Release rates of 15 radionuclides from waste packages expected to result from partitioning and transmutation of Light-Water Reactor (LWR) and Actinide-Burning Liquid-Metal Reactor (ALMR) spent fuel are calculated and compared to release rates from standard LWR spent fuel packages. The release rates are input to a model for radionuclide transport from the proposed geologic repository at Yucca Mountain to the water table. Discharge rates at the water table are calculated and used in a model for transport to the accessible environment, defined to be five kilometers from the repository edge. Concentrations and dose rates at the accessible environment from spent fuel and wastes from reprocessing, with partitioning and transmutation, are calculated. Partitioning and transmutation of LWR and ALMR spent fuel reduces the inventories of uranium, neptunium, plutonium, americium and curium in the high-level waste by factors of 40 to 500. However, because release rates of all of the actinides except curium are limited by solubility and are independent of package inventory, they are not reduced correspondingly. Only for curium is the repository release rate much lower for reprocessing wastes.

The use of {sup 14}N nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) as a radiation dosimetry tool has only recently been explored. An analytical method for analyzing {sup 14}N NQR complex free induction decays is presented with the background necessary to conduct pulsed NQR experiments. The {sup 14}N NQR energy levels and possible transitions are derived in step-by-step detail. The components of a pulsed NQR spectrometer are discussed along with the experimental techniques for conducting radiation effects experiments using the spectrometer. Three data analysis techniques -- the power spectral density Fourier transform, state space singular value decomposition (HSVD), and nonlinear curve fitting (using the downhill simplex method of global optimization and the Levenberg-Marquart method) -- are explained. These three techniques are integrated into an analytical method which uses these numerical techniques in this order to determine the physical NQR parameters. Sample data sets of urea and guanidine sulfate data are used to demonstrate how these methods can be employed to analyze both simple and complex free induction decays. By determining baseline values for biologically significant organics, radiation effects on the NQR parameters can be studied to provide a link between current radiation dosimetry techniques and the biological effects of radiation.

The purpose of this project was to investigate the feasibility of an antiproton catalyzed fission fragment rocket (FFR). The FFR is characterized by the extraction of fission fragments from the fissile fuel, and the utilization of their kinetic energy for thrust generation. A significant drawback to previous FFR designs was the requirement to maintain a critical nuclear pile as the fission fragment source. The author examined the possibility of replacing the critical pile with a sub-critical pile driven by antiprotons. Recent experiments have revealed that antiprotons stimulate highly energetic fissions in {sup 238}U, with a neutron multiplicity of 13.7 neutrons per fission. This interaction was used as a throttled neutron source. The pile consisted of layers of fissile coated fibers which are designed to allow fission fragments to escape them, where the fragments collide with a fluid. The heated fluid is then ejected from the rocket to provide thrust. The calculations performed indicate that each antiproton injected into the pile can stimulate 8 or more fissions while maintaining a neutron multiplication of less than 0.4. Based on the results seen, the engine design presented is inadequate. Limitations introduced by the reaction fluid far outweigh the simplicity-of-design gained. Despite this, the …

The D0 Detector at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory is a large multi-purpose detector facility designed for the study of proton-antiproton collision products at the center-of-mass energy of 2 TeV. It consists of an inner tracking volume, hermetic uranium/liquid argon sampling calorimetry, and an outer 4{pi} muon detector. In preparation for our first collider run, the collaboration organized a Cosmic Ray Commissioning Run, which took place from February - May of 1991. This thesis is a detailed study of the response of the central calorimeter to cosmic ray muons as extracted from data collected during this run.

These results show that regional deposition efficiencies of inhaled particles are highly dependent on the level of physical activity in all the spectrum of thermodynamic and aerodynamic aerosol particle sizes; also it was shown that for particles in the aerodynamic size range, the values of regional deposition efficiencies at the inner regions of the lung are highly dependent on age. In addition, the shape of regional deposition efficiency curves as a function of particle size have a similar behavior for all ages; thus, any variation of the airway geometry and respiratory physiological parameters such as tidal volumes and breathing frequencies due to age difference do not cause a change in the fundamental mechanisms of deposition. Thus, for all the cases of physical activity and age dependency, the deposition of ultrafine aerosol particles is highly enhanced by diffusive processes in all regions of the respiratory tract, and for very large aerosol size particles this behavior is repeated again due to impaction and sedimentation mechanisms. Although the results presented at this work, are the result of computer simulations based on different sources of experimental data, the structure of the computer simulation code BIODEP is flexible enough to the acquisition of any kind …

Modern nodal methods are currently available which can accurately and efficiently solve the static and transient neutron diffusion equations. Most of the methods, however, are limited to two energy groups for practical application. The objective of this research is the development of a static and transient, multidimensional nodal method which allows more than two energy groups and uses a non-linear iterative method for efficient solution of the nodal equations. For both the static and transient methods, finite-difference equations which are corrected by the use of discontinuity factors are derived. The discontinuity factors are computed from a polynomial nodal method using a non-linear iteration technique. The polynomial nodal method is based upon a quartic approximation and utilizes a quadratic transverse-leakage approximation. The solution of the time-dependent equations is performed by the use of a quasi-static method in which the node-averaged fluxes are factored into shape and amplitude functions. The application of the quasi-static polynomial method to several benchmark problems demonstrates that the accuracy is consistent with that of other nodal methods. The use of the quasi-static method is shown to substantially reduce the computation time over the traditional fully-implicit time-integration method. Problems involving thermal-hydraulic feedback are accurately, and efficiently, solved by …

An analysis is presented of events with a single jet and significant missing transverse energy selected from 4.7 pb{sup {minus}1} of data collected at the Fermilab Tevatron with the CDF detector. The goal is to identify events of the type p{bar p} {yields} Z{sup 0} + jet; Z{sup 0} {yields} {nu}{bar {nu}}. Event selection and backgrounds are discussed. The number of observed monojet events is compared to the number of observed Z{sup 0} {yields} e{sup +}{sup {minus}} events in which the Z{sup 0} is accompanied by a jet. We measure the number of light neutrino species to be N{sub {nu}} = 2.2{plus_minus}1.5 and we place an upper limit on the number of neutrino species at N{sub {nu}} < 5 (90% C.L.).

The soil radium content in Florida is highly variable. The range in radium concentrations, where the samples involved in this study are concerned, is from 0.1 pCi/g to 18.5 pCi/g. Low {sup 226}Ra concentrations (0.1 to 5 pCi/g) are evidenced in sands, moderate concentrations (5 to 11 pCi/g) are found in silt and gravel, and high {sup 226}Ra concentrations (>11 pCi/g) are found in soil horizons with shell, clay, and strata with phosphate. Strata containing phosphate yields a high concentration of {sup 226}Ra. The information obtained in this study, soil descriptions with their corresponding {sup 226}Ra concentrations, comes from geological cores drilled by geotechnical consultants with gamma spectrometry analysis performed by high resolution gamma spectroscopy. Concentration; of {sup 226}Ra generally increase with depth. These cores are usually terminated at 20 feet deep, with some cores being shallower than this due to hitting bedrock or encountering the water table. These frequency distributions give the core-logging geologist an approximate concentration of {sup 226}Ra based on the description of the soil. Since the correlation of {sup 226}Ra and soil descriptions can be used as a tool in assigning indoor radon potential, this study is of importance to land managers, contractors, developers, and regulating …

Isotopically enriched {sup 70}Ge and {sup 74}Ge single crystals were successfully gown by a newly developed vertical Bridgman method. The system allows us to reliably grow high purity Ge single crystals of approximately 1 cm{sup 3} volume. To our knowledge, we have grown the first {sup 70}Ge single crystal. The electrically active chemical impurity concentration for both crystals was found to be {approximately}2 {times} cm{sup {minus}3} which is two order of magnitude better that of {sup 74}Ge crystals previously grown by two different groups. Isotopic enrichment of the {sup 70}Ge and the {sup 74}Ge crystals is 96.3% and 96.8%, respectively. The residual chemical impurities present in both crystals were identified as phosphorus, copper, aluminum, and indium. A wide variety of experiments which take advantage of the isotopic purity of our crystals are discussed.

High resolution He I{alpha} photoelectron spectroscopy of formaldehyde and ketene and their deuterated compounds, are reported. The combination of a (H2CO) double-pass high-resolution electron-energy analyzer and effective rotational cooling of the sample by supersonic expansion enable the spectroscopy of these molecular cations. The vibrational autocorrelation functions are calculated from the high-resolution photoelectron spectra, shedding light on the ultrafast intramolecular dynamics of the molecular cations. This study reveals much more vibrational structural detail in the first electronic excited state of H2CO cations. The first electronic excited state of H2CO cations may have nonplanar equilibrium geometry. Strong isotope effects on vibronic (vibrational) coupling are observed in the second electronic excited state of H2CO. Vibrational autocorrelation functions are calculated for all four observed electronic states of H2CO. The correlation function of the first electronic excited state of H2CO shows a slow decay rate on the femtosecond time scale. The ultrafast decay of the H2CO cations in the third electronic excited state implies that dissociation and intramolecular processes are the main decay pathways. The present spectra of the ground states of ketene cations have more fine structure than before. The AIEs of the first and fifth excited states are determined unambiguously more accurately. The …

A study of several tissue substitutes for use as volumetric dosimeters was performed. The tissue substitutes studied included tissue substitutes from previous studies and from ICRU 44. The substitutes were evaluated for an overall match to Reference Man which was used as a basis for this study. The evaluation was based on the electron stopping power, the mass attenuation coefficient, the electron density, and the specific gravity. The tissue substitute chosen also had to be capable of changing from a liquid into a solid form to maintain an even distribution of thermoluminesent dosimetry (TLD) powder and then back to a liquid for recovery of the TLD powder without adversely effecting the TLD powder. The gelatine mixture provided the closest match to the data from Reference Man tissue. The gelatine mixture was put through a series of test to determine it`s usefulness as a reliable tissue substitute. The TLD powder was cast in the gelatine mixture and recovered to determine if the TLD powder was adversely effected. The distribution of the TLD powder after being cast into the gelatin mixture was tested in insure an even was maintained.

Geophysicists do not associate traveltime variation with density variation in acoustic or elastic wavefield interpretation. Rather, given a constant index of refraction, density variation within the medium of propagation is associated only with amplitudes. This point of view prevails because density does not occur as a variable in classical results such as Snell`s Law or the eikonal equation. Nevertheless, in this paper I predict, analytically, a continuum of density effects on acoustic wavefields-including a dispersive traveltime delay when density variation is rapid. I also examine the ability of a common imaging algorithm to cope with this time delay.

Angle-resolved photoemission extended fine structure (ARPEFS) was used to study molecular and metallic overlayers on metal surfaces through analysis of p2mg(2{times}1)CO/Ni(110) and the p(2{times}2)K/Ni(111) adsorption. For the dense p2mg(2{times}1)CO/Ni(110) surface layer, photoemission intensities from C 1s level were measured in three directions at photoelectron kinetic energies 60-400 eV. Using multiple-scattering spherical-wave (MSSW) modeling, it was found that CO molecules are adsorbed on short-bridge sites, with adjacent CO along the [110] direction displaced alternatively in opposite directions towards the [001] azimuths to form a zigzag chain geometry. The tilt angle is 16{plus_minus}2{degree} from the surface normal for the direction linking the C atom and the center of the Ni bridge. The carbon C-Ni interatomic distance was determined to be 1.94{plus_minus}0.02{Angstrom}. The first- to second-layer spacing of Ni is 1.27{plus_minus}0.04{Angstrom}, up from 1.10{Angstrom} for the clean Ni(110) surface, but close to the 1.25{Angstrom} Ni interlayer spacing in the bulk. The C-O bond length and tilt angle were varied within small ranges (1.10--1.20{Angstrom} and 15--23{degrees}) in our MSSW simulations. Best agreement between experiment and simulations was achieved at 1.16{Angstrom} and 19{degrees}. This yields an O-O distance of 2.95{Angstrom} for the two nearest CO molecules, (van der Waals` radius {approximately} 1.5 {Angstrom} for oxygen). …

Conversion reactions of hydrocarbons over Pt-Re model catalyst surfaces modified by sulfur and alumina have been studied. A plasma deposition source has been developed to deposit Pt, Re, and Al on metal substrates variable coverage in ultrahigh vacuum without excessive heating. Conversion of n-hexane was performed over the Re-covered Pt and Pt-covered Re surfaces. The presence of the second metal increased hydrogenolysis activity of both Pt-Re surfaces. Addition of sulfur on the model Catalyst surfaces suppressed hydrogenolysis activity and increased the cyclization rate of n-hexane to methylcyclopentane over Pt-Re surfaces. Sulfiding also increased the dehydrogenation rate of cyclohexane to benzene Over Pt-Re surfaces. It has been proposed that the PtRe bimetallic catalysts show unique properties when combined with sulfur, and electronic interactions exist between platinum, rhenium and sulfur. Decomposition of hydrocarbons on the sulfur-covered Pt-Re surfaces supported that argument. For the conversion of 1-butene over the planar Pt/AlO{sub x}, the addition of Pt increased the selectivity of hydrogenation over isomerization.

Design studies for the generation of a high current, short pulse electron source for the Argonne Wakefield Accelerator are presented. An L-band laser photocathode rf gun cavity is designed using the computer code URMEL to maximize the electric field on the cathode surface for fixed frequency and rf input power. A new technique using a curved incoming laser wavefront to minimize the space charge effect near the photocathode is studied. A preaccelerator with large iris to minimize wakefield effects is used to boost the drive beam to a useful energy of around 20 MeV for wakefield acceleration experiments. Focusing in the photocathode gun and the preaccelerator is accomplished with solenoids. Beam dynamics simulations throughout the preaccelerator are performed using particle simulation codes TBCI-SF and PARMELA. An example providing a useful set of operation parameters for the Argonne Wakefield Accelerator is given. The effects of the sagitta of the curved beam and laser amplitude and timing jitter effects are discussed. Measurement results of low rf power level bench tests and a high power test for the gun cavity are presented and discussed.

A {Lambda} hyperon replaces a neutron in a nucleus to form a hypernucleus via the {sup A}X(K{sup {minus}}, {pi}{sup {minus}}) {sub {Lambda}}{sup A}X reaction at 750 MeV/c (Brookhaven Experiment 788). The free {Lambda} decay rates {Gamma}({Lambda} {yields} p{pi}{sup {minus}}) and {Gamma}({Lambda} {yields} n{pi}{sup 0}) are diminished due to Pauli blocking; but a non-mesonic decay mode, nucleon stimulated decay N{Lambda} {yields} Nn, is present and is detected via the energetic decay nucleon(s) ({approx} 400MeV/c). Measurements of the various hypernuclear decay rates {Gamma}({Lambda} {yields} p{pi}{sup {minus}}), {Gamma}({Lambda} {yields} n{pi}{sup 0}) and {Gamma}({Lambda}n {yields} nn) provides insight into the strong modification of the weak interaction such as the baryon-baryon {Delta}I ={1/2} rule. The hypernuclear state is isolated by momentum analysis of (K{sup {minus}}, {pi}{sup {minus}}) target reaction. Out-of-beam large volume scintillation detectors and tracking chambers axe used to make particle identification of the hypernuclear decay products by time-of-flight, dE/dx, and range. The kinetic energy of the decay neutrons are measured by time of flight using the large volume 100 element neutron detector system. The hypernuclear lifetime is directly measured using precision scintillator counters and tracking chambers. Measurements of the various decay rates as well as the total lifetime are discussed for {sub {Lambda}}{sup …

The neutron flux across the nuclear reactor core is of interest to reactor designers and others. The diffusion equation, an integro-differential equation in space and energy, is commonly used to determine the flux level. However, the solution of a simplified version of this equation when automated is very time consuming. Since the flux level changes with time, in general, this calculation must be made repeatedly. Therefore solution techniques that speed the calculation while maintaining accuracy are desirable. One factor that contributes to the solution time is the spatial flux shape approximation used. It is common practice to use the same order flux shape approximation in each energy group even though this method may not be the most efficient. The one-dimensional, two-energy group diffusion equation was solved, for the node average flux and core k-effective, using two sets of spatial shape approximations for each of three reactor types. A fourth-order approximation in both energy groups forms the first set of approximations used. The second set used combines a second-order approximation with a fourth-order approximation in energy group two. Comparison of the results from the two approximation sets show that the use of a different order spatial flux shape approximation results in …

An innovative computational approach for the optimization of groundwater remediation is presented which uses artificial neural networks (ANNs) and the genetic algorithm (GA). In this approach, the ANN is trained to predict an aspect of the outcome of a flow and transport simulation. Then the GA searches through realizations or patterns of pumping and uses the trained network to predict the outcome of the realizations. This approach has advantages of parallel processing of the groundwater simulations and the ability to ``recycle`` or reuse the base of knowledge formed by these simulations. These advantages offer reduction of computational burden of the groundwater simulations relative to a more conventional approach which uses nonlinear programming (NLP) with a quasi-newtonian search. Also the modular nature of this approach facilitates substitution of different groundwater simulation models.

The groundwater of 400 North Carolina homes was sampled to ascertain the distribution and extent of {sup 222}Rn in North Carolina groundwater. Arithmetic mean (AM) and geometric mean (GM) concentrations of 1,816 pCi L{sup {minus}1} and 656 pCi L{sup {minus}1} were found for the state. These results indicate that two-thirds of 114{degree}C. homes served by groundwater exceed the EPA proposed 300 pCi L{sup {minus}1} maximum contaminant level (MCL). Only 2% of NC homes exceeded 10,000 pCi L-1. The Eastern region had the lowest radon concentrations by far, with a GM of 2-)0 pCi L{sup {minus}1}. The Central region and Western region had GM`s of 794 pCi L{sup {minus}1} and 1,032 pCi L{sup {minus}1} respectively. The groundwater data approached a log normal distribution. No consistent trends were noted in the relationship between indoor radon concentrations and groundwater radon concentrations. A correlation coefficient of 0.00921 revealed a very weak linear relationship.

We have measured the transverse momentum spectra 1/p{sub T} dN/dp{sub T} and rapidity distributions dN/dy of negatively charged hadrons and protons for central {sup 32}S + {sup 32}S interactions at 200 GeV/nucleon incident energy. The negative hadron dN/dy distribution is too broad to be accounted for by thermal models which demand isotropic particle emission. It is compatible with models which emphasize longitudinal dynamics, by either a particle production mechanism, as in the Lund fragmentation model, or by introducing one-dimensional hydrodynamic expansion, as in the Landau model. The proton dN/dy distribution, although showing no evidence for a peak in the target fragmentation region, exhibits limited nuclear stopping power. We estimate the mean rapidity shift of participant target protons to be {Delta}y {approximately} 1.5, greater than observed for pp collisions, less than measured in central pA collisions, and much less than would be observed for a single equilibrated fireball at midrapidity. Both the negative hadron and proton dN/dy distributions can be fit by a symmetric Landau two-fireball model. Although the spectrum possesses a two-component structure, a comparison to pp data at comparable center-of-mass energy shows no evidence for enhanced production at low p{sub T}. The two-component structure can be explained by a …

The objective of this study was to collect data that would provide a foundation for the concept of using vegetation to enhance in situ bioremediation of contaminated surface soils. Soil and vegetation (Lespedeza cuneata, Paspalum notatum, Pinus taeda, and Solidago sp.) samples from the Miscellaneous Chemicals Basin (MCB) at the Savannah River Site were used in tests to identify critical plant and microbiological variables affecting the fate of trichloroethylene (TCE) in the root zone. Microbiological assays including phospholipid acid analyses, and {sup 14}C-acetate incorporation were conducted to elucidate differences in rhizosphere and nonvegetated soil microbial communities from the MCB. The microbial activity, biomass, and degradation of TCE in rhizosphere soils were significantly greater than corresponding nonvegetated soils. Vegetation had a positive effect on microbial degradation of {sup 14}C-TCE in whole-plant experiments. Soils from the MCB containing Lespedeza cuneata, Pinus taeda, and Glycine max mineralized greater than 25% of the {sup 14}C- TCE added compared with less than 20% in nonvegetated soils. Collectively, these results provide evidence for the positive role of vegetation in enhancing biodegradation.

The purpose of this study was, first, to compare growth and life history characteristics of an unfished population of bluegill sunfish (Lepomis macrochirus) in the presence of an abundant predator population to characteristic exhibited by bluegills in typical southeastern US reservoirs where the abundance of predators is reduced, but fishing is increased. The second objective was to determine if differences observed between populations were determined genetically or environmentally.

A thorough investigation of light-cone properties which are characteristic for higher dimensions is very important. The easiest way of addressing these issues is by analyzing the perturbative structure of light-cone field theories first. Perturbative studies cannot be substituted for an analysis of problems related to a nonperturbative approach. However, in order to lay down groundwork for upcoming nonperturbative studies, it is indispensable to validate the renormalization methods at the perturbative level, i.e., to gain control over the perturbative treatment first. A clear understanding of divergences in perturbation theory, as well as their numerical treatment, is a necessary first step towards formulating such a program. The first objective of this dissertation is to clarify this issue, at least in second and fourth-order in perturbation theory. The work in this dissertation can provide guidance for the choice of counterterms in Discrete Light-Cone Quantization or the Tamm-Dancoff approach. A second objective of this work is the study of light-cone perturbation theory as a competitive tool for conducting perturbative Feynman diagram calculations. Feynman perturbation theory has become the most practical tool for computing cross sections in high energy physics and other physical properties of field theory. Although this standard covariant method has been applied …

We present results from four projects. In the first, quark and gluon propagators and effective masses and {Delta}I = 1/2 Rule operator matching coefficients are computed numerically in gaugefixed lattice QCD. In the second, the same quantities are evaluated analytically in the strong coupling, N {yields} {infinity} limit. In the third project, the Schwinger model is studied in covariant gauges, where we show that the effective electron mass varies with the gauge parameter and that longitudinal gaugefixing ambiguities affect operator product expansion coefficients (analogous to {Delta}I = 1/2 Rule matching coefficients) determined by matching gauge variant matrix elements. However, we find that matching coefficients even if shifted by the unphysical modes are {xi} invariant. In the fourth project, we show that the strong coupling parallelogram lattice Schwinger model as a different thermodynamic limit than the weak coupling continuum limit. As a function of lattice skewness angle these models span the {Delta} = {minus}1 critical line of 6-vertex models which, in turn, have been identified as c = 1 conformal field theories.