hispanic households. Patterns of energy use and expenditures are influenced by geographic and metropolitan location, the composition of housing stock, economic and demographic status, and the composition of energy use by end-use category. As a consequence, as energy-related factors change across groups, patterns of energy use and expenditures also change. Over time, with changes in the composition of these factors by population group and their variable influences on energy use, the impact on energy use and expenditures has varied across these population groups.

The Steven Test was developed to determine relative impact sensitivity of metal encased solid high explosives and also be amenable to two-dimensional modeling. Low level reaction thresholds occur at impact velocities below those required for shock initiation. To assist in understanding this test, multi-dimensional gauge techniques utilizing carbon foil and carbon resistor gauges were used to measure pressure and event times. Carbon resistor gauges indicated late time low level reactions 200-540 {micro}s after projectile impact, creating 0.39-2.00 kb peak shocks centered in PBX 9501 explosives discs and a 0.60 kb peak shock in a LX-04 disk. Steven Test modeling results, based on ignition and growth criteria, are presented for two PBX 9501 scenarios: one with projectile impact velocity just under threshold (51 m/s) and one with projectile impact velocity just over threshold (55 m/s). Modeling results are presented and compared to experimental data.

Single solid-state devices or arrays of solid-state devices are being incorporated into many pulsed power applications as a means of generating fast, high-power, high repetition-rate pulses and ultimately replacing hard tubes and thyratrons. While vendors' data sheets provide a starting point for selecting solid-state devices, most data sheets do not have sufficient information to determine performance in a pulsed application. To obtain this relevant information, MOSFET's and IGBT's from a number of vendors have been tested to determine rise times, fall times and current handling capabilities. The emphasis is on the evaluation of devices that can perform in the range of 100ns pulse widths and the test devices must be capable of switching 1000 volts or greater at a pulsed current of at least 25 amperes. Additionally, some devices were retest with a series magnetic switch to evaluate the effects on switching parameters and specifically rise times. All devices were evaluated under identical conditions and the complete test results are presented.

Authentication is how we establish trust in monitoring systems and measurements to verify compliance with, for example, the storage of nuclear weapons material. Authentication helps assure the monitoring party that accurate and reliable information is provided by any measurement system and that any irregularities are detected. The U.S. is developing its point of view on the procedures for authentication of monitoring systems now planned or contemplated for arms reduction and control applications. The authentication of a system utilizes a set of approaches, including: functional testing using trusted calibration sources, evaluation of documentation, evaluation of software, evaluation of hardware, random selection of hardware and software, tamper-indicating devices, and operational procedures. Authentication of measurement systems should occur throughout their lifecycles, starting with the elements of design, and moving to off-site authentication, on-siste authentication, and continuing with authentication following repair. The most important of these is the initial design of systems. Hardware and software design criteria and procurement decisions can make future authentication relatively straightforward or conversely very difficult. Facility decisions can likewise ease the procedures for authentication since reliable and effective monitoring systems and tampering indicating devices can help provide the assurance needed in the integrity of such items as measurement systems, …

This report describes a new initiative to strengthen the technical defensibility of predictions made with the Hanford site-wide groundwater flow and transport model. The focus is on characterizing major uncertainties in the current model. PNNL will develop and implement a calibration approach and methodology that can be used to evaluate alternative conceptual models of the Hanford aquifer system. The calibration process will involve a three-dimensional transient inverse calibration of each numerical model to historical observations of hydraulic and water quality impacts to the unconfined aquifer system from Hanford operations since the mid-1940s.

The authors have examined effects of blending a raw coal extract (EXT) with an extracted coal-tar pitch (ECTP). Previous reports were concerned with the addition of 15 wt% EXT, or less, on the physical characteristics of the blend and on the development of optical texture following carbonization. Two additional blends of ECTP and EXT were prepared at the 30 and 50 wt% EXT content using a procedure already described. The characteristics of the blends are presented. The density for these blended materials is not much different than the density for the blends reported earlier. The softening point temperature for the 30 wt% EXT increased to over 200 C while the softening point temperature for the 50 wt% EXT blend was too high to be determined by the Mettler method. Coke yields approximately follow the law of mixtures. The optical texture of the green cokes for the 30 and 50 wt% EXT blends is shown. Though the optical texture of the green cokes was not significantly affected where the level of EXT is 15 wt% or less, larger proportions of EXT exert a marked reduction in anisotropy. The co-processing of coal with petroleum residues or other heavy hydrocarbons at elevated temperature …

Electric motor systems are widely used in China to power fans, pumps, blowers, air compressors, refrigeration compressors, conveyers, machinery, and many other types of equipment. Overall, electric motor systems consume more than 600 billion kWh annually, accounting for more than 50 percent of China's electricity use. There are large opportunities to improve the efficiency of motor systems. Electric motors in China are approximately 2-4 percent less efficient on average than motors in the U.S. and Canada. Fans and pumps in China are approximately 3-5 percent less efficient than in developed countries. Even more importantly, motors, fans, pumps, air compressors and other motor-driven equipment are frequently applied with little attention to system efficiency. More optimized design, including appropriate sizing and use of speed control strategies, can reduce energy use by 20 percent or more in many applications. Unfortunately, few Chinese enterprises use or even know about these energy-saving practices. Opportunities for motor system improvements are probably greater in China than in the U.S. In order to begin capturing these savings, China is establishing a China Motor Systems Energy Conservation Program. Elements of this program include work to develop minimum efficiency standards for motors, a voluntary ''green motor'' labeling program for high-efficiency …

The objectives of this project are: (1) the determination of the speciation of plutonium and other actinides (Np, U) in groundwater at the 100 and 200 areas at the Hanford Site. This includes the separation of Pu into particulate, colloidal and <1 kilo-Dalton dissolved phases and the determination of redox states and isotopic composition in each fraction; (2) the characterization of groundwater colloids, which includes submicron-sized inorganic particles and organic macromolecules (3) the prediction of the rate of transport and fate of actinides in the groundwater of the Hanford Site using a three-phase (dissolved-colloid-particulate) model.

Significant work has been done by the investigators on the cerium oxide-copper oxide based sorbent/catalysts for the combined removal of sulfur and nitrogen oxides from the flue gases of stationary sources. A relatively wide temperature window was established for the use of alumina-supported cerium oxide-copper oxide mixtures as regenerable sorbents for SO{sub 2} removal. Preliminary evaluation of these sorbents as catalysts for the selective reduction of NO{sub x} gave promising results with ammonia, but indicated low selectivity when methane was used as the reductant. Since the replacement of ammonia by another reductant is commercially very attractive, in this project, four research components will be undertaken. The investigation of the reaction mechanism, the first component, will help in the selection of promoters to improve the catalytic activity and selectivity of the sorbents in the SCR with methane. This will result in new catalyst formulations (second component). If this research is successful, the combined SO{sub 2}-NO{sub x} removal process based on alumina-supported copper oxide-ceria sorbent/catalysts will become very attractive for commercial applications. The objective of the third component of the project is to develop an alternative SCR process using another inexpensive fuel, residual fuel oil, instead of natural gas. This innovative proposal …

Wavelet Analysis provides an orthogonal basis set which is localized in both the physical space and the Fourier transform space. We present here a domain decomposition method that uses wavelet analysis to maintain roughly uniform error throughout the computation domain while keeping the computational work balanced in a parallel computing environment.

Beam-envelope radius, envelope angle, and beam emittance can be derived from measurements of beam radius for at least three different transport conditions. We have used this technique to reconstruct exit parameters from the FXR injector and accelerator. We use a diamagnetic loop (DML) to measure the magnetic moment of the high current beam. With no assumptions about radial profile, we can derive the beam mean squire radius from the moment under certain easily met conditions. Since it is this parameter which is required for the reconstruction, it is evident that the DML is the ideal diagnostic for this technique. The simplest application of this technique requires at least three shots for a reconstruction but in reality requires averaging over many more shots because of shot to shot variation. Since DML measurements do not interfere with the beam, single shot time resolved measurements of the beam parameters appear feasible if one uses an array of at least three DMLs separated by known transport conditions.

A better understanding of thermal cook-off is important for safe handling and storing explosive devices. A number of safety issues exist about what occurs when a cased explosive thermally cooks off. For example, violence of the events as a function of confinement are important for predictions of collateral damage. This paper demonstrates how adjacent materials can be gauged to measure the resulting pressure wave and how this wave propagates in this adjacent material. The output pulse from the thermal cook-off explosive containing fixture is of obvious interest for assessing many scenarios.

The High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) was scheduled in October 2000 to implement design upgrades that include the enlargement of the HB-2 and HB-4 beam tubes. Higher dose rates and higher radiation embrittlement rates were predicted for the two beam-tube nozzles and surrounding vessel areas. ORNL had performed calculations for the upgraded design to show that vessel integrity would be maintained at acceptable levels. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) was requested by the U.S. Department of Energy Headquarters (DOE/HQ) to perform an independent peer review of the ORNL evaluations. PNNL concluded that the calculated probabilities of failure for the HFIR vessel during hydrostatic tests and for operational conditions as estimated by ORNL are an acceptable basis for selecting pressures and test intervals for hydrostatic tests and for justifying continued operation of the vessel. While there were some uncertainties in the embrittlement predictions, the ongoing efforts at ORNL to measure fluence levels at critical locations of the vessel wall and to test materials from surveillance capsules should be effective in dealing with embrittlement uncertainties. It was recommended that ORNL continue to update their fracture mechanics calculations to reflect methods and data from ongoing research for …

CYP1B1 expression in non-tumor breast tissue from breast cancer patients and cancer-free individuals was determined to test the hypothesis that high CYP1B1 expression is a risk factor for breast cancer. Large interindividual variations in CYP1B1 expression were found with CYP1B1 levels notably higher in breast cancer patients than cancer-free individuals. The results indicate that CYP1B1 might play a role in breast cancer either through increased PAH activation or through metabolism of endogenous estrogen to a carcinogenic derivative.

In 1996, the US Department of Energy s Office of Industrial Technologies (OIT) Motor Challenge program began a unique collaboration with industry called the Allied Partner program. Partnerships were sought with equipment suppliers and manufacturers, utilities, consultants, and state agencies that had extensive existing relationships with industrial customers. Partners were neither paid nor charged a fee for participation. The assumption was that these relationships could serve as the foundation for conveying a motor system efficiency message to many more industrial facilities than could be reached through a typical government-to-end-user program model. A substantial effort was made to engage industrial suppliers in delivering program information as part of their customer interactions. A recent independent evaluation of the Motor Challenge program attributes $16.9 million or nearly 67 percent of the total annual program energy savings to the efforts of Allied Partners in the first three years of operation.In 1997, the Compressed Air Challenge(R) (CAC) was developed as an outgrowth of the partnership concept. In this model, OIT is one of 15 sponsors who collaborated to create a national program of compressed air system training. The CAC has gone a step further by setting up a development and deployment model based on shared …

The United States Department of Energy (DOE), through the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), has implemented the Wind Partnerships for Advanced Component Technologies (WindPACT) program to explore advanced technologies for improving the reliability and cost-effectiveness of wind energy technology. Global Energy Concepts (GEC) prepared this report on self-erecting towers as part of the WindPACT program. The objectives of the work were to identify potential methods for erecting wind turbine towers without the use of large conventional cranes, establish the most promising methods, and compare the costs of the most promising methods to the costs of conventional cranes.

Western Research Institute (WRI) is commercializing Diesel Dog Portable Soil Test Kits for performing analysis of fuel-contaminated soils in the field. The technology consists of a method developed by WRI (U.S. Patents 5,561,065 and 5,976,883) and hardware developed by WRI that allows the method to be performed in the field (patent pending). The method is very simple and does not require the use of highly toxic reagents. The aromatic components in a soil extract are measured by absorption at 254 nm with a field-portable photometer. WRI added significant value to the technology by taking the method through the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) approval and validation processes. The method is designated ASTM Method D-5831-96, Standard Test Method for Screening Fuels in Soils. This ASTM designation allows the method to be used for federal compliance activities. In FY 99, twenty-five preproduction kits were successfully constructed in cooperation with CF Electronics, Inc., of Laramie, Wyoming. The kit components work well and the kits are fully operational. In the calendar year 2000, kits were provided to the following entities who agreed to participate as FY 99 and FY 00 JSR (Jointly Sponsored Research) cosponsors and use the kits as opportunities arose …

The Large Block Test (LBT) is one of three thermal tests at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. While two of those three tests (the Single Heater Test and the Drift Scale Test) were large underground tests, the LBT was above ground. The test block, with a size of 3 x 3 x 4.5 m, has a highly heterogeneous permeability field, with at least four orders of magnitude variation in permeability. Some of the temperature data from the LBT appear irregular at first glance, but on closer examination can be attributed to this heterogeneous nature of the fractured block. In this project, we attempt to develop a better understanding of these irregular temperature data from the LBT. The test block in the LBT was excavated from the surrounding Topopah Spring fractured nonlithophysal tuff in the Fran Ridge area of Yucca Mountain. The bottom of the block remained attached to the underlying rock, while the top and the four side faces were kept open to the atmosphere. Mapping of all the fractures from the four sides and the top surface of the block revealed the existence of some large fractures in the block. The presence of such large fractures indicates that the flow of …

This work involved using ITOUGH2 to simulate the Large-Scale Ponded Infiltration Test (LPIT) at Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) in order to calibrate parameters controlling the infiltration of water in fractured basalt using a dual-permeability modeling approach. This supports the higher objective of building confidence in the use of the dual-permeability approach for modeling flow and transport in unsaturated fractured rock systems. In particular, the objective of this work is to be able to understand transport of radionuclides at INEEL and subsequently at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. A 3-D dual-permeability mesh representing the geological conditions at the LPIT was constructed as shown by the cross-section on Figure 1a. The geology consisted of surficial sediments, two separate basalt flows (A and B basalts) underlain by a low permeability sedimentary interbed (BC interbed), with a lower C basalt constituting the bottom of the model. Water was allowed to infiltrate from the pond and then pool on top of the sedimentary interbed. Water pressure and {sup 75}Se breakthroughs were simulated at four wells screened within the fractured basalt on top of the sedimentary interbed (B04N11, C04C11, B06N11, C06C11) along two radial angles and at two radial distances. Model results were calibrated to …

When numerical model are used for modeling field scale flow and transport processes in the subsurface, the problem of ''upscaling'' arises. Typical scales, corresponding to spatial resolutions of subsurface heterogeneity in numerical models, are generally much larger than the measurement scale of the parameters and physical processes involved. The upscaling problems is, then, one of assigning parameters to gridblock scale based on parameter values measured on small scales. The focus of this study is to develop an approach to determine large-scale (upscaled) constitutive relations (relationships among relative permeability, capillary pressure and saturation) from small-scale measurements for porous media for a range of air entry values that are typical for the tuff matrix in the unsaturated zone of Yucca Mountain. For porous media with large air entry values, capillary forces play a key role in determining spatial water distribution at large-scales. Therefore, a relatively uniform capillary pressure approximately exists even for a large gridblock scale under steady state flow conditions. Based on these reasoning, we developed formulations that relate upscaled constitutive relations to ones measured at core-scale. Numerical experiments with stochastically generated heterogeneous porous media were used to evaluate the upscaling formulations.

A low-energy concrete house was designed using passive solar strategies to consume 70% less heating and cooling energy than a base case that conformed to the 1996 Home Energy Rating System (HERS) and the 1995 Model Energy Code (MEC). The performance of this house was then evaluated using computer simulations and measured data. The house, Tierra I, was monitored from July 22, 1996, through October 14, 1997. A Short Term Energy Monitoring (STEM) test was done November 19 to December 10, 1996. Computer simulations of the house were done using SUNREL, an updated version of the hourly data simulation package SERI-RES. The SUNREL model of the house was calibrated using both short- and long-term data. The house achieved energy savings of 56%, below the goal of 70%. The lower than expected savings resulted from problems with the window modeling. As a result, during the design phase the solar gains were overestimated causing an underestimate in the level of insulation necessary to achieve the savings goal. For very low-energy passive solar buildings, it is apparent that very accurate window modeling is required. It also became apparent that accurate ground models are required as well because ground-heat loss accounts for a significant …

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The DO Detector at Fermilab is currently undergoing an extensive upgrade to participate in the Run II data taking which shall begin on March 1, 2001. The design of the detector meets the requirements of the high luminosity environment provided by the accelerator. This paper describes the upgraded detector subsystems and gives a brief outline of the physics prospects associated with the upgrade.

A novel mechanism that directly transfers energy from Super-Alfvenic energetic ions to thermal ions in high-beta plasmas is described. The mechanism involves the excitation of compressional Alfvin eigenmodes (CAEs) in the frequency range with omega less than or approximately equal to omega(subscript ci). The broadband turbulence resulting from the large number of excited modes causes stochastic diffusion in velocity space, which transfers wave energy to thermal ions. This effect may be important on the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX), and may scale up to reactor scenarios. This has important implications for low aspect ratio reactor concepts, since it potentially allows for the modification of the ignition criterion.