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Yucca Mountain (YM), Nevada, has been proposed by the U.S. Department of Energy as the nation’s first permanent geologic repository for spent nuclear fuel and highlevel radioactive waste. In this study, the potential for groundwater advective pathways from underground nuclear testing areas on the Nevada Test Site (NTS) to intercept the subsurface of the proposed land withdrawal area for the repository is investigated. The timeframe for advective travel and its uncertainty for possible radionuclide movement along these flow pathways is estimated as a result of effective-porosity value uncertainty for the hydrogeologic units (HGUs) along the flow paths. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis is conducted to determine the most influential HGUs on the advective radionuclide travel times from the NTS to the YM area. Groundwater pathways are obtained using the particle tracking package MODPATH and flow results from the Death Valley regional groundwater flow system (DVRFS) model developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Effectiveporosity values for HGUs along these pathways are one of several parameters that determine possible radionuclide travel times between the NTS and proposed YM withdrawal areas. Values and uncertainties of HGU porosities are quantified through evaluation of existing site effective-porosity data and expert professional judgment and are incorporated in …

The project entitled, “Uncertainty Quantification in the Reliability and Risk Assessment of Generation IV Reactors”, was conducted as a DOE NERI project collaboration between Texas A&M University and The Ohio State University between March 2006 and June 2009. The overall goal of the proposed project was to develop practical approaches and tools by which dynamic reliability and risk assessment techniques can be used to augment the uncertainty quantification process in probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) methods and PRA applications for Generation IV reactors. This report is the Final Scientific/Technical Report summarizing the project.

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This report outlines the key provisions of the Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save (CARS) program, discusses the initial impact of the program and some of the concerns raised by Senators. It also summarizes similar programs in other countries.

The first half of this report looks at the background of U.S. travel restrictions to Cuba over the last 40 years. The second half of this report looks at several initiatives from the 111th Congress that would ease U.S. travel restrictions to Cuba.

A collective scattering system has measured electron gyro-scale fluctuations in National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX) H-mode plasmas to investigate electron temperature gradient (ETG) turbulence. Observations and results pertaining to fluctuation measurements in ETGstable regimes, the toroidal field scaling of fluctuation amplitudes, the relation between between fluctuation amplitudes and transport quantities, and fluctuation magnitudes and k-spectra are presented. Collectively, the measurements provide insight and guidance for understanding ETG turbulence and anomalous electron thermal transport.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "When employers improperly classify workers as independent contractors instead of employees, those workers do not receive protections and benefits to which they are entitled, and the employers may fail to pay some taxes they would otherwise be required to pay. The Department of Labor (DOL) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) are to ensure that employers comply with several labor and tax laws related to worker classification. GAO was asked to examine the extent of misclassification; actions DOL and IRS have taken to address misclassification, including the extent to which they collaborate with each other, states, and other agencies; and options that could help address misclassification. To meet its objectives, GAO reviewed DOL, IRS, and other studies on misclassification and DOL and IRS policies and activities related to classification; interviewed officials from these agencies as well as other stakeholders; analyzed data from DOL investigations involving misclassification; and surveyed states."

Using the nonlinear gyrokinetic code package GENE/GIST, we study the turbulent transport in a broad family of stellarator designs, to understand the geometry-dependence of the microturbulence. By using a set of flux tubes on a given flux surface, we construct a picture of the 2D structure of the microturbulence over that surface, and relate this to relevant geometric quantities, such as the curvature, local shear, and effective potential in the Schrodinger-like equation governing linear drift modes.

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This report addresses causes, prevalence, and consequences of violence against women. It provides examples of completed and ongoing U.S. activities that address VAW directly or include anti-VAW components. It outlines possible policy considerations for the 111th Congress, including the scope and effectiveness of U.S. programs; further integrating anti-VAW programs into U.S. assistance and foreign policy mechanisms; and strengthening U.S. government coordination of anti-VAW activities.

This report discusses the background and policy issues related to Internet domain names.

This report discusses local and regional procurement (LRP) of food aid, which refers to the purchase of commodities for emergency food aid by donors in countries with food needs or in another country within the region. LRP is used extensively by the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) and has been proposed as a cost-effective, time-saving tool that the United States could use to meet emergency food needs.

The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) conducted neutron measurements at Hanford’s Plutonium Finishing Plant (PFP). The measurements were performed to evaluate the performance of the Hanford Standard Dosimeter (HSD) and the 8816 TLD component of the Hanford Combination Neutron Dosimeter (HCND) in the neutron fields responsible for worker neutron exposures. For this study, TEPC detectors and multisphere spectrometers were used to measure neutron dose equivalent rate, and multispheres were used to measure average neutron energy. Water-filled phantoms holding Hanford dosimeters were positioned at each measurement location. The phantoms were positioned in the same location where a multisphere measurement was taken and TEPCs were also positioned there. Plant survey meters were also used to measure neutron dose rates at all locations. Three measurement locations were chose near the HC-9B glovebox in room 228A of Building 234-5. The multisphere spectrometers measured average neutron energies in the range of 337 to 555 keV at these locations. Personal dose equivalent, Hp(10)n, as measured by the multisphere and TEPC, ranged from 2.7 to 9.7 mrem/h in the three locations. Effective dose assuming a rotational geometry (EROT) was substantially lower than Hp(10), ranging from 1.3 to 3.6 mrem/h. These values were lower than the reported values …

This report provides basic information about U.S. and Russian nonstrategic nuclear weapons. It begins with a brief discussion of the differences between strategic and nonstrategic nuclear weapons. It then provides some historical background. It concludes with a review of policy options, or "solutions" for the preceding problems, that might be explored by Congress, the United States, Russia, and other nations.

The Saltstone Production Facility (SPF) receives waste from Tank 50H for treatment. In the fourth quarter of the 2008 calendar year (4QCY08), Tank 50 accepted transfers of approximately 15 kgal from the Effluent Treatment Project (ETP) waste, approximately 12 kgal from Tank 710-the H-Canyon General Purpose Evaporator, approximately 5 kgal from the H-Canyon Super Kukla campaign, and approximately 34 kgal from the Modular Caustic Side Solvent Extraction Unit (MCU) Decontaminated Salt Solution Hold Tank (DSS-HT). The Saltstone Grout Sampling plan provides the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC) with the chemical and physical characterization strategy for the salt solution which is to be disposed of in the Z-Area Solid Waste Landfill (ISWLF).1 During operation, samples were collected from Tank 50H and grout samples prepared to determine the non-hazardous nature of the grout to meet the requirements of the South Carolina Hazardous Waste Management Regulations (SCHWMR) R.61-79.261.24(b) and R.61-79.268.48(a). SRNL was asked to prepare saltstone from a sample of Tank 50H obtained October 29, 2008 during 4QCY08 to determine the non-hazardous nature of the grout. The samples were cured and shipped to Babcock & Wilcox Technical Services Group-Radioisotope and Analytical Chemistry Laboratory (B&WTSG-RACL) to perform the Toxic Characteristic …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (Academy), a component of the Department of Transportation's Maritime Administration (MARAD), is one of five U.S. service academies. The Academy is affiliated with 14 non-appropriated fund instrumentalities (NAFI) and two foundations. GAO was asked to determine whether there (1) were any potentially improper or questionable sources and uses of funds by the Academy, including transactions with its affiliated organizations; (2) was an effective control environment with key controls in place over the Academy's sources and uses of funds; and (3) were any actions taken, under way, or planned to improve controls and accountability. GAO analyzed selected transactions from fiscal years 2006, 2007, and 2008 to identify improper or questionable sources and uses of funds and reviewed documents and interviewed cognizant officials to assess the Academy's internal controls, and identify corrective actions to improve controls."

WWBWC and its partners have been working on a wide variety of conservation and aquifer recharge related activities including: monitoring groundwater and surface water conditions, creating a geospatial database for the Walla Walla River valley (project focal area), expanding aquifer recharge testing at the HBDIC site and conducting an extensive outreach/education program by which to share the information, ideas and potential solutions to our current water management issues in this basin. This report is an outline of those activities and is accompanied by individual program-component (attached as appendices) reports for the areas that BPA is assisting to fund these on-the-ground projects along with the innovative research and monitoring being done to further aquifer recharge as a water management tool for the Pacific Northwest.

The bilateral relationship between the U.S. and the People's Republic of China (PRC) is vitally important, touching on a wide range of areas including, among others, economic policy, security, foreign relations, and human rights. This report addresses relevant policy questions in current U.S.-China relations, discusses trends and key legislation in the current Congress, and provides a chronology of developments and high-level exchanges.

This report will outline the Department of Defense's (DOD) defense acquisition structure, discuss recent major reports addressing defense acquisition, and consider recent DOD efforts to improve how the department acquires weapon systems. This report also includes a description of recent congressional efforts to reform DOD's acquisition process.

This report outlines the Department of Defense's (DOD) defense acquisition structure, discusses recent major reports addressing defense acquisition, and considers recent DOD efforts to improve the acquisition of weapon systems. It also includes a description of recent congressional efforts to reform the DOD's acquisition process.

Significant progress has been made in the past two years in improving the understanding of acid consumption and catalytic hydrogen generation during the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) processing of waste sludges in the Sludge Receipt and Adjustment Tank (SRAT) and Slurry Mix Evaporator (SME). This report reviews issues listed in prior internal reviews, describes progress with respect to the recommendations made by the December 2006 external review panel, and presents a summary of the current understanding of catalytic hydrogen generation in the DWPF Chemical Process Cell (CPC). Noble metals, such as Pd, Rh, and Ru, are historically known catalysts for the conversion of formic acid into hydrogen and carbon dioxide. Rh, Ru, and Pd are present in the DWPF SRAT feed as by-products of thermal neutron fission of {sup 235}U in the original waste. Rhodium appears to become most active for hydrogen as the nitrite ion concentration becomes low (within a factor of ten of the Rh concentration). Prior to hydrogen generation, Rh is definitely active for nitrite destruction to N{sub 2}O and potentially active for nitrite to NO formation. These reactions are all consistent with the presence of a nitro-Rh complex catalyst, although definite proof for the existence …

The objective of this evaluation was to independently and objectively verify driving ranges of >400 miles announced by Toyota for its new advanced Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle (FCHV-adv) utilizing 70 MPa compressed hydrogen. To accomplish this, participants from both Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) witnessed and participated in a 2-vehicle evaluation with Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc. (TEMA) over a typical open road route for over 11 hours in one day with all relevant data recorded. SRNL and TEMA first entered into discussions of verifying the range of the advanced Toyota Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle (FCHV-adv) in August 2008 resulting from reported 400+ mile range by Toyota. After extended negotiations, a CRADA agreement, SRNS CRADA No. CR-04-003, was signed on May 6, 2009. Subsequently, on June 30, 2009 SRNL and NREL participated in an all-day evaluation of the FCHV-adv with TEMA to determine the real-world driving range of this vehicle through on-road driving on an extended round-trip drive between Torrance and San Diego, California. SRNL and NREL observed the vehicles being refueled at Toyota's headquarters the day before the evaluation in Torrance, CA on June 29. At 8:00 AM on …