The US Department of Energy (DOE) is performing a technical analysis to support the potential development of risk-based, numerical radiological control criteria (RCC) for mixed waste from DOE operations. As part of the technical analysis, potential future radiation doses are being calculated for workers at thermal treatment facilities and members of the public residing near such facilities. This study compared two types of thermal treatment systems: a conventional combustion chamber with excess air, represented by a rotary kiln with afterburner, and an oxygen-deficient pyrolysis unit, represented by a plasma arc furnace. The purpose of the first part of this study is to estimate the partitioning for significant radionuclides and elements in the two types of thermal treatment systems. Excess-air systems are generally found to produce heavy-metal chlorides, oxides, and sulfates; plasma-arc systems tend to produce more volatile free metals. This difference causes a change in source term dominance from halide volatility to free metal volatility. Chemical thermodynamic methodology is used to estimate partitioning in the two treatment systems. The second part of the study examines how the potential radiation dose to workers handling residue materials is affected by partitioning of radionuclides at the different types of facilities.

This report describes the preirradiation thermal analysis of the HRB-22 capsule designed for irradiation in the removable beryllium (RB) position of the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). CACA-2 a heavy isotope and fission product concentration calculational code for experimental irradiation capsules was used to determine time dependent fission power for the fuel compacts. The Heat Engineering and Transfer in Nine Geometries (HEATING) computer code, version 7.2, was used to solve the steady-state heat conduction problem. The diameters of the graphite fuel body that contains the compacts and the primary pressure vessel were selected such that the requirements of running the compacts at an average temperature of < 1,250 C and not exceeding a maximum fuel temperature of 1,350 C was met throughout the four cycles of irradiation.

A program is now underway to develop commercial power conversion systems that use parabolic dish mirrors in conjunction with Stirling engines to convert solar energy to electric power. In early prototypes, the solar concentrator focused light directly on the heater tubes of the Stirling engine. Liquid-metal heat-pipes are now being developed to transfer energy from the focus of the solar concentrator to the heater tubes of the engine. The dome-shaped heat-pipe receivers are approximately one-half meters in diameter and up to 77-kW of concentrated solar energy is delivered to the absorber surface. Over the past several years, Sandia National Laboratories, through the sponsorship of the Department of Energy, has conducted a major program to explore receiver designs and identify suitable wick materials. A high-flux bench-scale system has been developed to test candidate wick designs, and full-scale systems have been tested on an 11-meter test-bed solar concentrator. Procedures have also been developed in this program to measure the properties of wick materials, and an extensive data-base on wick materials for high temperature heat pipes has been developed. This paper provides an overview of the receiver development program and results from some of the many heat-pipe tests.

We present model-independent measurements of the vertical trajectory jitter of the positron beam in the Stanford Linear Collider (SLC) linac and discuss the results of studies aimed at isolating its source.

Newsletter distributed to the Low-Level Radioactive Waste Forum members describing current news, policies, and legislation, as well as other information relevant to the management of low-level radioactive waste.

This report contains discussing in the following areas: Status of the Atlas accelerator; highlights of recent research at Atlas; concept for an advanced exotic beam facility based on Atlas; program advisory committee; Atlas executive committee; and Atlas and ANL physics division on the world wide web.

We present results from CDF and D0 on W{sub {gamma}} and Z{sub {gamma}} productions in p{bar p} collisions at {radical}s = 1.8 TeV. The goal of the analyses is to test the non-abelian self-couplings of the W, Z and photon, one of the most direct consequences of the SU(2){sub L} {direct_product} U(l){sub Y} gauge symmetry. We present direct measurements of WW{sub {gamma}} couplings and limits on ZZ{sub {gamma}} and Z{sub {gamma}{gamma}} couplings, based on p{bar p} {r_arrow} l{nu}{gamma} + X and p{bar p} {r_arrow} ll{gamma} + X events, respectively, observed during the 1992--1993 run of the Fermilab Tevatron Collider.

This report discusses the application of the LBL`s End-use Disaggregation Algorithm (EDA) to a DoD installation and presents hourly reconciled end-use data for all major building types and end uses. The project initially focused on achieving these objectives and pilot-testing the methodology at Fort Hood, Texas. Fort Hood, with over 5000 buildings was determined to have representative samples of nearly all of the major building types in use on DoD installations. These building types at Fort Hood include: office, administration, vehicle maintenance, shop, hospital, grocery store, retail store, car wash, church, restaurant, single-family detached housing, two and four-plex housings, and apartment building. Up to 11 end uses were developed for each prototype, consisting of 9 electric and 2 gas; however, only electric end uses were reconciled against known data and weather conditions. The electric end uses are space cooling, ventilation, cooking, miscellaneous/plugs, refrigeration, exterior lighting, interior lighting, process loads, and street lighting. The gas end uses are space heating and hot water heating. Space heating energy-use intensities were simulated only. The EDA was applied to 10 separate feeders from the three substations at Fort Hood. The results from the analyses of these ten feeders were extrapolated to estimate energy use …

The objective of this document is to present the recommended strategy for removal of sludges from the K Basins. This document ties sludge removal activities to the plan for the K Basin spent nuclear fuel (SNF) described in WHC-EP-0830, Hanford Spent Nuclear Fuel Project Recommended Path Forward and is consistent with follow-on direction provided in February 1995. Solutions and processes for resolving sludge removal technical and management issues to meet accelerated K Basin deactivation objectives are described. The following outlines the major elements of the recommendation: (1) manage all sludges as SNF while in the K Basins; (2) once loose sludges are collected and removed from the facilities, manage them as radioactive or mixed waste consistent with the upcoming characterization results, the preferred sludge path forward alternative sends sludges to the Tank Waste Remediation System (TWRS) and/or the Hanford Solid Waste Disposal as appropriate; (3) continue to manage sludge within the fuel canisters at the time they are loaded into the multi-canister overpacks as SNF.

In addition to fast neutrons, the copious energetic gamma rays, present in a reactor environment, induce displacement damage in the reactor pressure vessel. The contribution of gamma ray damage to embrittlement is most pronounced in reactors with large water gaps separating the core from the reactor pressure vessel. Water moderates the energies of fast neutrons much more effectively than it attenuates the high energy gamma flux, and thus enhances the high energy gamma flux, incident on the vessel relative to the fast neutron flux. In this paper, an analysis of computer transport calculations is presented which quantifies the relative contribution of gamma ray damage in various pressure vessels. The results indicate that gamma ray damage must be included for accurate predictions of radiation-induced embrittlement.

At the Fernald Environmental Restoration Management Corporation (FERMCO), our product is a clean site. We measure productivity by our progress in taking down buildings and dispositioning hazardous waste. To those ends, Quality and Safety work together to ensure that productivity is gained in the safest way possible. The Plant 7 deconstruction is an example of how this teamwork has increased productivity at the site.

A thermomechanical analysis of unidirectional continuous fiber metal matrix composites is presented. The analysis includes the effects of processing induced residual thermal stresses, interface cracking, and inelastic matrix behavior on damage evolution. Due to the complexity of the nonlinear effects, the analysis is performed computationally using the finite element method. The interface fracture is modeled by a nonlinear constitutive model. The problem formulation is summarized and results are presented for a four-ply unidirectional SCS-6/{beta}21S titanium composite under high temperature isothermal mechanical fatigue.

The objective of this project is to develop a comprehensive, interdisciplinary, and quantitative characterization of a fluvial-deltaic reservoir which will allow realistic inter-well and reservoir-scale modeling to be developed for improved oil-field development in similar reservoirs world-wide. The geological and petrophysical properties of the Cretaceous Ferron Sandstone in east-central Utah will be quantitatively determined. Both new and existing data will be integrated into a three-dimensional representation of spatial variations in porosity, storativity, and tensorial rock permeability at a scale appropriate for inter-well to regional-scale reservoir simulation. Results could improve reservoir management through proper infill and extension drilling strategies, reduction of economic risks, increased recovery from existing oil fields, and more reliable reserve calculations. Transfer of the project results to the petroleum industry is an integral component of the project.

The primary objective of this project is to enhance domestic petroleum production by demonstration and technology transfer of an advanced oil recovery technology in the Paradox basin, southeastern Utah. If this project can demonstrate technical and economic feasibility, the technique can be applied to approximately 100 additional small fields in the Paradox basin alone, and result in increased recovery of 150 to 200 million barrels of oil. This project is designed to characterize five shallow-shelf carbonate reservoirs in the Pennsylvanian Paradox Formation and choose the best candidate for a pilot demonstration project for either a waterflood or carbon dioxide-flood project. The field demonstration, monitoring of field performance, and associated validation activities will take place in the Paradox basin within the Navajo Nation. The results of this project will be transferred to industry and other researchers through a petroleum extension service, creation of digital databases for distribution, technical workshops and seminars, field trips, technical presentations at national and regional professional meetings, and publication in newsletters and various technical or trade journals.

VALDRIFT version 1.0 is an atmospheric transport and diffusion model for use in well-defined mountain valleys. It is designed to determine the extent of ddft from aedal pesticide spraying activities, but can also be applied to estimate the transport and diffusion of various air pollutants in valleys. The model is phenomenological -- that is, the dominant meteorological processes goveming the behavior of the valley atmosphere are formulated explicitly in the model, albeit in a highly parameterized fashion. The key meteorological processes treated are: (1) nonsteady and nonhomogeneous along-valley winds and turbulent diffusivities, (2) convective boundary layer growth, (3) inversion descent, (4) noctumal temperature inversion breakup, and (5) subsidence. The model is applicable under relatively cloud-free, undisturbed synoptic conditions and is configured to operate through one diumal cycle for a single valley. The inputs required are the valley topographical characteristics, pesticide release rate as a function of time and space, along-valley wind speed as a function of time and space, temperature inversion characteristics at sunrise, and sensible heat flux as a function of time following sunrise. Default values are provided for certain inputs in the absence of detailed observations. The outputs are three-dimensional air concentration and ground-level deposition fields as a …

Radiation therapy with ``hadrons`` (protons, neutrons, pions, ions) has accrued a 55-year track record, with by now over 30,000 patients having received treatments with one of these particles. Very good, and in some cases spectacular results are leading to growth in the field in specific well-defined directions. The most noted contributor to success has been the ability to better define and control the radiation field produced with these particles, to increase the dose delivered to the treatment volume while achieving a high degree of sparing of normal tissue. An additional benefit is the highly-ionizing, character of certain beams, leading to creater cell-killing potential for tumor lines that have historically been very resistant to radiation treatments. Until recently these treatments have been delivered in laboratories and research centers whose primary, or original mission was physics research. With maturity in the field has come both the desire to provide beam facilities more accessible to the clinical setting, of a hospital, as well as achieving, highly-efficient, reliable and economical accelerator and beam-delivery systems that can make maximum advantage of the physical characteristics of these particle beams. Considerable work in technology development is now leading, to the implementation of many of these ideas, and …

A linear least-squares procedure for the determination of modal residues using time-domain system realization theory is presented. The present procedure is shown to be theoretically equivalent to residue determination in realization algorithms such as the Eigensystem Realization Algorithm (ERA) and Q-Markov COVER. However, isolating the optimal residue estimation problem from the general realization problem affords several advantages over standard realization algorithms for structural dynamics identification. Primary among these are the ability to identify data sets with large numbers of sensors using small numbers of reference point responses, and the inclusion of terms which accurately model the effects of residual flexibility. The accuracy and efficiency of the present realization theory-based procedure is demonstrated for both simulated and experimental data.

Reported are the results and findings of a tracer study to determine contact time for the disinfection process of 315 Water Treatment Facility at 300 Area. The study utilized fluoride as the tracer and contact times were determined for two flow rates. Interpolation of data and short circuiting effects are also discussed.

Two possible upgrades, a shower maximum detector and a presampler, designed to improve the low energy electron/hadron separation capabilities of the ZEUS barrel calorimeter are described and test-beam results are reported. The presampler can also be used to correct for energy loss of particles traversing the dead material in front of the calorimeter.

The American Geological Institute (AGI) recently completed the first phase of a multiphase program to study and implement a National Geoscience Data Repository System (NGDRS) to capture and preserve valuable geoscientific data. They study was initiated in response to the fact that tens of billions of dollars worth of domestic eological and geophysical data are in jeopardy of being irrevocably lost or destroyed as a consequence of the ongoing downsizing of the US energy and minerals industry. The NGDRS would serve as an important and valuable source of information for the entire geoscience community for a variety of applications, including environmental protection, water resource management, global change studies, reducing risks from earthquakes and other geologic hazards, and basic and applied research. The repository system would also contain critical data that would enable domestic energy and minerals companies to expand their exploration and production programs in the United States for increased recovery of domestic oil, gas, and mineral resources. Progress is reported on the second phase of this program.

A two-day test using electric coheating was performed on a manufactured home in Watertown, New York. The main objective of the test was to evaluate planned procedures for measuring thermal distribution system efficiency. (Thermal distribution systems are the ductwork or piping used to transport heat or cooling effect from the equipment that produces it to the building spaces in which it is used.) These procedures are under consideration for a standard method of test now being prepared by a special committee of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers. The ability of a coheating test to give a credible and repeatable value for the overall heating system efficiency was supported by the test data. Distribution efficiency is derived from system efficiency by correcting for energy losses from the equipment. Alternative means for achieving this were tested and assessed. The best value for system efficiency in the Watertown house was 0.53, while the best value for distribution efficiency was 0.72.

In order to better understand the effect of hydrogen on the fracture behavior of nickel, this study uses the embedded atom method (EAM) to model the segregation of hydrogen to lattice defects in nickel. The dislocations modeled include an edge, a screw, and a Lomer dislocation in the locked configuration, i.e. the Lomer-Cottrell Cock (LCL). Several coincident site lattice boundaries are also investigated, these being the {Sigma}3(112) and {Sigma}11(113) tilt boundaries. It will be shown that the trap site energies in the vicinity of both the edge and screw dislocations is only about 0.1 eV while for the LCL and all of the grain boundaries the maximum trap site energy in the vicinity of the defect is on order 0.3 eV. Using a Monte-Carlo method to a impose a hydrogen environment produces much stronger segregation of hydrogen to the deeper traps. When compared to recent experimental studies showing that a binding energy between 0.3-0.4 eV is required for trap site controlled fracture in IN903, it can be concluded that the embrittlement process is most probably associated with trapping of hydrogen to the Lomer-Cottrell Locks.

This report describes an evaluation of various sensing techniques for determining the ammonia concentration in the working fluid of ammonia/water absorption cycle systems. The purpose of this work was to determine if any existing sensor technology or instrumentation could provide an accurate, reliable, and cost-effective continuous measure of ammonia concentration in water. The resulting information will be used for design optimization and cycle control in an ammonia-absorption heat pump. PNL researchers evaluated each sensing technology against a set of general requirements characterizing the potential operating conditions within the absorption cycle. The criteria included the physical constraints for in situ operation, sensor characteristics, and sensor application. PNL performed an extensive literature search, which uncovered several promising sensing technologies that might be applicable to this problem. Sixty-two references were investigated, and 33 commercial vendors were identified as having ammonia sensors. The technologies for ammonia sensing are acoustic wave, refractive index, electrode, thermal, ion-selective field-effect transistor (ISFET), electrical conductivity, pH/colormetric, and optical absorption. Based on information acquired in the literature search, PNL recommends that follow-on activities focus on ISFET devices and a fiber optic evanescent sensor with a colormetric indicator. The ISFET and fiber optic evanescent sensor are inherently microminiature and capable of …

In the past three years, members of the Maryland Plasma Theory Group have made significant contributions to the national fusion theory program, and, in many cases, these theoretical developments helped to interpret experimental results and to design new experimental programs. In this report, they summarize the technical progress in four major areas of tokamak research: (a) L/H transition and edge turbulence and transport; (b) active control of micro-turbulence and transport; (c) major disruptions; and (d) the sawtooth crash.