A novel handheld time-domain array GPR antipersonnel mine detection system using an offset paraboloidal reflector antenna is described. The reflector collimates rays from an ultra-wideband transmitting feed, directing the microwave impulse forward, in front of the antenna structure. As such, much of the ground reflected wave is directed further forward, away from the operator, the reflector, and the receiving antennas, and thereby reducing the major source of clutter. The wave transmitted into the ground that interacts with the target, generating significant backscatter returning toward the receiving antennas. These receiving antennas are configured in a 2 by 2 array to provide spatial focusing in both the along- and cross-track directions. This system has been built and tested at both Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and GeoCenters, Inc. In both cases, custom-built wideband antenna elements generate narrow pulse shapes, which allow for resolving small non-metallic targets buried at shallow depths. The LLNL's Micro-Power Impulse Radar (MIR) operates in the 1.5 to 5 GHz range a very narrow pulse shape. The Geo-Centers wideband TEMR antenna elements have higher power, though lower frequency range (850 to 1700 MHz), and generate less residual ringing in the time signal. Preliminary measured data from both systems indicate that …

Researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory are developing means to collect and identify fluid-based biological pathogens in the forms of proteins, viruses, and bacteria. To support detection instruments, we are developing a flexible fluidic sample preparation unit. The overall goal of this Microfluidic Module is to input a fluid sample, containing background particulates and potentially target compounds, and deliver a processed sample for detection. We are developing techniques for sample purification, mixing, and filtration that would be useful to many applications including immunologic and nucleic acid assays. Sample preparation functions are accomplished with acoustic radiation pressure, dielectrophoresis, and solid phase extraction. We are integrating these technologies into packaged systems with pumps and valves to control fluid flow and investigating small-scale detection methods.

Performance degradation of structural steels in nuclear environments results from the development of a high number density of nanometer scale defects. The defects observed in copper-based alloys are composed of vacancy clusters in the form of stacking fault tetrahedra and/or prismatic dislocation loops, which impede dislocation glide and are evidenced in macroscopic uniaxial stress-strain curves as increased yield strengths, decreased total strain to failure, decreased work hardening and the appearance of a distinct upper yield point above a critical defect concentration (neutron dose). In this paper, we describe the development of an internal state variable model for the mechanical behavior of materials subject to these environments. This model has been developed within an information-passing multiscale materials modeling framework, in which molecular dynamics simulations of dislocation--radiation defect interactions, inform the final coarse-grained continuum model. The plasticity model includes mechanisms for dislocation density growth and multiplication and for radiation defect density evolution with dislocation interaction. The general behavior of the constitutive (single material point) model shows that as the defect density increases, the initial yield point increases and the initial strain hardening decreases. The final coarse-grained model is implemented into a finite element framework and used to simulate the behavior of tensile …

The soft lithography fabrication technique was applied to three microfluidic devices. The method was used to create an original micropump design and retrofit to existing designs for a DNA manipulation device and a counter biological warfare sample preparation device. Each device presented unique and original challenges to the soft lithography application. AI1 design constraints of the retrofit devices were satisfied using PDMS devices created through variation of soft lithography methods. The micropump utilized the versatility of PDMS, creating design options not available with other materials. In all cases, the rapid processing of soft lithography reduced the fabrication time, creating faster turnaround for design modifications.

Metal matrix composites (MMCs) are promising engineering materials for a wide spectrum of applications. There are many possible matrix-reinforcement combinations including MMCs containing copper or copper alloy matrices [1-3]. The present study is concerned with copper reinforced with SiC particles. The materials studied here were processed from nano-scale matrix powders and consolidated using dynamic compaction.

LLNL has many in-house designed high precision machine tools. Some of these tools include the Large Optics Diamond Turning Machine (LODTM) [1], Diamond Turning Machine No.3 (DTM-3) and two Precision Engineering Research Lathes (PERL-I and PERL-II). These machines have accuracy in the sub-micron range and in most cases position resolution in the couple of nanometers range. All of these machines are built with similar underlying technologies. The machines use capstan drive technology, laser interferometer position feedback, tachometer velocity feedback, permanent magnet (PM) brush motors and analog velocity and position loop servo compensation [2]. The machine controller does not perform any servo compensation it simply computes the differences between the commanded position and the actual position (the following error) and sends this to a D/A for the analog servo position loop. LLNL is designing a new high precision diamond turning machine. The machine is called the ULTRA 350 [3]. In contrast to many of the proven technologies discussed above, the plan for the new machine is to use brushless linear motors, high precision linear scales, machine controller motor commutation and digital servo compensation for the velocity and position loops. Although none of these technologies are new and have been in use …

The Diagnostic X (D-X) beamlines will transport the DARHT-II beam from the end of the accelerator to the Diagnostic X firing point providing four lines of sight for x-ray radiography. The design goal for the Diagnostic X beamline is to deliver four x-ray pulses with the DARHT-II dose format and time integrated spot size on each line of sight. The D-X beamline's final focus should be compatible with a range of first conjugates from 1 m-5 m. Furthermore, the D-X beamline operational parameters and the beamline layout should not preclude a possible upgrade to additional lines of sight. The DARHT-II accelerator is designed to deliver beams at a rate of 1 pulse per minute or less. Tuning the D-X beamline with several hundred optical elements would be time consuming. Therefore, minimizing the required number of tuning shots for the D-X beamline is also an important design goal. Many different beamline configurations may be able to accomplish these design objectives, and high beam quality (i.e., high current and low emittance) must be maintained throughout the chosen beamline configuration in order to achieve the DARHT-II x-ray dose format. In general, the longer the distance a beam travels, the harder it is to …

We review the current and future state of research in inertial fusion sciences. We describe the National Ignition Facility (NIF), the IFE development plan, applications of inertial confinement fusion (ICF) to various high-energy sciences, uses of petawatt laser systems, and concepts for the ICF integrated research experiment (IRE) and IFE power plants.

The temperature distribution on the silicon sensors and the cooling system performance for the D0 Run2b stave have been investigated. The tests have been carried out on a carbon fiber skin only stave, with and without heat input at two different chiller temperatures (-9.1 C and -19.1 C). For a bulk temperature of -14.5 C and a 14W total heat load, the stave surface has reached a peak temperature of +3.3 C, localized under the readout chip. The ''hot spot'' in the hybrid region extends about twice the length of the hybrid with an average temperature of about -4.6 C over this area. Beyond this the stave surface has a uniform temperature of -11.5 C. The film coefficient of the coolant has been calculated to be about 650W/m{sup 2}K using these measurements. A finite element analysis has confirmed the analytical calculations, providing a temperature profile consistent with what has been experimentally observed. A further finite element study has been performed in order to predict the temperature distribution in the actual stave design (46mm wide; kapton core skin; 950 {micro}m thick hybrid; 7.2mm x 1.8mm tube inner size; -15 C bulk temperature; 700W/m{sup 2}K film coefficient). The silicon temperature ranges from …

Controlling composition at the nanometer scale is well known to alter material properties in sometimes highly desirable and dramatic ways. In the field of energetic materials component distributions, particle size, and morphology, effect both sensitivity and reactivity performance. To date nanostructured energetic materials are largely unknowns with the exception of nanometer-sized reactive powders now being produced at a number of laboratories. We have invented a new method of making nanostructured energetic materials, specifically explosives, propellants, and pyrotechnics, using sol-gel chemistry. The ease of this synthetic approach along with the inexpensive, stable, and benign nature of the metal precursors and solvents permit large-scale syntheses to be carried out. This approach can be accomplished using low cost processing methods. We will describe here, for the first time, this new synthetic route for producing metal-oxide-based pyrotechnics. The procedure employs the use of stable and inexpensive hydrated-metal inorganic salts and environmentally friendly solvents such as water and ethanol. The synthesis is straightforward and involves the dissolution the metal salt in a solvent followed by the addition of an epoxide, which induces gel formation in a timely manner. Experimental evidence suggests that the epoxide acts as an irreversible proton scavenger that induces the hydrated-metal species …

In 1991, in response to the Department of Energy (DOE) Moratorium on the shipment of hazardous waste from Radioactive Materials Management Areas (RMMAs), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) developed a process to use a combination of generator knowledge and/or sampling and analyses to certify waste as non-radioactive. The analytical process used the minimum detectable activity (MDA) as the de minimus value. In the past twelve years, a great deal of operating experience has shown the LLNL certification process has serious limitations including: (1) Procedure-specified analytical methodologies have resulted in the inability to adopt new techniques and methods that are more rapid, safer, and produce less waste. (2) The characterization of materials as radioactive or non-radioactive is dependent on method-specific detection limits, not on an objective risk-based standard. (3) There are substantial differences in the limits for surface contamination, sewer discharges, and hazardous waste moratorium determinations, even though all of these methods are used to free-release materials from radiological controls. LLNL, in conjunction with the Chamberlain Group and Dade Moeller & Associates, Inc., is pursuing a risk-based approach to determine whether waste is non-radioactive, consistent with DOE guidance. This paper discusses the approach, which includes defining the radionuclides considered, establishing the …

LLNL has many in-house designed high precision machine tools. Some of these tools include the Large Optics Diamond Turning Machine (LODTM) [1], Diamond Turning Machine No.3 (DTM-3) and two Precision Engineering Research Lathes (PERL-1 and PERL-11). These machines have accuracy in the sub-micron range and in most cases position resolution in the couple of nanometers range. All of these machines are built with similar underlying technologies. The machines use capstan drive technology, laser interferometer position feedback, tachometer velocity feedback, permanent magnet (PM) brush motors and analog velocity and position loop servo compensation [2]. The machine controller does not perform any servo compensation it simply computes the differences between the commanded position and the actual position (the following error) and sends this to a D/A for the analog servo position loop. LLNL is designing a new high precision diamond turning machine. The machine is called the ULTRA 350 [3]. In contrast to many of the proven technologies discussed above, the plan for the new machine is to use brushless linear motors, high precision linear scales, machine controller motor commutation and digital servo compensation for the velocity and position loops. Although none of these technologies are new and have been in use …

The USAF Integrated Flight Experiment (IFX) Project is part of the development of the Space Based Laser (SBL) Program. The LLNL Large Optics Diamond Turning Machine (LODTM) is responsible for diamond turning the aspheric laser cavity mirrors. These large optics must be manufactured to micro-inch tolerances. The optics are made of silicon to minimize cooling requirements and weight in the SBL. Diamond turning silicon presents many challenges to the LODTM; one of which is silicon's anisotropic property. When cutting these cones shaped optics, the machine sees many different crystallographic planes of the silicon. These planes present different degrees of material hardness. The tool is held in position but it experiences a force variation as it cuts across the different crystallographic planes. This force variation is reflected back into the machine control system and presents a dynamic disturbance that increases the servo system following error. The affect of this error is to cut a part that is not round but 'squareish', i.e. at the micro-inch level. Two methods were used to reduce the following error or increase the machine dynamic stiffness. Each method relies on the fact that the cutting process is cyclic. The two methods are described below. Method one …

Here I present some well known relationships that allow the variation in critical mass versus density to be written in a simple analytical form; these relationships have appeared extensively in the open literature for over 50 years, but seem to be periodically forgotten. These relationships are exact for bare, homogeneous systems, and approximate [but reasonably accurate] for reflected systems. With these relationships anyone can quickly estimate the critical mass corresponding to any given density, using nothing more complicated than a hand calculator.

The U.S. Department of Energy's Richland Operations Office plans to accelerate the cleanup of the Hanford Site. Testing new technology for the accelerated cleanup will require dissolved saltcake from single-shell tanks. However, the 137Cs will need to be removed from the saltcake to alleviate radiation hazards. A saltcake composite constructed from archived samples from Hanford Single Shell Tanks 241-S-101, 241-S-109, 241-S-110, 241-S-111, 241-U-106, and 241-U-109 was dissolved in water, adjusted to 5 M Na, and transferred from the 222-S building to the Radiochemical Processing Laboratory (RPL). At the RPL, the approximately 5.5 liters of solution was passed through a 0.2-micron polyethersulfone filter, collected, and homogenized. The filtered solution then was passed through an ion exchange column containing approximately 150 mL IONSIV IE-911, an engineered form of crystalline silicotitanate available from UOP, at approximately 200 mL/hour in a continuous operation until all of the feed solution had been run through the column. An analysis of the 137Cs concentrations in the initial feed solution and combined column effluent indicates that> 99.999 percent of the Cs in the feed solution was removed by this operation. This report describes the Cs-depletion operations together with a partial analysis of the as-received solution and a more …

This report contains a summary of the results generated for Task 3.4: Non-destructive Evaluation (a subtask of Task 3: Immobilization Process/Equipment Testing). The aim of this task was to carry out X-ray diffraction (XRD) on selected samples from previous Task 1: Form Development work. These XRD results were to be compared to the results obtained using quantitative scanning electron microscopy.

Tank 241-SY-101 is a double-shell radioactive waste storage tank containing waste that, before recent transfer and water back-dilution operations, was capable of retaining gas and producing flammable buoyant displacement gas release events (BD GREs). A BD GRE occurs when a portion of the nonconvective layer waste retains enough gas to become buoyant, rises to the waste surface, breaks up, and releases some of the stored gas. Installing the mixer pump in 1993 successfully mitigated gas retention in the settled solids layer in SY-101 and has prevented BD GREs. Gas retention in the floating drust layer and the corresponding accelerated waste level growth made it necessary to begin waste removal and back-dilution with water in December 1999. During these operations, some of the SY-101 mixed slurry layer is removed and transferred into Tank 241-SY-102. There was some concern that adding the SY-101 waste into SY-102 could create a waste configuration in SY-102 capable of BD GREs. This report updates and extends earlier assessments of the potential for BD GRE conditions in SY-102 after waste is transferred from SY-101. We determined that, under the given assumptions, no possibility of BD GREs exists in SY-102 from the SY-101 waste being added during from …

Newsletter of the Texas Department of Health discussing the news, activities, and events of the organization and other information related to health in Texas.

Synthetic supramolecular host assemblies can impart unique reactivity to encapsulated guest molecules. Synthetic host molecules have been developed to carry out complex reactions within their cavities, despite the fact that they lack the type of specifically tailored functional groups normally located in the analogous active sites of enzymes. Over the past decade, the Raymond group has developed a series of self-assembled supramolecules and the Bergman group has developed and studied a number of catalytic transformations. In this Account, we detail recent collaborative work between these two groups, focusing on chemical catalysis stemming from the encapsulation of protonated guests and expanding to acid catalysis in basic solution. We initially investigated the ability of a water-soluble, self-assembled supramolecular host molecule to encapsulate protonated guests in its hydrophobic core. Our study of encapsulated protonated amines revealed rich host-guest chemistry. We established that self-exchange (that is, in-out guest movement) rates of protonated amines were dependent on the steric bulk of the amine rather than its basicity. The host molecule has purely rotational tetrahedral (T) symmetry, so guests with geminal N-methyl groups (and their attendant mirror plane) were effectively desymmetrized; this allowed for the observation and quantification of the barriers for nitrogen inversion followed by …

The objectives are: (1) Estimate number and distribution of spring Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha redds and spawners in the John Day River subbasin; and (2) Estimate smolt-to-adult survival rates (SAR) and out-migrant abundance for spring Chinook and summer steelhead O. mykiss and life history characteristics of summer steelhead. The John Day River subbasin supports one of the last remaining intact wild populations of spring Chinook salmon and summer steelhead in the Columbia River Basin. These populations, however, remain depressed relative to historic levels. Between the completion of the life history and natural escapement study in 1984 and the start of this project in 1998, spring Chinook spawning surveys did not provide adequate information to assess age structure, progeny-to-parent production values, smolt-to-adult survival (SAR), or natural spawning escapement. Further, only very limited information is available for steelhead life history, escapement, and productivity measures in the John Day subbasin. Numerous habitat protection and rehabilitation projects to improve salmonid freshwater production and survival have also been implemented in the basin and are in need of effectiveness monitoring. While our monitoring efforts outlined here will not specifically measure the effectiveness of any particular project, they will provide much needed background information for developing context …

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The authors report the chemical influence of cleaning of the Ru capping layer on the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) reflector surface. The cleaning of EUV reflector to remove the contamination particles has two requirements: to prevent corrosion and etching of the reflector surface and to maintain the reflectivity functionality of the reflector after the corrosive cleaning processes. Two main approaches for EUV reflector cleaning, wet chemical treatments [sulfuric acid and hydrogen peroxide mixture (SPM), ozonated water, and ozonated hydrogen peroxide] and dry cleaning (oxygen plasma and UV/ozone treatment), were tested. The changes in surface morphology and roughness were characterized using scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy, while the surface etching and change of oxidation states were probed with x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Significant surface oxidation of the Ru capping layer was observed after oxygen plasma and UV/ozone treatment, while the oxidation is unnoticeable after SPM treatment. Based on these surface studies, the authors found that SPM treatment exhibits the minimal corrosive interactions with Ru capping layer. They address the molecular mechanism of corrosive gas and liquid-phase chemical interaction with the surface of Ru capping layer on the EUV reflector.

This project was an integrated experimental/numerical effort to study pyrolysis and oxidation reactions and mechanisms for small-molecule hydrocarbon structures under conditions representative of combustion environments. The experimental aspects of the work were conducted in large-diameter flow reactors, at 0.3 to 18 atm pressure, 500 to 1100 K temperature, and 10<SUP>-2</SUP> to 2 seconds reaction time. Experiments were also conducted to determine reference laminar flame speeds using a premixed laminar stagnation flame experiment and particle image velocimetry, as well as pressurized bomb experiments. Flow reactor data for oxidation experiments include: (1)adiabatic/isothermal species time-histories of a reaction under fixed initial pressure, temperature, and composition; to determine the species present after a fixed reaction time, initial pressure; (2)species distributions with varying initial reaction temperature; (3)perturbations of a well-defined reaction systems (e.g. CO/H<SUB>2</SUB>/O<SUB>2</SUB> or H<SUB>2</SUB>/O<SUB>2</SUB>)by the addition of small amounts of an additive species. Radical scavenging techniques are applied to determine unimolecular decomposition rates from pyrolysis experiments. Laminar flame speed measurements are determined as a function of equivalence ratio, dilution, and unburned gas temperature at 1 atm pressure. Hierarchical, comprehensive mechanistic construction methods were applied to develop detailed kinetic mechanisms which describe the measurements and literature kinetic data. Modeling using well-defined and validated mechanisms …

This is the ninth annual report for a multi-year project designed to monitor and evaluate supplementation of endemic spring Chinook salmon in Catherine Creek and the upper Grande Ronde River. These two streams historically supported anadromous fish populations that provided significant tribal and non-tribal fisheries, but in recent years, have experienced severe declines in abundance. Conventional and captive broodstock supplementation methods are being used to restore these spring Chinook salmon populations. Spring Chinook salmon populations in Catherine Creek and the upper Grande Ronde River, and other streams in the Snake River Basin have experienced severe declines in abundance over the past two decades (Nehlsen et al. 1991). A supplementation program was initiated in Catherine Creek and the upper Grande Ronde River, incorporating the use of both captive and conventional broodstock methods, in order to prevent extinction in the short term and eventually rebuild populations. The captive broodstock component of the program (BPA Project 199801001) uses natural-origin parr collected by seining and reared to maturity at facilities near Seattle, Washington (Manchester Marine Laboratory) and Hood River, Oregon (Bonneville Hatchery). Spawning occurs at Bonneville Hatchery, and resulting progeny are reared in hatcheries. Shortly before outmigration in the spring, juveniles are transferred to …