The skeletal structure of aerogel is determined before, during, and after the gel is formed. Supercritical drying of aerogel largely preserves the pore structure that is determined near the time of gelation. To better understand these gel formation mechanisms we carried out measurements of the time evolution of light scattering in a series of gels prepared without conventional acid or base catalysis. Instead, ultraviolet light was used to catalyze the formation of silica gels made from the hydrolysis of tetraethylorthosilicate and partly prehydrolyzed tetraethylorthosilicate in ethanol. Time evolution of light scattering provides information regarding the rate and geometrical nature of the assembly of the primary silica particles formed in the sol. UV-catalyzed gels show volumetric growth typical of acid-catalyzed gels, except when UV exposure is discontinued at the gel point, where gels then show linear chain formation typical of base-catalyzed gels. Long term UV exposure leads to coarsening of the pore network, a decrease in the clarity of the aerogel, and an increase in the surface area of the aerogel. Additionally, UV exposure up to the gel point leads to increased crystallinity in the final aerogel.

The PEP-II High Energy Ring (HER), a 9 GeV electron storage ring, has been in commissioning since spring 1997. Initial beam commissioning activities focused on systems checkout and commissioning and on determining the behavior of the machine systems at high beam currents. This phase culminated with the accumulation of 0.75 A of stored beam-sufficient to achieve design luminosity--in January 1998 after 3.5 months of beam time. Collisions with the 3 GeV positron beam of the Low Energy Ring (LER) were achieved in Summer of 1998. At high beam currents, collective instabilities have been seen. Since then, commissioning activities for the HER have shifted in focus towards characterization of the machine and a rigorous program to understand the machine and the beam dynamics is presently underway.

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Radio-frequency (RF) driven ion sources are being developed in Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) for sealed-accelerator-tube neutron generator applications. By using a 2.5-cm-diameter RF-driven multicusp source and a computer designed 100 keV accelerator column, peak extractable hydrogen current exceeding 1 A from a 3-mm-diameter aperture, together with H{sup +} yields over 94% have been achieved. These experimental findings together with recent moderator design will enable one to develop compact 14 MeV neutron generators based on the D-T fusion reaction. In this new neutron generator, the ion source, the accelerator and the target are all housed in a sealed metal container without pumping. With a 120 keV and 1 A deuteron beam, it is estimated that a treatment time of {approx} 45 minutes is needed for boron neutron capture therapy.

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In a short review of recent work, we discuss the general problem of constructing the actions of new conformal field theories from old conformal field theories. Such a construction follows when the old conformal field theory admits new conformal stress tensors in its chiral algebra, and it turns out that the new conformal field theory is generically a new spin-two gauge theory. As an example we discuss the new spin-two gauged sigma models which arise in this fashion from the general conformal non-linear sigma model.

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The 242-A Evaporator is the primary waste evaporator for the Hanford Site radioactive liquid waste stored in underground double-shell tanks. Low pressure evaporation is used to remove water from the waste, thus reducing the amount of tank space required for storage. The process produces a concentrated slurry, a process condensate, and an offgas. The offgas exhausts through two stages of high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters before being discharged to the atmosphere 40 CFR 61 Subpart H requires assessment of the unfiltered exhaust to determine if continuous compliant sampling is required. Because potential (unfiltered) emissions are not measured, methods have been developed to estimate these emissions. One of the methods accepted by the Environmental Protection Agency is the measurement of the accumulation of radionuclides on the HEPA filters. Nondestructive assay (NDA) was selected for determining the accumulation on the HEPA filters. NDA was performed on the HEPA filters before and after a campaign in 1997. NDA results indicate that 2.1 E+4 becquerels of cesium-137 were accumulated on the primary HEPA 1700 filter during the campaign. The feed material processed in the campaign contained a total of 1.4 E+l6 Bq of cesium-137. The release factor for the evaporator process is 1.5 E-12. …

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has initiated remediation for stored high-level radioactive wastes. At the DOE Hanford site in southeastern Washington, 149 large underground tanks contain such wastes, generated by various chemical processes during the manufacture of plutonium for nuclear weapons. One of the key steps in this remediation effort is to characterize the waste stored in these tanks so that it can be treated properly and safely. A number of samples have been extracted from a subset of the tanks and analyzed for various chemical and radiological constituents. The analytical results were used to cluster tanks into groups with similar waste compositions. The tank groups determined by clustering of the analytical data are compared to tank groups determined using process-based historical models. Agreement between the two grouping strategies may reduce the number of samples required to characterize the waste in a tank, and perhaps support the use of the historical models to characterize tanks that have not been sampled. A successful implementation of this approach with one tank group is described here. This particular case yielded DOE significant savings of characterization resources.

This report contains vugraphs of presentations given at the meeting. The topics covered include the following: FFTF Deactivation Strategy; Sodium Drain and Disposition; Sodium Processing; and Fuel Storage and Disposition.

This paper presents several innovative and common sense approaches to pollution prevention that have been employed during facility deactivation at the Hanford Site in South Central Washington. It also presents several pollution prevention principles applicable to other projects. Innovative pollution prevention ideas employed at the Hanford site during facility deactivation included: (1) Recycling more than 185,000 gallons of radioactively contaminated nitric acid by sending it to an operating nuclear fuels reprocessing facility in England; (2) Recycling millions of pounds of chemicals and excess materials to other industries for reuse; (3) Evaporating flush water at a low rate and discharging it into the facility exhaust air stream to avoid discharging thousands of gallons of liquid to the soil column; and (4) Decontaminating and disposing of thousands of gallons of radioactively contaminated organic solvent waste to a RCRA licensed, power-producing, commercial incinerator. Common sense pollution prevention ideas that were employed include recycling office furniture, recycling paper from office files, and redeploying tools and miscellaneous process equipment. Additional pollution prevention occurred as the facility liquid and gaseous discharge streams were deactivated. From the facilities deactivation experiences at Hanford and the ensuing efforts to disposition excess chemicals and materials, several key pollution prevention principles …

Lockheed Martin Hanford Corporation is developing and implementing an integrated technical baseline for cleaning up environmental contamination at the Hanford Site in Washington State. The Hanford Site is located in Washington State and has been referred to as one of the largest Environmental Cleanup challenges in the US. It became contaminated with radioactive and dangerous wastes during the 40+ years it was being used to produce weapons grade plutonium in support of the US nuclear weapons program (See Figure 1). The US Department of Energy (US DOE) is responsible for cleanup of the Hanford Site with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) both providing regulatory oversight. The US DOE, EPA and Ecology entered into an agreement in 1989 (Hanford Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order, commonly referred to as the Tri-Party Agreement) that provides the framework for cleanup of the Hanford Site. However, since the inception of the Tri-Party Agreement, there have been numerous changes due to technical issues, funding issues, and priority changes within the cleanup mission. As a result, progress on the definition and execution of the cleanup work has been slower than anticipated and has resulted in some false starts, …

Waste processing and preparing waste to support waste processing relies heavily on ventilation. Ventilation is used at the Hanford Site on the waste storage tanks to provide confinement, cooling, and removal of flammable gases.

This paper summarizes an analysis of the U.S.-Russian Nuclear Material Protection, Control and Accounting (MPC&A) Program, developed on the basis of extensive discussions with U.S. laboratory participants as well as personal experience. Results of the discussions have been organized into three main areas: Technical/MPC&A Progress; Programmatic and Administrative Issues; and Professional Aspects, Implications for MPC&A effectiveness, for MPC&A sustainability, and for future relations and collaboration are derived. Suggested next steps are given.

The Ultra Compact Synchrotron (UCS), proposed for UCLA, is a compact 1.5 GeV electron light source with superconducting magnets to produce X rays with a critical energy of about 10 keV. The design physical length (cold length) for the dipole is 418 mm. The synchrotron requires that a uniform field be produced in a region that is 180 mm wide by 40 mm high by about 380 mm long. The end regions of the dipole should be short compared to the overall length of the dipole field region. A Vobly H type of dipole was selected for the synchrotron bending magnets. In order for each dipole to bend a 1.5 GeV electron beam 30 degrees, the central induction must be in the range of 6.4 to 6.9 T (depending on the dipole magnetic length). The pole width for the dipole was set so that over 90% of the X rays generated by the magnet can be extracted. The three dimensional field calculations were done using TOSCA. This report shows that a Vobly type of dipole will behave magnetically as a conventional water cooled iron dominated dipole. The uniformity of the integrated magnetic field can be controlled by varying the current …

A prototype, Nb{sub 3}Sn superconducting magnet, utilizing a racetrack coil design has been built and tested. This magnet represents the first step in a recently implemented program to develop a high field, accelerator quality magnet. This magnet was constructed with coils wound from conductor developed for the ITER project, limiting the magnet to a field of 6-7 Tesla. Subsequent magnets in the program will utilize improved conductor, culminating in a magnet design capable of producing fields approaching 15 Tesla. The simple geometry is more suitable for the use of brittle superconductors necessary to eventually reach high field levels. In addition, fewer and simpler parts are used in fabricating these coils compared with the more conventional cosine theta cross section coils. The general fabrication steps, mechanical design and quench performance are discussed.

Concepts are examined for the measurement of luminosity, beam-beam separation and transverse beam shape and size using the high flux of forward neutral particles produced at the low {beta}* (high luminosity) interaction points (IP's) of the LHC. At design luminosity 10{sup 34} cm{sup -2}sec{sup -1} the flux of neutrals striking the neutral beam absorbers (TAN) in front of the D2 beam separation dipoles is high enough ({approx} 8 neutrons per bunch crossing with mean energy 2.3 TeV) to allow measurement of luminosity with 1% precision in {approx} 1.8 x 10{sup 3} bunch crossings and measurement of beam-beam separation at the collision point with 0.1{sigma}* precision in {approx} 3 x 10{sup 4} bunch crossings. An Argon ionization chamber placed near the shower maximum {approx} 22 cm inside the Cu neutral beam absorber is analyzed as a possible detector. Background effects due to beam-gas interactions, beam-halo scraping, beam crossing angle modulation and transverse drift of the IP are estimated and found to be small compared to the anticipated signals. Extending these concepts to the front quadrupole absorber (TAS) and segmenting the ionization chambers into four quadrants allows additional measurements of the beam-beam crossing angle and the transverse position of the IP.

Workers in indoor environments often complain of symptoms, such as eye and nose irritation, headache, and fatigue, which improve away from work. Exposures causing such complaints, sometimes referred to as sick building syndrome, generally have not been identified. Evidence suggests these worker symptoms are related to chemical, microbiological, physical, and psychosocial exposures not well characterized by current methods. Most research in this area has involved cross-sectional studies, which are limited in their abilities to show causal connections. Experimental studies have also been conducted which, by changing one factor at a time to isolate its effects, can demonstrate benefits of an environmental intervention even before exposures or mechanisms are understood. This study was prompted by evidence that particulate contaminants may be related to acute occupant symptoms and discomfort. The objective was to assess, with a double-blind, double crossover intervention design, whether improved removal of small airborne particles by enhanced central filtration would reduce symptoms and discomfort.

In the high field magnet program at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, accelerator magnet prototypes are designed with epoxy impregnated niobium-tin and niobium-titanium superconductor. Accurate mechanical property values are essential for magnet mechanical design and prediction of conductor performance. Two key mean property values are measured on coil samples: modulus of elasticity (Young's modulus) and mean thermal contraction. Measurements are made in compression and are conducted in three orthogonal directions. Modulus of elasticity measurements are currently conducted at room temperature and the mean thermal contraction is measured from room temperature to liquid nitrogen temperature. Room temperature values are compared with values estimated using the individual coil components.

For high energy physics applications superconducting cables are subjected to large stresses and high magnetic fields during service. It is essential to know how these cables perform in these operating conditions. A loading fixture capable of applying loads of up to 700 kN has been developed by NHMFL for LBNL. This fixture permits uniform loading of straight cables over a 122 mm length in a split-pair solenoid in fields up to 12 T at 4.2 K. The first results from this system for Rutherford cables of internal-tin and modified jelly roll strand of Nb{sub 3}Sn produced by IGC and TWC showed that little permanent degradation occurs up to 210 MPa. However, the cable made from internal-tin strand showed a 40% reduction in K{sub c} at 11T and 210 MPa while a dable made from modified jelly roll material showed only a 15% reduction in I{sub c} at 11T and 185 MPa.

Generalized geologic province information and data on house construction were used to predict indoor radon concentrations in New Hampshire (NH). A mixed-effects regression model was used to predict the geometric mean (GM) short-term radon concentrations in 259 NH towns. Bayesian methods were used to avoid over-fitting and to minimize the effects of small sample variation within towns. Data from a random survey of short-term radon measurements, individual residence building characteristics, along with geologic unit information, and average surface radium concentration by town, were variables used in the model. Predicted town GM short-term indoor radon concentrations for detached houses with usable basements range from 34 Bq/m{sup 3} (1 pCi/l) to 558 Bq/m{sup 3} (15 pCi/l), with uncertainties of about 30%. A geologic province consisting of glacial deposits and marine sediments, was associated with significantly elevated radon levels, after adjustment for radium concentration, and building type. Validation and interpretation of results are discussed.

High field dipole and quadrupole magnet designs with racetrack coils are investigated. The design option is particularly attractive for a muon collider dipole magnet using the Nb{sub 3}Sn superconductor. A conceptual design of {approx} 15 T single aperture dipole magnet is presented where the coils maintain a simple 2-d structure through the ends. The use of racetrack coils in quadrupole magnets is also discussed. It appears that the racetrack coils are less attractive for high gradient quadrupole magnets.