Corrective Action Unit 210, Storage Areas and Contaminated Material, is identified in the Federal Facilities Agreement and Consent Order. This Corrective Action Unit consists of four Corrective Action Sites located in Areas 10, 12, and 15 of the Nevada Test Site. This report documents that the closure activities conducted meet the approved closure standards.

The concepts of Verification and Validation (V&V) can be oversimplified in a succinct manner by saying that 'verification is doing things right' and 'validation is doing the right thing'. In the world of the Finite Element Method (FEM) and computational analysis, it is sometimes said that 'verification means solving the equations right' and 'validation means solving the right equations'. In other words, if one intends to give an answer to the equation '2+2=', then one must run the resulting code to assure that the answer '4' results. However, if the nature of the physics or engineering problem being addressed with this code is multiplicative rather than additive, then even though Verification may succeed (2+2=4 etc), Validation may fail because the equations coded are not those needed to address the real world (multiplicative) problem. We have previously provided a 4-step 'ABCD' quantitative implementation for a quantitative V&V process: (A) Plan the analyses and validation testing that may be needed along the way. Assure that the code[s] chosen have sufficient documentation of software quality and Code Verification (i.e., does 2+2=4?). Perform some calibration analyses and calibration based sensitivity studies (these are not validated sensitivities but are useful for planning purposes). Outline the …

The high-density infrared (HDI) transient-liquid coating (TLC) process was successfully developed and demonstrated excellent, enhanced (5 times higher than the current material and process) wear performance for the selected functionally graded material (FGM) coatings under laboratory simulated, in-service conditions. The mating steel component exhibited a wear rate improvement of approximately one and a half (1.5) times. After 8000 cycles of. wear testing, the full-scale component testing demonstrated that the coating integrity was still excellent. Little or no spalling was observed to occur.

This CRADA project involved the cooperative research of investigators in ORNL's Center for Engineering Science Advanced Research (CESAR) with researchers at Caterpillar, Inc. The subject of the research was the development of cooperative control strategies for autonomous vehicles performing applications of interest to Caterpillar customers. The project involved three Phases of research, conducted over the time period of November 1998 through December 2001. This project led to the successful development of several technologies and demonstrations in realistic simulation that illustrated the effectiveness of the control approaches for distributed planning and cooperation in multi-robot teams.

Since 1998, there has been an ongoing effort to gain acceptance of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)-owned spent nuclear fuel (SNF) in the national repository. To accomplish this goal, the fuel matrix was used as a discriminating feature to segregate fuels into nine distinct groups. From each of those groups, a characteristic fuel was selected and analyzed for criticality safety based on a proposed packaging strategy. This report identifies and quantifies the important criticality parameters for the canisterized fuels within each criticality group to: (1) demonstrate how the “other” fuels in the group are bounded by the baseline calculations or (2) allow identification of individual type fuels that might require special analysis and packaging.

The primary accomplishments of the JOI Cooperative Agreement with DOE/NETL in this quarter were that: (1) post-cruise evaluation of the data, tools and measurement systems that were used during ODP Leg 204 continued in the preparation of deliverables under this agreement. Work continued on analyzing data collected during ODP Leg 204 and preparing reports on the outcomes of Phase 1 projects as well as developing plans for Phase 2.

A limited, but accurate amount of detailed information about the radioactive isotopes used in the U.S. for medical procedures was collected from a local hospital and from a recent report on the U.S. Radiopharmaceutical Markets. These data included the total number of procedures, the specific types of procedures, the specific radioisotopes used in these procedures, and the dosage administered per procedure. The information from these sources was compiled, assessed, pruned, and then merged into a single, comprehensive and consistent set of results presented in this report. (PIET-43471-TM-197)

The project's overall objective is to develop a commercially viable dynamic signature based sensing system that is used to infer the flow rate and fineness of pulverized coal. This eighteen month effort will focus on developments required to transfer the measurement system from the laboratory to a field ready prototype system. This objective will be achieved through the completion of the laboratory development of the sensor and data algorithm followed by full scale field tests of a portable measurement system. The sensing system utilizes accelerometers attached externally to coal feeder pipes. Raw data is collected from the impingement of the coal particles as well as the acoustic noise generated from the flow and is transformed into characteristic signatures through proper calibration that are meaningful to the operator. The laboratory testing will use a portable version of the sensing system to collect signature data from a variety of flow conditions including coal flow rates, flow orientations, and coal particle characteristics. This work will be conducted at the Coal Flow Measurement Laboratory that is sponsored by EPRI and operated by Airflow Sciences. The data will be used to enhance the algorithm and neural network required to perform real time analysis of the …

The critical height for DNAPL entry into a partially watersaturated, dead-end fracture is derived and compared to laboratoryobservations. Experiments conducted in an analog, parallel-plate fracturedemonstrate that DNAPL accumulates above the water until the height ofthe DNAPL overcomes the sum of the capillary forces at the DNAPL-airinterface and at the DNAPL-water interface. These experiments also showthat DNAPL preferentially enters the water at locations where DNAPL haspreviously entered, and the entry heights for these subsequent entriesare lower than the heights measured for the initial invasion. The wettingcontact angle at the DNAPL-water interface becomes larger at thelocations where the DNAPL has already entered the water because ofresidual DNAPL on the fracture walls, which results in lowering thecritical entry height at those locations. The experiments alsodemonstrate that a DNAPL lens can remain nearly immobile above the waterfor a period of time before eventually redistributing itself and enteringthe water.

This report describes the results of a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) of Santa Clara, California. This project encompassed the continued development and integration of the ORNL Automated Image Retrieval (AIR) technology, and an extension of the technology denoted Automated Signature Retrieval (ASR), and other related technologies with the Defect Source Identification (DSI) software system that was under development by AMAT at the time this work was performed. In the semiconductor manufacturing environment, defect imagery is used to diagnose problems in the manufacturing line, train yield management engineers, and examine historical data for trends. Image management in semiconductor data systems is a growing cause of concern in the industry as fabricators are now collecting up to 20,000 images each week. In response to this concern, researchers at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) developed a semiconductor-specific content-based image retrieval method and system, also known as AIR. The system uses an image-based query-by-example method to locate and retrieve similar imagery from a database of digital imagery using visual image characteristics. The query method is based on a unique architecture that takes advantage of the statistical, morphological, and structural characteristics of image data, generated by inspection …

The DOE-sponsored project at the East Binger Unit is an investigation into the benefits of reservoir characterization and horizontal wells in this particular setting of geologic and recovery method. The geologic setting is a tight (average porosity of 7% and average permeability of less than 1 millidarcy) Pennsylvanian-age sandstone at about 10,000 feet, and the recovery method is a miscible nitrogen flood. The projected oil recovery of the East Binger Unit, prior to the initiation of this project, was about 25%. Gravity segregation of nitrogen and crude oil was believed to be the principal cause of the poor sweep efficiency, and it was envisioned that with horizontal producing wells in the lower portion of the reservoir and horizontal injection wells near the top, the process could be converted from a lateral displacement process to a vertical displacement/gravity assisted process. Through the characterization and field development work completed in Budget Periods 1 and 2, Binger Operations, LLC (BOL) has developed a different interpretation of the sweep problem as well as a different approach to improving recovery. The sweep problem is now believed to be one of an areal nature, due to a combination of natural and hydraulic fracturing. Vertical wells have …

This project was to undertaken to provide information about a condition known as ''headburn''. Information from the project will enable U.S. Corps of Engineers managers to make adjustments in operational procedures or facilities on the Columbia and Snake rivers to prevent loss of pre-spawning adult salmonids that migrate through the facilities. Headburn is a descriptive clinical term used by fishery biologists to describe scalping or exfoliation of skin and ulceration of underlying connective tissue and muscle, primarily of the jaw and cranial region of salmonids observed at fish passage facilities. Headburn lesions are primarily caused when fish collide with concrete or other structures at dams and fish passage facilities, and may be exacerbated in some fish that ''fallback'' or pass over spillways or through turbine assemblies after having passed the dam through a fish ladder. Prespawning mortality of headburned salmonids can be prevented or greatly reduced by therapeutic treatment of both hatchery and wild fish. Treatments would consist of topical application of an anti-fungal agent, injection of replacement plasma electrolytes into the peritoneal cavity, and injection of a broad-spectrum antibacterial agent at fish passage and trapping facilities or hatcheries.

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CH2MHill Hanford Group, Inc. (CHG) is designing and assessing the performance of an Integrated Disposal Facility (IDF) to receive immobilized low-activity waste (ILAW), Low-Level and Mixed Low-Level Wastes (LLW/MLLW), and the Waste Treatment Plant (WTP) melters used to vitrify the ILAW. The IDF Performance Assessment (PA) assesses the performance of the disposal facility to provide a reasonable expectation that the disposal of the waste is protective of the general public, groundwater resources, air resources, surface water resources, and inadvertent intruders. The PA requires prediction of contaminant migration from the facilities, which is expected to occur primarily via the movement of water through the facilities and the consequent transport of dissolved contaminants in the pore water of the vadose zone. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) assists CHG in its performance assessment activities. One of PNNL’s tasks is to provide estimates of the physical, hydraulic, and transport properties of the materials comprising the disposal facilities and the disturbed region around them. These materials are referred to as the near-field materials. Their properties are expressed as parameters of constitutive models used in simulations of subsurface flow and transport. In addition to the best-estimate parameter values, information on uncertainty in the parameter values and …

The 2003 edition of this report, prepared by NREL's Energy Analysis Office, includes up-to-date information on power technologies, including complete technology profiles. The data book also contains charts on electricity restructuring, power technology forecasts and comparisons, electricity supply, electricity capability, electricity generation, electricity demand, prices, economic indicators, environmental indicators, conversion factors, and selected congressional questions and answers.

General frameworks for distributed computing are slowly evolving out of Grid, Peer Architecture, and Web Services. The following results from a summer long survey into distributing computing practices have revealed three things. One, that Legion and Cactus-G have achieved the most in terms of providing an all-purpose application environment. Two, that extending a local programming environment to operate in a highly distributed fashion can be facilitated with toolkits like Globus. Three, that building a new system from the ground up could be realized, in part, by using some of the following components; an Object Oriented Database, Tapestry, JXTA, BOINC, Globus, component architecture technology, XML and related libraries, Condor-G, Proteus, and ParMETIS.

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To support the assessment of inspection findings as part of the risk-informed inspection in the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (USNRC's) Reactor Oversight Process (ROP), risk inspection notebooks, also called significance determination process (SDP) notebooks, have been developed for each of the operating plants in the United States. These notebooks serve as a tool for assessing risk significance of inspection findings along with providing an engineering understanding of the significance. Plant-specific notebooks are developed to capture plant-specific features, characteristics, and analyses that influence the risk profile of the plant. At the same time, the notebooks follow a consistent set of assumptions and guidelines to assure consistent treatment of inspection findings across the plants. To achieve these objectives, notebooks are designed to provide specific information that are unique both in the manner in which the information is provided and in the way the screening risk assessment is carried out using the information provided. The unique features of the SDP notebooks, the approaches used to present the information for assessment of inspection findings, the assumptions used in consistent modeling across different plants with due credit to plant-specific features and analyses form the technical basis of the SDP notebooks. In this document, the …

This report was prepared by the Pacific Northwest National Lab., Richland, Washington, BAE Systems, Inc., a subcontractor to the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), Vicksburg, Mississippi. This study examined the effect of gatewell modifications on the proportion of fish lost through the gap between the top of submerged traveling screens (STSs) and the ceilings of intakes in one un-modified and two modified turbine units at Bonneville Dam Second Powerhouse (B2). Combined modifications reduced the proportion of flow through the gap from 44% to 16% and increased the proportion moving up the gatewell from 56% to 84%. We used a Dual-Frequency Identification Sonar (DIDSON) acoustic camera to record proportions of juvenile salmonids moving up into the gatewell and through the gap. The acoustic camera was used to record images of fish passing up into the gatewell and through the gap for 8-h on three successive nights in every intake of units 13, 15, and 17 (i.e., 9 intakes x 3 nights = 27 nights each season). Only 28.6% of the objects detected in spring and 12.9% in summer were determined to be fish. Other objects included sticks and debris. Although the true magnitude of STS gap-loss is unknown, …

This subcontract report describes Shell Solar Industries (SSI), formerly Siemens Solar Industries, pursuing research and development of CuInSe2-based thin-film PV technology since 1980. In the 1980s, SSI demonstrated a 14.1%-efficient 3.4-cm2 active-area cell; unencapsulated integrated modules with aperture efficiencies of 11.2% on 940 cm2 and 9.1% on 3900 cm2; and an encapsulated module with 8.7% efficiency on 3883 cm2 (verified by NREL). Since these early achievements, SSI has made outstanding progress in the initial commercialization of high-performance thin-film CIS technology. Line yield has been increased from about 60% in 2000 to about 85% in 2002. This major accomplishment supports attractive cost projections for CIS. Recently, NREL confirmed a champion 12.8% aperture-area conversion efficiency for a large-area (3626 cm2) CIS module. Other than definition of the aperture area, this module is simply one module from the upper end of the production distribution for standard modules. Prerequisites for commitment to large-scale commercialization have been demonstrated at successive levels of CIS production. Remaining R&D challenges are to scale the processes to even larger areas, to reach higher production capacity, to demonstrate in-service durability over longer times, and to advance the fundamental understanding of CIS-based materials and devices with the goal of improvements for …

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Microbiology is undergoing a quiet revolution. Techniques such as polymerase chain reaction, high throughput DNA sequencing, whole genome shotgun sequencing, DNA microarrays, and bioinformatics analyses are greatly aiding our understanding of the estimated one billion species of microbes that inhabit the Earth. Unfortunately, the rapid pace of research in microbiology stands in contrast to the much slower pace of change in educational reform. Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS) hosted a two-day planning meeting to discuss whether or not a new curriculum unit on microbiology is desirable for the high school audience. Attending the meeting were microbiologists, high school biology teachers, and science educators. The consensus of the participants was that an inquiry-based unit dealing with advances in microbiology should be developed for a high school biology audience. Participants established content priorities for the unit, discussed the unit's conceptual flow, brainstormed potential student activities, and discussed the role of educational technology for the unit. As a result of the planning meeting discussions, BSCS staff sought additional funding to develop, disseminate, and evaluate the Frontiers in Microbiology curriculum unit. This unit was intended to be developed as a replacement unit suitable for an introductory biology course. The unit would feature inquiry-based student …

Sealed lead acid cells are used in many projects in Sandia National Laboratories Department 2660 Telemetry and Instrumentation systems. The importance of these cells in battery packs for powering electronics to remotely conduct tests is significant. Since many tests are carried out in flight or launched, temperature is a major factor. It is also important that the battery packs are properly charged so that the test is completed before the pack cannot supply sufficient power. Department 2665 conducted research and studies to determine the effects of temperature on cycle time as well as charging techniques to maximize cycle life and cycle times on sealed lead acid cells. The studies proved that both temperature and charging techniques are very important for battery life to support successful field testing and expensive flight and launched tests. This report demonstrates the effects of temperature on cycle time for SLA cells as well as proper charging techniques to get the most life and cycle time out of SLA cells in battery packs.