At the request of the Office of Fusion Energy, a group of experts was convened on February 6--8, 1990. This group met to assess the world data base on Reversed Field Pinch (RFP) physics, and, further, to assess the role of the ZTH experiment in providing reactor relevant physics understanding for that confinement geometry. This group met, analyzed some of the relevant literature, and heard extensive presentations on the physics of the RFP and the plans for the ZTH and RFX devices. The conclusions of this group of experts are contained in this report.

This report summarizes the Savannah River Site (SRS) groundwater monitoring program conducted in the fourth quarter of 1990. It includes the analytical data, field data, well activity data, and other documentation for this program, provides a record of the program's activities and rationale, and serves as an official document of the analytical results. The groundwater monitoring program includes the following activities: installation, maintenance, and abandonment of monitoring wells, environmental soil borings, development of the sampling and analytical schedule, collection and analyses of groundwater samples, review of analytical and other data, maintenance of the databases containing groundwater monitoring data, quality assurance (QA) evaluations of laboratory performance, and reports of results to waste-site facility custodians and to the Environmental Protection Section (EPS) of EPD.

This report consists of the testimony by J. William Currie, Manager, Energy Systems Modernization Office, Battelle, Pacific Northwest Laboratories before The Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs, Washington, DC on February 18, 1992. He states It is a pleasure to have the opportunity to talk with this distinguished committee about energy conservation technologies and policies, especially as they relate to federal energy use and the commercialization of energy-efficiency technologies. Clearly, using energy more efficiently offers the potential for tremendous cost savings and environmental benefits in the United States and throughout the rest of the world. The challenge, especially with regard to the federal sector, is to lay the foundation for ensuring that the citizens of our nation realize the maximum savings and environmental benefit over the long run. This is the primary focus of my comments today.''

Under certain assumed accidents, an SRS reactor may lose most of its bulk moderator while maintaining flow to fuel assemblies. If this occurs immediately after operation at power, components normally dependent on convective heat transfer to the moderator will heat up with the possibility of melting that component. One component at risk is the currently used cadmium safety rod. A substitute safety rod consisting solely of sintered B{sub 4}C and stainless steel has been designed which is capable of withstanding much higher temperatures. This memorandum provides the physics basis for the adequacy of the rod for reactor shutdown and provides a set of criteria for acceptance in the NTG tests. This memorandum provides physics data for other aspects of operation. These include: Heat production and helium production, along with related phenomena, resulting from inadvertent irradiation at power. Gamma heat input under drained tank conditions. An equivalent rod design suitable for charge design and safety analyses. Degradation under normal operation. Thermal flux ripple in adjacent fuel due to axial striping of alternate B{sub 4}C and steel pellets. Possible effect on safety analyses. Safety rod withdrawal during reactor startup.

The overall objectives of the full-Scale Low-NOx Cell{trademark} Burner (LNCB{trademark}) Retrofit project is to demonstrate the cost-effective reduction of NOx generated by a large, base-loaded (70% capacity factor or greater), coal-fired utility boiler. Specific objectives include: (1) At least 50% NOx reduction over standard two-nozzle cell burners, without degradation of boiler performance or life; (2) acquire and evaluate emission and boiler performance data before and after the retrofit to determine NOx reduction and impact on overall boiler performance; (3) demonstrate that the LNCB{trademark} retrofits are the most cost-effective alternative to emerging, or commercially-available NOx control technology for units equipped with cell burners. The focus of this demonstration is to determine maximum NOx reduction capabilities without adversely impacting plant performance, operation and maintenance.

The overall objectives of the full-Scale Low-NO{sub x} Cell{trademark} Burner (LNCB{trademark}) Retrofit project is to demonstrate the cost-effective reduction of NO{sub x} generated by a large, base-loaded (70% capacity factor or greater), coal-fired utility boiler. Specific objectives include: (1) At least 50% NO{sub x} reduction over standard two-nozzle cell burners, without degradation of boiler performance or life; (2) Acquire and evaluate emission and boiler performance data before and after the retrofit to determine NO{sub x} reduction and impact on overall boiler performance; (3) Demonstrate that the LNCB{trademark} retrofits are the most cost-effective alternative to emerging, or commercially- available NO{sub x} control technology for units equipped with cell burners. The focus of this demonstration is to determine maximum NO{sub x} reduction capabilities without adversely impacting plant performance, operation and maintenance. In particular, the prototype evaluations will resolve many technical issues not possible to address fully in the previous pilot-scale work and the single full-scale burner installation.

Bench-scale and pilot-scale experiments have been conducted to measure the mass transfer and kinetic rates at simulated duct injection conditions. Section 2 describes the tank reactor test results. The stirred tank reactor was used to study absorption of SO{sub 2} into saturated Ca(OH){sub 2} solutions with varied ionic strengths. The results of current experiments were compared with previous tests using saturated Ca(OH){sub 2} solution and 0.1 M CaCl{sub 2}. Section 3 summarizes the status of the Short-Time Differential Reactor (STDR) tests for Task 2.3. The effect of CO{sub 2} on reactivity of Mississippi Ca(OH){sub 2} with SO{sub 2} was investigated. The extent of carbonation was measured for a commercial Mississippi Ca(OH){sub 2} and laboratory-produced sorbents. Section 4 presents pilot plant testing conducted to evaluate various operating conditions and process schemes to support large-scale field testing at Meredosia and Beverly (Task 3). Consistent data were obtained from pilot testing of in-duct dry injection downstream of the humidifier. Section 5 reports differential reactor (Task 4) tests. The differential reactor has been modified to determine the effect of initial water content on the sorbent reactivity. An experimental method has been developed to prepare solid samples containing reproducible, predictable quantities of water. The experiments …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the use of the homestead exemption by bankruptcy debtors in Texas and Florida, focusing on statistically valid probability samples of chapter 7 bankruptcy cases that were closed in 1998 in the Northern District of Texas and the Southern District of Florida. GAO used the data from these samples to estimate for each district the (1) the proportion of chapter 7 personal bankruptcy debtors who claimed a homestead exemption; (2) average and median amount of the homestead exemptions claimed; (3) average and median amount of total scheduled debts for those debtors who claimed a homestead exemption; and (4) estimated average and median amount of debts discharged by debtors who claimed a homestead exemption."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the European Union's (EU) and the U.S.' agricultural export subsidy programs, focusing on: (1) EU and U.S. compliance with the World Trade Organization's (WTO) Agreement on Agriculture commitments to reduce agricultural export subsidies; and (2) EU and U.S. plans regarding the future use of agricultural export subsidies."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the District of Columbia's new System of Accounting and Reporting (SOAR), focusing on: (1) the training attendance statistics for SOAR; (2) the reported contract costs and total hours by deliverables for SOAR; (3) which applications of the vendor's financial management package the District of Columbia is implementing; (4) the cost of the implementation of SOAR at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC); (5) which agencies will implement SOAR; and (6) what types of resources are dedicated to transition assistance."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed concerns surrounding the Balanced Budget Act's (BBA) health plan payment changes, focusing on: (1) the extent to which health plans provide additional benefits and whether they could continue to provide additional benefits if payments were reduced; (2) the evidence regarding managed care's effect on Medicare spending; and (3) whether BBA provisions will eliminate excess plan payments."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the licensing of government-owned inventions created under federally funded research projects, focusing on: (1) government-owned inventions licensed by six federal agencies during fiscal years 1996 through 1998, including the royalties received during that period, and the total number of active licenses these agencies had as of October 1, 1998; (2) whether the licenses were exclusive or nonexclusive; (3) whether the licensees were small businesses, individuals, large businesses, or nonprofit organizations; and (4) whether the licensees were foreign or domestic."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) spending from its operations account, focusing on: (1) the history of funding FAA's operations activities from the Airport and Airway Trust Fund; (2) whether FAA has data to allow a determination of whether its spending for operations is cost-efficient and cost-effective; and (3) changes that FAA could institute in its various programs, offices, and projects to reduce its spending for operations."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO identified the legislative and administrative requirements that apply to the Public Buildings Service's (PBS) leasing program and provided information on the mechanisms that PBS has established to implement and comply with these federal statutes and executive orders."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on Customs Service's efforts to correct the management and technical weaknesses of its Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) system."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on: (1) selected characteristics for men's and women's intercollegiate athletics programs, focusing on: (a) the number of athletes; (b) number of teams; (c) sports programs sponsored; (d) average squad size; and (d) the maximum number of athletic scholarships a school may award for each sport; and (2) the number of student athletes and the proportion of undergraduate students at 4-year schools that participated as athletes during academic years 1985-86 and 1996-1997."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on rail banking, which refers to the preservation of inactive rail lines as trails, focusing on: (1) the implementation process for rail banking, including whether it protects the various interests of landowners, communities, rail carriers, and those interested in converting the rights-of-ways to trails; (2) the extent to which rail-banked property has returned to use as rail lines and the potential for future reactivation of rights-of-way for rail service; and (3) whether rail banking facilitates the return of these rights-of-way to rail service."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO responded to congressional questions concerning its April 1999 Testimony on the Melissa computer virus and its broader implications, focusing on: (1) how much damage was done by the virus and how many federal agencies were affected; (2) whether there are any safeguards that can detect a computer virus before it has been identified as a virus; and (3) whether Java Applets and Internet cookies could be used as a means of transmitting viral infections."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the effectiveness of the Department of Defense's efforts to perform year 2000-related end-to-end tests for its major business functions."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the financial management issues at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), focusing on: (1) FAA's financial management weaknesses; (2) fundamental problems which FAA must resolve in order to achieve financial accountability; and (3) corrective measures the agency has under way."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed efforts by the Customs Service to interdict drugs, allocate inspectional personnel, and develop performance measures, including information on Customs' action plan for resolving management problems."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the Air Force's best practices implementation schedule for the acquisition and distribution of secondary inventory items, focusing on: (1) the extent to which the schedule responds to the provisions of the Strom Thurmond National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1999; and (2) specific elements of a management framework needed for effective implementation and oversight of the Air Force's best practice initiatives."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on social security reform, focusing on issues to consider regarding the design and implementation of an individual account system."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on: (1) the extent to which inmates in the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and state prison systems had access to personal information through correctional industry work programs; (2) prison safeguards and procedures, statutes and regulations, and proposed legislation that addressed correctional industry work programs involving personal information; (3) the extent to which contracts that provided inmates access to personal information contributed to BOP's and states' correctional industry income; (4) the extent to which BOP and state prison inmates had access to only names and addresses or telephone numbers through correctional industry work programs; and (5) incidents of inmates misusing information obtained through correctional industry work programs, including how safeguards failed and what, if any, changes were made as a result of the incidents."