Retention of tritium in carbon co-deposits is a serious concern for ITER. Developing a reliable in-situ removal method of the co-deposited tritium would allow the use of carbon plasma-facing components which have proven reliable in high heat flux conditions and compatible with high performance plasmas. Thermal oxidation is a potential solution, capable of reaching even hidden locations. It is necessary to establish the least severe conditions to achieve adequate tritium recovery, minimizing damage and reconditioning time. The first step in this multi-machine project is {sup 13}C-tracer experiments in DIII-D, JET, C-Mod and MAST. In DIII-D and JET, {sup 13}CH{sub 4} has been (and in C-Mod and MAST, will be) injected toroidally symmetrically, facilitating quantification and interpretation of the results. Tiles have been removed, analyzed for {sup 13}C content and will next be evaluated in a thermal oxidation test facility in Toronto with regard to the ability of different severities of oxidation exposure to remove the different types of (known and measured) {sup 13}C co-deposit. Removal of D/T from B on Mo tiles from C-Mod will also be tested. OEDGE interpretive code analysis of the {sup 13}C deposition patterns is used to generate the understanding needed to apply findings to ITER. …

This report contains rainfall climatology and analyses during the period from 1958 to 2006 for the two sites of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory: the Livermore site and Site 300. The measurement sites are described, a regional climatology overview is provided, and the effect of topography on regional precipitation is discussed. Rainfall statistics are presented including monthly normals (30-year means) and medians; percentages of time that rainfall is less than or equal to specified amounts for given months, years, and seasons; and mean, median, and maximum numbers of days of precipitation for specified amounts by month, year, and season. The rainfall pattern is demonstrated to be typical of Mediterranean climates, with most rain falling during the cold season. Nearly 80% of seasonal rainfall occurs during November through March, with the average annual rainfall equaling 13.62 and 10.64 inches at the Livermore site and Site 300, respectively. Precipitation frequency and extreme value analyses for durations ranging from 15 minutes to 24 hours, month, and rainfall season are shown in order to estimate rainfall amounts for return periods of two to 100 years at both sites. This analysis determined 100-year return periods for largest 24-hour rainfalls of 2.49 and 2.22 inches at the …

The materials uploaded are meant to serve as final report on the funds provided by DOE-BES to help sponsor the 2005 American Conference on Theoretical Chemistry.

This annual operations report describes the requirements followed and activities conducted to inspect, monitor, and maintain the items installed during performance of the Waste Area Group 3, Operable Unit 3-13, Group 1, Tank Farm Interim Action, at the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center. This report describes inspection and monitoring activities fro the surface-sealed areas within the tank farm, concrete-lined ditches and culverts in and around the tank farm, the lift station, and the lined evaporation pond. These activities are intended to assure that the interim action is functioning adequately to meet the objectives stated in the Operable Unit 3-13, Record of Decision for the Group 1, Tank Farm Interim Action, (DOE/ID-10660) and as amended by the agreement to resolve dispute, which was effective in February 2003.

Several outstanding research activities in the Physics and Advanced Technologies Directorate in 2005 were featured in ''Science and Technology Review'', the monthly publication of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Reprints of those articles accompany this report. Here we summarize other science and technology highlights, as well as the awards and recognition received by members of the Directorate in 2005. As part of the World Year of Physics commemorating the 100th anniversary of Einstein's ''miraculous year'', we also highlight ongoing physics research that would not be possible without Einstein's pioneering accomplishments.

We investigate jet formation in black-hole systems using 3-D General Relativistic Particle-In-Cell (GRPIC) and 3-D GRMHD simulations. GRPIC simulations, which allow charge separations in a collisionless plasma, do not need to invoke the frozen condition as in GRMHD simulations. 3-D GRPIC simulations show that jets are launched from Kerr black holes as in 3-D GRMHD simulations, but jet formation in the two cases may not be identical. Comparative study of black hole systems with GRPIC and GRMHD simulations with the inclusion of radiate transfer will further clarify the mechanisms that drive the evolution of disk-jet systems.

The production of defect-free mask blanks remains a key challenge for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography. Integral to this effort is the development and characterization of mask inspection tools that are sensitive enough to detect critical defects with high confidence. Using a single programmed-defect mask with a range of buried bump-type defects, we report a comparison of measurements made in four different mask-inspection tools: one commercial tool using 488-nm wavelength illumination, one prototype tool that uses 266-nm illumination, and two non-commercial EUV ''actinic'' inspection tools. The EUV tools include a darkfield imaging microscope and a scanning microscope. Our measurements show improving sensitivity with the shorter wavelength non-EUV tool, down to 33-nm spherical-equivalent-volume diameter, for defects of this type. Measurements conditions were unique to each tool, with the EUV tools operating at a much slower inspection rate. Several defects observed with EUV inspection were below the detection threshold of the non-EUV tools.

Under the Administration's FY2006 foreign assistance request, U.S. aid to sub-Saharan Africa would continue to grow, due to sharp increases through the State Department's Global HIV/AIDS Initiative. Overall, non-food aid to Africa would total about $3.6 billion under the requst, compared with an estimated $3.4 billion being allocated in FY2005. U.S. assistance finds its way to Africa through a variety of channels, including the USAID-administered DA and Child Survival programs, food aid programs, and refugee assistance. The overall level of funding for aid to Africa remains a continuing subject of debate. Other issues include the eligibility of African countries for aid through the Millennium Challenge Account and U.S. support for the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), an African initiative linking increased aid with policy reform.

This report discusses the issue of U.S. economic assistance to sub-Saharan Africa, highlighting the importance of continued assistance in light of U.S. national security and also various U.S.-led efforts to promote reform amongst African citizens themselves. U.S. assistance finds its way to Africa through a variety of channels, including the USAID-administered DA program, food aid programs, and indirect aid provided through international financial institutions and the United Nations.

Key components of federal policies to reduce fuel consumption include the promotion of alternatives to petroleum fuels and the promotion of more efficient vehicles. This report provides an overview of current issues surrounding alternative fuels and advanced technology vehicles — issues discussed in further detail in other CRS reports referred to in each section.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Alternative mortgage products (AMPs) can make homes more affordable by allowing borrowers to defer repayment of principal or part of the interest for the first few years of the mortgage. Recent growth in AMP lending has heightened the importance of borrowers' understanding and lenders' management of AMP risks. This report discusses the (1) recent trends in the AMP market, (2) potential AMP risks for borrowers and lenders, (3) extent to which mortgage disclosures discuss AMP risks, and (4) federal and selected state regulatory response to AMP risks. To address these objectives, GAO used regulatory and industry data to analyze changes in AMP monthly payments; reviewed available studies; and interviewed relevant federal and state regulators and mortgage industry groups, and consumer groups."

This report documents results of LLNL's work in support of two studies being conducted by Sandia National Laboratories (SNL): the development of the Z-pinch driven inertial fusion energy (Z-IFE), and the use of Z-pinch driven inertial fusion as a neutron source to destroy actinides from fission reactor spent fuel. LLNL's efforts in FY06 included: (1) Development of a systems code for Z-IFE and use of the code to examine the operating parameter space in terms of design variables such as the Z-pinch driver energy, the chamber pulse repetition rate, the number of chambers making up the power plant, and the total net electric power of the plant. This is covered in Section 3 with full documentation of the model in Appendix A. (2) Continued development of innovative concepts for the design and operation of the recyclable transmission line (RTL) and chamber for Z-IFE. The work, which builds on our FY04 and FY05 contributions, emphasizes design features that are likely to lead to a more attractive power plant including: liquid jets to protect all structures from direct exposure to neutrons, rapid insertion of the RTL to maximize the potential chamber rep-rate, and use of cast flibe for the RTL to reduce …

The known encounter velocity (6.1kms{sup -1}) between the Stardust spacecraft and the dust emanating from the nucleus of comet Wild 2 has allowed realistic simulation of dust collection in laboratory experiments designed to validate analytical methods for the interpretation of dust impacts on the aluminium foil components of the Stardust collector. In this report we present information on crater gross morphology, the pre-existing major and trace element composition of the foil, geometrical issues for energy dispersive X-ray analysis of the impact residues in scanning electron microscopes, and the modification of dust chemical composition during creation of impact craters as revealed by analytical transmission electron microscopy. Together, these observations help to underpin the interpretation of size, density and composition for particles impacted upon the Stardust aluminium foils.

The data and analyses contained in this report reflect the initial characterization of construction and consolidation water in Cells 5 and 6 lysimeters. Therefore, the scope of this report will be to establish constituent levels and document dewatering activities completed to date.

This report provides information about environmental programs during 2002 at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC). Seasonal activities that span calendar years are also included. Production of an annual site environmental report (ASER) is a requirement established by the United States Department of Energy (DOE) for all management and operating (M&O) contractors throughout the DOE complex. SLAC is a federally-funded, research and development center with Stanford University as the M&O contractor. The most noteworthy information in this report is summarized in this section. This summary demonstrates the effective application of SLAC environmental management in meeting the site's integrated safety management system (ISMS) goals. For normal daily activities, all SLAC managers and supervisors are responsible for ensuring that proper procedures are followed so that worker safety and health are protected; the environment is protected; and compliance is ensured. Throughout 2002, SLAC focused on these activities through the SLAC management systems (described in Chapter 3). These systems were also the way SLAC approached implementing ''greening of the government'' initiatives such as Executive Order 13148. The management systems at SLAC are effective, supporting compliance with all relevant statutory and regulatory requirements. SLAC did not receive any notices of violation during 2002. In addition, …

This report provides information about environmental programs during 2003 at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC). Seasonal activities that span calendar years are also included. Production of an annual site environmental report (ASER) is a requirement established by the DOE for all management and operating (M&O) contractors throughout the DOE complex. This summary demonstrates the effective application of SLAC environmental management to meet the site's integrated safety management system (ISMS) goals. For normal daily activities, all SLAC managers and supervisors are responsible for ensuring proper procedures are followed so that worker safety and health are protected; the environment is protected; and compliance is ensured. Throughout 2003, SLAC focused on these activities through the SLAC management systems (described in Chapter 3). These systems were utilized by SLAC to implement such ''greening of the government'' initiatives like Executive Order 13148. The management systems at SLAC are effective, supporting compliance with all relevant statutory and regulatory requirements. There were no reportable releases to the environment from SLAC operations during 2003. In addition, many improvements were continued during 2003 in waste minimization, recycling, decreasing air emission rates, stormwater drain system, groundwater restoration, and planning for a system to better manage chemical use. Program-specific details …

This report provides information about environmental programs during 2004 at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC). Seasonal activities that span calendar years are also included. Production of an annual site environmental report (ASER) is a requirement established by the United States Department of Energy (DOE) for all management and operating (M&O) contractors throughout the DOE complex. SLAC is a federally-funded, research and development center with Stanford University as the M&O contractor. The most noteworthy information in this report is summarized in this section. This summary demonstrates the effective application of SLAC environmental management in meeting the site's integrated safety management system (ISMS) goals. For normal daily activities, all SLAC managers and supervisors are responsible for ensuring that proper procedures are followed so that worker safety and health are protected; the environment is protected; and compliance is ensured. Throughout 2004, SLAC focused on these activities through the SLAC management systems (described in Chapter 3). These systems were also the way SLAC approached implementing ''greening of the government'' initiatives such as Executive Order 13148. The management systems at SLAC are effective, supporting compliance with all relevant statutory and regulatory requirements. There were no reportable releases to the environment from SLAC operations during …

Knowledge of the thermophysical properties of materials at extreme pressure and temperature conditions is essential for improving our understanding of many planetary and detonation processes. Significant gaps in what is known about the behavior of materials at high density and high temperature exist, largely due to the limitations and dangers of performing experiments at the necessary extreme conditions. Modeling these systems through the use of equations of state and particle-based simulation methods significantly extends the range of pressures and temperatures that can be safely studied. The reliability of such calculations depends on the accuracy of the models used. Here we present an assessment of the united-atom version of the TraPPE (Transferable Potentials for Phase Equilibria) force field and single-site exp-6 representations for methane, methanol, oxygen, and ammonia at extreme conditions. As shown by Monte Carlo simulations in the isobaric-isothermal ensemble, the TraPPE models, despite being parameterized to the vapor-liquid coexistence curve (i.e. relatively mild conditions), perform remarkably well in the high pressure/high temperature regime. The single-site exp-6 models can fit experimental data in the high pressure/temperature regime very well, but the parameters are less transferable to ambient conditions.

The Arab League has maintained an official boycott of Israeli companies and Israeli-made goods since the founding of Israel in 1948. The United States actively opposes the boycott and works on both bilateral and multilateral fronts to end it. The U.S. government also enforces laws that prohibit U.S. firms from participating in the boycott.

This report briefly discusses the Arab League's boycott of Israeli companies and Israeli-made goods since Israel's founding in 1948, as well as U.S. efforts to end the boycott and prevent U.S. firms in participating in the boycott.

This report contains brief descriptions of the most prominent arms control and nonproliferation efforts in which the United States has participated during recent (2006) years. The entries describe the substance of each arms control effort, the period in which the effort occurred, and the status of the effort at the end of 2004.

This report provides an overview of the Corps civil works program. It covers the congressional authorization and appropriation process, the standard project development process, and other Corps activities and authorities.

Ni-base alloys were considered for the Prometheus space reactor pressure vessel with operational parameters of {approx}900 K for 15 years and fluences up to 160 x 10{sup 20} n/cm{sup 2} (E > 0.1 MeV). This paper reviews the effects of irradiation on the behavior of Ni-base alloys and shows that radiation-induced swelling and creep are minor considerations compared to significant embrittlement with neutron ,exposure. While the mechanism responsible for radiation-induced embrittlement is not fully understood, it is likely a combination of helium embrittlement and solute segregation that can be highly dependent on the alloy composition and exposure conditions. Transmutation calculations show that detrimental helium levels would be expected at the end of life for the inner safety rod vessel (thimble) and possibly the outer pressure vessel, primarily from high energy (E > 1 MeV) n,{alpha} reactions with {sup 58}Ni. Helium from {sup 10}B is significant only for the outer vessel due to the proximity of the outer vessel to the Be0 control elements. Recommendations for further assessments of the material behavior and methods to minimize the effects of radiation damage through alloy design are provided.

The attenuation of very high energy gamma rays by pair production on the Galactic interstellar radiation field has long been thought of as negligible. However, a new calculation of the interstellar radiation field consistent with multi-wavelength observations by DIRBE and FIRAS indicates that the energy density of the Galactic interstellar radiation field is higher, particularly in the Galactic center, than previously thought. We have made a calculation of the attenuation of very high energy gamma rays in the Galaxy using this new interstellar radiation field which takes into account its nonuniform spatial and angular distributions. We find that the maximum attenuation occurs around 100 TeV at the level of about 25% for sources located at the Galactic center, and is important for both Galactic and extragalactic sources.