Publications

More than 300 sinkholes, fissures, depressions, and other collapse features occur along a 70 km (45 mi) dissolution front of the Permian Supai Formation, dipping northward into the Holbrook Basin, also called the Supai Salt Basin. The dissolution front is essentially coincident with the so-called Holbrook Anticline showing local dip reversal; rather than being of tectonic origin, this feature is likely a subsidence-induced monoclinal flexure caused by the northward migrating dissolution front. Three major areas are identified with distinctive attributes: (1) The Sinks, 10 km WNW of Snowflake, containing some 200 sinkholes up to 200 m diameter and 50 m depth, and joint controlled fissures and fissure-sinks; (2) Dry Lake Valley and contiguous areas containing large collapse fissures and sinkholes in jointed Coconino sandstone, some of which drained more than 50 acre-feet ({approximately}6 {times} 10{sup 4} m{sup 3}) of water overnight; and (3) the McCauley Sinks, a localized group of about 40 sinkholes 15 km SE of Winslow along Chevelon Creek, some showing essentially rectangular jointing in the surficial Coconino Formation. Similar salt karst features also occur between these three major areas. The range of features in Supai salt are distinctive, yet similar to those in other evaporate basins. The wide variety of dissolution/collapse features range in development from incipient surface expression to mature and old age. The features began forming at least by Pliocene time and continue to the present, with recent changes reportedly observed and verified on airphotos with 20 year repetition. The evaporate sequence along interstate transportation routes creates a strategic location for underground LPG storage in leached caverns. The existing 11 cavern field at Adamana is safely located about 25 miles away from the dissolution front, but further expansion initiatives will require thorough engineering evaluation.

We performed neutron powder diffraction on solution-derived lead zirconate titanates (PZT). Three compositions, PZT 45/55, PZT 20/80 and PbTiO{sub 3}, were investigated. The materials were annealed so that the perovskite phase had just begun to grow from the precursor phase. In our materials this precursor phase is the pyrochlore rather than fluorite phase. The results show that in the pyrochlore phase, the (Ti,Zr) and the Pb are ordered in their crystallographic sites while the O are essentially disordered in both of the two usual pyrochlore anion sites.

A conversion coating method has been developed based on precipitation of Li{sub 2}[Al{sub 2}(OH){sub 6}]{sub 2}{center_dot}CO{sub 3}{center_dot}3H{sub 2}O from alkaline lithium salt solutions. The process is procedurally similar to chromate conversion coating but does not use or produce hazardous chemicals. The coating that forms is polycrystalline, continuous and conformal. The coating meets the MIL-C-5541E corrosion resistance, electrical contact resistance and paint adhesion requirements for certain aluminum alloys, but does not match the levels of performance exhibited by chromate conversion coatings. In this paper, methods for producing the coating are described. Corrosion resistance has been characterized using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and salt spray exposure. The structural, compositional and property changes attending post-coating thermal exposure are discussed. Performance in standardized corrosion, electrical and paint adhesion tests is also presented.

Hexylene-bridged polysilsesquioxanes can be prepared as mesoporous or non-porous xerogels simply by switching from basic to acidic polymerization conditions. In this study, we looked at the effect of monomer concentration on porosity of hexylene-bridged xerogels prepared under acidic and basic conditions. 1, 6-Hexylene-bridged polysilsesquioxanes were prepared by sol-gel polymerizations of 1, 6-bis(triethoxysilyl)hexane 1 with concentrations between 0. 1 to 1.2 M in ethanol. Gelation times ranged from seconds for 1.2 M concentration to months for 0.2 M. The gels were processed into xerogels by an aqueous work-up and the dry gels characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), solid state {sup 13}C and {sup 29}Si CP MAS NMR spectroscopy, and gas sorption porosimetry.

Hydrocarbon-bridged polysilsesquioxanes are prepared by the sol-gel polymerization of monomers with more than one trialkoxysilyl group attached directly to the bridging group by Si-C bonds. While the effects of varying the identity of the bridging group (length, rigidity, etc.), monomer concentration, and type of catalyst have been studied, the effect of different alkoxy ligands on the silicon atoms has not been investigated. For this study, 1, 6-- bis(triethoxysilyl)hexane 1 and 1, 6-bis(trimethoxysilyl)hexane 2 were polymerized under acidic and basic conditions in ethanol and methanol, respectively, and in tetrahydrofuran (THF). The resulting gels were processed to afford xerogels that were characterized by SEM, solid state {sup 13}C and {sup 29}Si Cross Polarization Magic Angle Spinning (CP MAS) NMR spectroscopy, and nitrogen sorption porosimetry.

The flat panel display development activities underway at Sandia National Laboratories are described. Research is being conducted in the areas of glass substrates, phosphors, large area processes, and electron emissions. Projects are focused on improving process yield, developing large area processes, and using modeling techniques to predict design performance.

Optical prossesses in nanostructured fractal composites are shown to be strongly enhanced. The enhancement occurs because of a localization of dipolar eigenmodes in subwavelength areas.

I{sub DDQ} testing of CMOSICs is a technique for production quality and reliability improvement, design validation, and failure analysis. The origin and basic concepts of I{sub DDQ} testing are reviewed. The relationship of I{sub DDQ} testing to other test methods is considered in the context of the whole IC life cycle from design, fabrication, and test through end use. A comprehensive test strategy is described that uses defect classes based on defect electrical properties rather than traditional fault models.

Despite intensive efforts in the area of dynamic graph algorithms, no efficient algorithms are known for the dynamic versions of some basic graph problems such as strong connectivity and transitive closure. We provide some explanation for this lack of success by presenting quadratic lower bounds on the strong certificate complexity of such problems, thereby establishing the inapplicability of the only known general technique for designing dynamic graph algorithms, viz., sparsification. These results also provide evidence of the inherent intractability of such dynamic graph problems. Some of our results are based on a general technique for obtaining lower bounds on the strong certificate complexity for a class of graph properties by establishing a relationship with the witness complexity. In many real applications of dynamic graph problems, a certain amount of lookahead is available. Specifically, we consider the problems of assembly planning in robotics and the maintenance of relations in databases which, respectively, give rise to dynamic strong connectivity and transitive closure. We exploit the (naturally available) lookahead in these two applications to circumvent the inherent complexity of the dynamic graph problems. We propose a variant of sparsification, viz., lookahead based sparsification, and apply it to obtain the first efficient fully dynamic algorithms for strong connectivity and transitive closure.

The photo-destruction of the high explosives HMX, RDX and TNT was investigated using two systems (ozone versus titanium dioxide), two reactors (pot vs annular reactor), and two types of lamps (1000 Watt Hg-Xe vs 25 Watt LP Hg). A mass balance was performed on reactions executed under pseudo-solar conditions, and relative reaction rates and products were compared for ozone and titanium dioxide based processes. The ratios of relative product formation is also discussed. Results show that there was little difference in the reactions performed in the annular reactor when either ozone or titanium oxide were used. The chemistry of RDX and HMX are very similar, as expected. Future work involving the mechanism is also discussed.

Be is a ``marginal metal.`` The stable phase, hcp-Be, has a low Fermi-level density of states and very anisotropic structural and elastic properties, similar to a semiconductor`s. At the Be(0001) surface, surface states drastically increase the Fermi-level density of states. The different nature of bonding in bulk-Be and at the Be(0001) surface explains the large outward relaxation. The presence of surface states causes large surface core-level shifts by inducing a higher electrostatic potential in the surface layers and by improving the screening at the surface. The authors experimental and theoretical investigations of atomic vibrations at the Be(0001) surface demonstrate clearly that Be screening of atomic motion by the surface states makes the surface phonon dispersion fundamentally different from that of the bulk. Properties of Be(0001) are so different from those of the bulk that the surface can be considered a new ``phase`` of beryllium with unique electronic and structural characteristics. For comparison they also study Be(11{bar 2}0), a very open surface without important surface states. Be(11{bar 2}0) is the only clean s-p metal surface known to reconstruct (1 {times} 3 missing row reconstruction).

NMR and neutron diffraction measurements reveal that macroscopic phase separation and the tetragonal to orthorhombic (TO) structural phase coincide at two distinct points in the temperature-doping phase plot for oxygen doped La{sub 2}CuO{sub 4+{delta}}. Thus the TO phase line coincides with the phase separation line. This is evidence that the macroscopic phase separation is inhibited in the tetragonal phase. We propose that the interstitial oxygen has higher mobility in the orthorhombic phase and that insufficient mobility suppresses macroscopic phase separation in the tetragonal phase. Neutron diffraction measurements also reveal superlattice peaks which indicate ordering of the interstitial oxygen. Our NMR measurements, have demonstrated a distribution of tilts of the CuO{sub 6} octahedra. We propose a sawtooth modulation of the octahedral tilt in which the sign of the tilt changes when the tilt reaches a maximum value can explain this distribution. The large openings in the La-O layer resulting from the abrupt switch of the sign of the tilt provide an attractive location for the interstitial oxygen. This mechanism would lead to stripe ordering of the interstitial oxygen.

The microstructure of Al/{alpha}-Al{sub 2}0{sub 3} composites made by infiltrating Al into dense mullite preforms has been characterized using transmission electron microscopy. Observations revealed that the formation of the Al/Al{sub 2}0{sub 3} composites involves three stages. Initially, Al infiltrates into a dense mullite preform through grain boundary diffusion, and reacts with mullite at grain boundaries to form a partial reaction zone. Then, a complete reaction takes place in the reaction region between the partial reaction zone and the full reaction zone to convert the dense mullite preform to a composite of {alpha}-Al{sub 2}0{sub 3} (matrix) and an Al-Si phase (thin channels). Finally, the reduced Si from the reaction diffuses out of the Al/Al{sub 2}0{sub 3} composite through the metal channels, whereas Al from the molten Al pool is continuously drawn to the reaction region until the mullite preform is consumed or the sample is removed from the molten Al pool. Based on the observed microstructure, infiltration mechanisms have been discussed, and a growth model of the composites is proposed in which the process involves repeated nucleation of Al{sub 2}0{sub 3} grains and grain growth.

Copper chemical vapor deposition using liquid coinjection of the Cu(I) precursor (hfac)Cu(TMVS) along with TMVS has been demonstrated. The coinjection of TMVS with (hfac)Cu(TMVS) stabilizes the Cu precursor until it enters the reaction chamber, allowing for better control of the deposition and faster deposition rates. Using this technique, we have grown films with as-deposited resistivities of 1.86 {plus_minus} 0.04 {mu}{Omega}-cm, independent of film thickness. Deposition rates of well over 100 nm/min are possible. Good step coverage and gap fill down to 0.6 {mu}m lines is demonstrated, with gap fill being limited by the large Cu grain sizes in these films.

Very highly porous (aerogel) silica films with refractive index in the range 1.006--1.05 (equivalent porosity 98.5--88%) were prepared by an ambient-pressure process. It was shown earlier using in situ ellipsometric imaging that the high porosity of these films was mainly attributable to the dilation or `springback` of the film during the final stage of drying. This finding was irrefutably reconfirmed by visually observing a `springback` of >500% using environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM). Ellipsometry and ESEM also established the near cent per cent reversibility of aerogel film deformation during solvent intake and drying. Film thickness profile measurements (near the drying line) for the aerogel, xerogel and pure solvent cases are presented from imaging ellipsometry. The thickness of these films (crack-free) were controlled in the range 0.1-3.5 {mu}m independent of refractive index.

The pore size r{sub p} in a gel is determined by the extent of shrinkage of the gel network during drying. Shrinkage is driven by the collapse of the gel network in response to the capillary pressure P{sub c} exerted by the pore fluid. The extent of shrinkage depends on the balance between the capillary pressure P{sub c} in the pore fluid and the bulk modulus K{sub p} of the gel. The hydraulic pore radius, r{sub H} = 2V{sub p}/S{sub a}, where V{sub p} is the pore volume and S{sub a} is the apparent N{sub 2} BET surface area, is often used to characterize the pore size of a gel. A series of acid catalyzed silica gels dried in pore fluids with different {gamma}{sub lv}, showed that there is a limit to the minimum apparent r{sub H} obtainable in a gel, and when the volume fraction of porosity {phi} {le} 0.37, r{sub H} becomes constant and {approximately}0.8 nm. In contrast, experimental data show that the true pore size r{sub p} of gels continues to decrease when {phi} {le} 0.37. Analysis of their adsorption isotherms show that while r{sub H} apparently stays constant: (a) the BET C constant continues to increase, (b) the width and average of their pore size distributions continue to decrease, and (c) as shrinkage continues the gels eventually become non-porous to N{sub 2} at 77K but are still porous to CO{sub 2} at 273K. This paper reviews these results and addresses micropore formation in silica gels with the goal of determining how P{sub c} influences the final r{sub p}, and why r{sub p} and r{sub H} diverge when {phi} {le} 0.37.

A computational/analytical technique has been developed which models the physics of high pressure gas atomization. The technique uses an uncoupled approach, such that the gas flowfield is initially calculated with a commercially-available Navier-Stokes code. The liquid metal droplet breakup, dynamics, and thermodynamics, are then calculated using the pre-computed flowfield by a separate computer program written by the authors. The atomization code models the primary breakup of the liquid metal stream, tracks the droplets resulting from primary breakup through the flowfield until they undergo secondary breakup, and then tracks the subdroplets until they breakup, solidify, or leave the flowfield region of interest. The statistical properties of the metal powder produced are then computed from the characteristics of these droplets. Comparisons between experimental measurements and computations indicate that the Navier-Stokes code is predicting the gas flowfield well, and that the atomization code is properly modeling the physics of the droplet dynamics and breakup.

Modern wind turbines are fatigue critical machines used to produce electrical power. To insure long term, reliable operation, their structure must be optimized if they are to be economically viable. The fatigue and reliability projects in Sandia`s Wind Energy Program are developing the analysis tools required to accomplish these design requirements. The first section of the paper formulates the fatigue analysis of a wind turbine using a cumulative damage technique. The second section uses reliability analysis for quantifying the uncertainties and the inherent randomness associated with turbine performance and the prediction of service lifetimes. Both research areas are highlighted with typical results.

This report contains research in the following areas related to beam transport for a common ion driver: multi-gap acceleration; neutralization with electrons; gas neutralization; self-pinched transport; HIF and LIF transport, and relevance to common ion driver; LIF and HIF reactor concepts and relevance to common ion driver; atomic physics for common ion driver; code capabilities and needed improvement.

There are major differences between the safety principles for nuclear weapons and for nuclear reactors. For example, a principal concern for nuclear weapons is to prevent electrical energy from reaching the nuclear package during accidents produced by crashes, fires, and other hazards, whereas the foremost concern for nuclear reactors is to maintain coolant around the core in the event of certain system failures. Not surprisingly, new methods have had to be developed to assess the risk from nuclear weapons. These include fault tree transformations that accommodate time dependencies, thermal and structural analysis techniques that are fast and unconditionally stable, and Monte-Carlo-based sampling methods that incorporate intelligent searching. This paper provides an overview of the new methods for nuclear weapons, compares them with existing methods for nuclear reactors, identifies some of their dual-use characteristics, and discusses ongoing developmental activities.

The authors study the following problem: given a collection A of polyhedral parts in 3D, determine whether there exists a subset S of the parts that can be moved as a rigid body by an infinitesimal translation and rotation, without colliding with the rest of the parts, A/S. A negative result implies that the object whose constituent parts are the collection A cannot be taken apart with two hands. A positive result, together with the list of movable parts in S and a direction of motion for S, can be used by an assembly sequence planner. This problem has attracted considerable attention within and outside the robotics community. They devise an efficient algorithm to solve this problem. The solution is based on the ability to focus on selected portions of the tangent space of rigid motions and efficiently access these portions. The algorithm is complete (in the sense that it is guaranteed to find a solution if one exists), simple, and improves significantly over the best previously known solutions. The authors report experimental results with an implementation of their algorithm.

The first remediation of an Environmental Restoration (ER) Project site at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) was successfully conducted in May and June 1994 at Technical Area II. The removal action involved four Uranium Calibration Pits (UCPs) filled with radioactive or hazardous materials. The concrete culvert pits were used to test and calibrate borehole radiometric logging tools for uranium exploration. The removal action consisted of excavating and containerizing the pit contents and contaminated soil beneath the culverts, removing the four culverts, and backfilling the excavation. Each UCP removal had unique complexities. Sixty 208-L drums of solid radioactive waste and eight 208-L drums of liquid hazardous waste were generated during the VCM. Two of the concrete culverts will be disposed as radioactive waste and two as solid waste. Uranium-238 was detected in UCP-2 ore material at 746 pci/g, and at 59 pci/g in UCP-1 silica sand. UCP-4 was empty; sludge from UCP-3 contained 122 mg/L (ppm) chromium.

An experiment involving migration of fluid and tracers (Li, Br, Ni) through a 6-m-high x 3-m-dia caisson Wedron 510 sand, is being carried out for Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project. Sand`s surface chemistry of the sand was studied and a preliminary surface-complexation model of Ni adsorption formulated for transport calculations. XPS and leaching suggest that surface of the quartz sand is partially covered by thin layers of Fe-oxyhydroxide and Ca-Mg carbonate and by flakes of kaolinite. Ni adsorption by the sand is strongly pH-dependent, showing no adsorption at pH 5 and near-total adsorption at pH 7. Location of adsorption edge is independent of ionic strength and dissolved Ni concentration; it is shifted to slightly lower pH with higher pCO2 and to slightly higher pH by competition with Li. Diminished adsorption at alkiline pH with higher pCO2 implies formation of dissolved Ni-carbonato complexes. Ni adsorption edges for goethite and quartz, two components of the sand were also measured. Ni adsorption on pure quartz is only moderately pH-dependent and differs in shape and location from that of the sand, whereas Ni adsorption by goethite is strongly pH-dependent. A triple-layer surface-complexation model developed for goethite provides a good fit to the Ni-adsorption curve of the sand. Based on this model, the apparent surface area of the Fe-oxyhydroxide coating is estimated to be 560 m{sup 2}/g, compatible with its occurrence as amorphous Fe-oxyhydroxide. Potentiometric titrations on sand also differ from pure quartz and suggest that effective surface area of sand may be much greater than that measured by N{sub 2}-BET gas adsorption. Attempts to model the adsorption of bulk sand in terms of properties of pure end member components suggest that much of the sand surface is inert. Although the exact Ni adsorption mechanisms remain ambiguous, this preliminary adsorption model provides an initial set of parameters that can be used in transport calculations.

We have used several sol-gel strategies to prepare supported inorganic membranes by a process that combines the features of slip-casting and dip-coating. To be viable the deposited membranes must exhibit both high flux and high selectivity. For porous membranes these requirements are met by extremely thin, defect-free porous films exhibiting a narrow size distribution of very small pores. This paper considers the use of polymeric silica and hybrid-organosilyl precursor sols in the context of the underlying physics and chemistry of the membrane deposition process. Since the average membrane pore size is ultimately established by the collapse of the gel network upon drying, it is necessary to promote polymer interpenetration and collapse during membrane deposition in order to achieve the very small pore sizes necessary for molecular sieving. For polymeric sols, this is accomplished using rather weakly branched polymers characterized by fractal dimension D < 1.5 under deposition conditions in which the silica condensation rate is minimized. By analogy to organic polymer sols and gels, we believe that the breadth of the pore size distribution can be influenced by the occurrence of micro-phase separation during membrane deposition. Minimization of the condensation rate not only fosters polymer collapse but should inhibit phase separation, leading to a narrower pore size distribution. The formation of microporosity through collapse of the gel network requires that small pores are achieved at the expense of membrane porosity. Incorporation of organic template ligands within a dense silica matrix followed by their removal allows us to independently control pore size and pore volume through the size and volume fraction of the organic template. Such strategies can be used to create microporous films with large volume fraction porosities.

The Solar Thermal Design Assistance Center (STDAC) at Sandia is a resource provided by the DOE Solar Thermal Program. The STDAC`s major objective is to accelerate the use of solar thermal systems by providing direct technical assistance to users in industry, government, and foreign countries; cooperating with industry to test, evaluate, and develop renewable energy systems and components; and educating public and private professionals, administrators, and decision makers. This FY94 report highlights the activities and accomplishments of the STDAC. In 1994, the STDAC continued to provide significant direct technical assistance to domestic and international organizations in industry, government, and education, Applying solar thermal technology to solve energy problems is a vital element of direct technical assistance. The STDAC provides information on the status of new, existing, and developing solar technologies; helps users screen applications; predicts the performance of components and systems; and incorporates the experience of Sandia`s solar energy personnel and facilities to provide expert guidance. The STDAC directly enhances the US solar industry`s ability to successfully bring improved systems to the marketplace. By collaborating with Sandia`s Photovoltaic Design Assistance Center and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory the STDAC is able to offer each customer complete service in applying solar thermal technology. At the National Solar Thermal Test Facility the STDAC tests and evaluates new and innovative solar thermal technologies. Evaluations are conducted in dose cooperation with manufacturers, and the results are used to improve the product and/or quantify its performance characteristics. Manufacturers, in turn, benefit from the improved design, economic performance, and operation of their solar thermal technology. The STDAC provides cost sharing and in-kind service to manufacturers in the development and improvement of solar technology.

Recent results in the use of disilanes as silylating reagents for near-surface imaging with deep-UV (248 nm) and EUV (13.5 nm) lithography are reported. A relatively thin imaging layer of a photo-cross-linking resist is spun over a thicker layer of hard-baked resist that functions as a planarizing layer and antireflective coating. Photoinduced acid generation and subsequent heating crosslinks and renders exposed areas impermeable to an aminodisilane that reacts with the unexposed regions. Subsequent silylation and reactive ion etching afford a positive-tone image. The use of disilanes introduces a higher concentration of silicon into the polymer than is possible with silicon reagents that incorporate only one silicon atom per reactive site. The higher silicon content in the silylated polymer increases etching selectivity between exposed and unexposed regions and thereby increases the contrast. Additional improvements that help to minimize flow during silylation are also discussed, including the addition of bifunctional disilanes. We have resolved high aspect ratio, very high quality 0.20 {mu}m line and space patterns at 248 nm with a stepper having a numerical aperture (NA)= 0.53, and have resolved {<=} 0.15 {mu}m line and spaces at 13.5 nm.

Sputtered MoS{sub 2} is a solid lubricant capable of ultralow friction coefficients (below 0.05) load-bearing capacity. Since it exhibits low friction in vacuum, low outgassing rate, is non-migrating and lacks organic binders, this material is an attractive lubricant for space mechanisms. To exploit these new materials to their fullest potential, designers of space-based motion systems require data on the effects of atomic oxygen exposure on dense, sputtered MoS{sub 2}. This paper describes the effects of atomic oxygen in low earth orbit on the friction and surface composition of sputtered MoS{sub 2} films. Sputtered multilayer films of MoS{sub 2} with nickel (0.7 nm Ni per 10 nm MoS{sub 2}, for 1 {mu}m total film thickness), and MoS{sub 2} cosputtered with antimony oxide (nominally 2 {mu}m thick) were exposed to 2.2 to 2.5 x 10{sup 20} oxygen/cm{sup 2} over a period of 42.25 hours in earth orbit on the United States space shuttle. Identical specimens were kept as controls in desiccated storage for the duration of the mission, and another set was exposed to an equivalent fluence of atomic oxygen in the laboratory. The friction coefficient in air and vacuum, and the composition of worn surfaces, were determined prior to the shuttle flight and again after the shuttle flight. Results are described.

Thermal response and thermal fatigue tests of four 5 mm thick beryllium tiles on a Russian divertor mock-up were completed on the Electron Beam Test System at Sandia National Laboratories. The beryllium tiles were diffusion bonded onto an OFHC copper saddleblock and a DSCu (MAGT) tube containing a porous coating. Thermal response tests were performed on the tiles to an absorbed heat flux of 5 MW/m{sup 2} and surface temperatures near 300{degrees}C using 1.4 MPa water at 5.0 m/s flow velocity and an inlet temperature of 8-15{degrees}C. One tile was exposed to incrementally increasing heat fluxes up to 9.5 MW/m{sup 2} and surface temperatures up to 690{degrees}C before debonding at 10 MW/m{sup 2}. A third tile debonded after 9200 thermal fatigue cycles at 5 MW/m{sup 2}, while another debonded after 6800 cycles. In all cases, fatigue failure occurred in the intermetallic layers between the beryllium and copper. No fatigue cracking of the bulk beryllium was observed. During thermal cycling, a gradual loss of porous coating produced increasing sample temperatures. These experiments indicate that diffusion-bonded beryllium tiles can survive several thousand thermal cycles under ITER relevant conditions without failure. However, the reliability of the diffusion bonded Joint remains a serious issue.

This paper illustrates how different modes of operation such as bilateral teleoperation, autonomous control, and shared control can be described and implemented using combinations of modules in the SMART robot control architecture. Telerobotics modes are characterized by different ``grids`` of SMART icons, where each icon represents a portion of run-time code that implements a passive control law. By placing strict requirements on the module`s input-output behavior and using scattering theory to develop a passive sampling technique, a flexible, expandable telerobot architecture is achieved. An automatic code generation tool for generating SMART systems is also described.

This report provides brief summaries of research performed in chemical and physical sciences at Sandia National Laboratories. Programs are described in the areas of advanced materials and technology, applied physics and chemistry, lasers, optics, and vision, and resources and capabilities.

Industrial and military activities in the US produce large amounts of hazardous mixed waste, which includes both radioactive and toxic substances. The already overburdened environment is faced with the task of safely disposing of these complex wastes. A very important aspect of this effort is the safe and economical transportation of radioactive and toxic chemical wastes to projected repositories. Movement of wastes to the repository sites is accomplished by a combination of truck, rail, ship, and air. The DOE directs transportation activities including cask development technology for use in single or multimode transport. Sandia National Laboratories` Transportation Technology programs provide the technology and know-how to support DOE in achieving safe, efficient, and economical packaging and transportation of nuclear and other hazardous waste materials. This brochure describes the Transportation Technology programs and the specialized techniques and capabilities they offer to prospective users.

This report consists of one engineering drawing showing the design of the Fifth Wheel System for a semi-tractor trailer truck. Notes on the drawing give instructions for installation of some items, references to other drawings and instructions, and testing procedures.

This report consists of two engineering drawings showing the electrical and pneumatic system for the Fifth Wheel System on a semi-tractor trailer truck. The system is shown in the nonactivated state.

This report consists of one engineering drawing showing modifications to the Fifth Wheel System for a semi-tractor trailer truck. Notes give instructions for installation of some items, where other items may be purchased, testing instructions, and shipping instructions.

This report consists on one engineering drawing showing the wiring scheme for the Fifth Wheel System for a semi-tracker trailer truck. A note explains what wire is specified.

The Photovoltaic Manufacturing Technology (PVMaT) Project was initiated in 1990 to help the US photovoltaic (PV) industry extend its world leadership role in manufacturing and commercially developing PV modules and systems. It is being conducted in several phases, staggered to support industry progress. The four most recently awarded subcontracts (Phase 2B) are now completing their first year of research. They include two subcontracts on CdTe, one on Spheral Solar[trademark] Cells, and one on cast polysilicon. These subcontracts represent new technology additions to the PVMaT Project. Subcontracts initiated in earlier phases are nearing completion, and their progress is summarized. An additional phase of PVMaT, Phase 4A, is being initiated which will emphasize product-driven manufacturing research and development. The intention of Phase 4A is to emphasize improvement and cost reduction in the manufacture of full-system PV products. The work areas may include, but are not limited to, issues such as improvement of module manufacturing processes; system and system component packaging, integration, manufacturing, and assembly; product manufacturing flexibility; and balance-of-system development with the goal of product manufacturing improvements.

In coating processes (e.g. in blade coating) the flow domain inherently contains free surfaces and three-phase contact lines, and characteristic length scales of flow features in the dimension transverse to the web-movement vary by an order of magnitude or more from a fraction of a millimeter or more to tens of microns or less). The presence of free surfaces and three-phase contact lines, and the sudden changes of flow geometry and directions create difficulties in theoretical analyses of such flows. Though simulations of coating flows via finite-element methods using structured grids have been reportedly demonstrated in the literature, achieving high efficiency of such numerical experiments remains a grand challenge -- mainly due to difficulties in local mesh-refinement and in avoiding unacceptably distorted grids. High efficiency of computing steady flow fields under various process conditions is crucial in shortening turn-around time in design and optimization of coating-flow processes. In this paper we employ a fully-implicit, pseudo-solid, domain mapping technique coupled with unstructured meshes to analyze blade and slot coating flows using Galerkin`s method with finite element basis functions. We demonstrate the robustness and efficiency of our unique technique in circumventing shortcomings of mesh-motion schemes currently being used in the coating-flow research community. Our goal is to develop an efficient numerical tool, together with a suitable optimization toolkit, that can be used routinely in design and optimization of coating-flow processes.

This is a brief report about the Solar One and Solar Two instrument-energy-producing projects and the commercialization strategy for the Power Towers

The contact between an obsidian flow and a steep-walled tuff canyon was examined as an analogue for a highlevel waste repository. The analogue site is located in the Valles Caldera in New Mexico, where a massive obsidian flow filled a paleocanyon in the Battleship Rock tuff. The obsidian flow provided a heat source, analogous to waste panels or an igneous intrusion in a repository, and caused evaporation and migration of water. The tuff and obsidian samples were analyzed for major and trace elements and mineralogy by INAA, XRF, X-ray diffraction; and scanning electron microscopy and electron microprobe. Samples were also analyzed for D/H and {sup 39}Ar/{sup 4O} isotopic composition. Overall,the effects of the heating event seem to have been slight and limited to the tuff nearest the contact. There is some evidence of devitrification and migration of volatiles in the tuff within 10 meters of the contact, but variations in major and trace element chemistry are small and difficult to distinguish from the natural (pre-heating) variability of the rocks.

MELCOR is a fully integrated, engineering-level computer code, being developed at Sandia National Laboratories for the USNRC, that models the entire spectrum of severe accident phenomena in a unified framework for both BWRs and PWRS. As part, of an ongoing assessment program, the MELCOR computer code has been used to analyze a series of containment spray tests performed in the Containment Systems Experiment (CSE) vessel to evaluate the performance of aqueous sprays as a means of decontaminating containment atmospheres. Basecase MELCOR results are compared with test data, and a number of sensitivity studies on input modelling parameters and options in both the spray package and the associated aerosol washout and atmosphere decontamination by sprays modelled in the radionuclide package have been done. Time-step and machine-dependency calculations were done to identify whether any numeric effects exist in these CSE assessment analyses. A significant time-step dependency due to an error in the spray package coding was identified and eliminated. A number of other code deficiencies and inconveniences also are noted.

The responses of the following carbonate materials to shock loading and release have been measured: Indiana limestone (18% porosity; saturated and dry), Jeffersonville/Louisville Limestones (Fort Knox limestone) (variable dolomitization, low porosity), Danby Marble (essentially pure calcite; low porosity), and a limestone from the Utah Test and Training Range (low porosity, with 22% silica). Various experimental configurations were used, some optimized to yield detailed waveform information, others to yield a clean combination of Hugoniot states and release paths. All made use of velocity interferometry as a primary diagnostic. The stress range of 0 - 20 GPa was probed (in most cases, emphasizing the stress range 0 -10 GPa). The primary physical processes observed in this stress regime were material strength, porosity, and polymorphic phase transitions between the CaCO{sub 3} phases I, II, III and VI. Hydration was also a significant reaction under certain conditions. The Indiana Limestone studies in particular represent a significant addition to the low-pressure database for porous limestone. Temperature dependence and the effect of freezing were assessed for the Fort Knox limestone. Experimental parameters and detailed results are provided for the 42 impact tests in this series.

The Defense Nuclear Agency (DNA) is developing explosives technology through its Underground Technology Program (UTP). Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) has supported the DNA by conducting research to characterize the in situ stress and rock mass deformability at one of the UTP underground sites at Rodgers Hollow, near Louisville, Kentucky on the Fort Knox Military Reservation. The purpose of SNL`s testing was to determine the in situ stress using three different measurement techniques and, if possible, to estimate the rock mass modulus near the underground opening. The three stress-measuring techniques are (1) borehole deformation measurements using overcoring, (2) Anelastic Strain Recovery (ASR) complemented by laboratory ultrasonic and mechanical properties testing, and (3) the in situ flatjack technique using cancellation pressure. Rock mass modulus around the underground opening was estimated using the load deformation history of the flatjack and surrounding rock. Borehole deformation measurements using the overcoring technique probably represent the most reliable method for in situ stress determination in boreholes up to 50 ft (15 m) deep in competent rock around an isolated excavation. The technique is used extensively by the tunneling and mining industries. The ASR technique is also a core-based technique and is used in the petroleum and natural gas industries for characterization of in situ stress from deep boreholes. The flatjack technique has also been used in the tunneling and mining industries, and until recently has been limited to measurement of the stress immediately around the excavation. Results from the flatjack technique must be further analyzed to calculate the in situ stress in the far field.

The Department of Energy Order 5500.3A requires facility-specific hazards assessments be prepared, maintained, and used for emergency planning purposes. This consequence analysis documents the impact that a hydrogen accident could have to employees, the general public, and nearby facilities. The computer model ARCHIE was utilized to determine discharge rates, toxic vapor dispersion analyses, flammable vapor cloud hazards, explosion hazards, and flame jets for the Hydrogen Trailer Storage Facility located at Building 878. To determine over pressurization effects, hand calculations derived from the Department of the Air Force Manual, ``Structures to Resist the Effects of Accidental Explosions,`` were utilized. The greatest distances at which a postulated facility event will produce the Lower Flammability and the Lower Detonation Levels are 1,721 feet and 882 feet, respectively. The greatest distance at which 10.0 psi overpressure (i.e., total building destruction) is reached is 153 feet.

The Department of Energy Order 5500.3A requires facility-specific hazards assessments be prepared, maintained, and used for emergency planning purposes. This hazards assessment document describes the chemical and radiological hazards associated with the Sandia Administrative Micrographics Facility, Building 802. The entire inventory was screened according to the potential airborne impact to onsite and offsite individuals. The air dispersion model, ALOHA, estimated pollutant concentrations downwind from the source of a release, taking into consideration the toxicological and physical characteristics of the release site, the atmospheric conditions, and the circumstances of the release. The greatest distance at which a postulated facility event will produce consequences exceeding the Early Severe Health Effects threshold is 33 meters. The highest emergency classification is a Site Area Emergency. The Emergency Planning Zone is 75 meters.

A SEGS LS-2 parabolic trough solar collector was tested to determine the collector efficiency and thermal losses with two types of receiver selective coatings, combined with three different receiver configurations: glass envelope with either vacuum or air in the receiver annulus, and glass envelope removed from the receiver. As expected, collector performance was significantly affected by each variation in receiver configuration. Performance decreased when the cermet selective coating was changed to a black chrome coating, and progressively degraded as air was introduced into the vacuum annulus, and again when the glass envelope was removed from the receiver. For each receiver configuration, performance equations were derived relating collector efficiency and thermal losses to the operating temperature. For the bare receiver (no glass envelope) efficiency and thermal losses are shown as a function of wind speed. An incident angle modifier equation was also developed for each receiver case. Finally, equations were derived showing collector performance as a function of input insolation value, incident angle, and operating temperature. Results from the experiments were compared with predictions from a one-dimensional analytical model of the solar receiver. Differences between the model and experiment were generally within the band of experimental uncertainty.

Epitaxial SrRuO{sub 3} thin films were deposited by RF sputtering on SrTiO{sub 3} or MgO substrates for use as underlying electrodes. On these conductive substrates, epitaxial Pb(Zr{sub 0.35}Ti{sub 0.65})O{sub 3} (PZT) and PbTiO{sub 3} (PT) thin films were, deposited by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). X-ray diffraction (XRD), RBS channeling (RBS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and optical waveguiding were used to characterize phase, microstructure, defect structure, refractive index, and film thickness of the deposited films. The PZT and PT films were epitaxial and c-axis oriented. 90{degree} domains, interfacial misfit dislocations and dislocations and threading dislocations were the primary structural defects, and the films showed a 70% RBS channeling reduction. Hysteresis and dielectric measurements of epitaxial PZT ferroelectric capacitor structures formed using evaporated Ag or ITO glass top electrode showed: a remanent polarization of 46.2 mC/cm{sup 2}, a coercive field of 54.9 KV/cm, a dielectric constant of 410, a bipolar resistivity of {approximately}5.8 {times} 10{sup 9} {Omega}-cm at a field of 275 KV/cm, and a breakdown strength of >400 KV/cm.

Coupled thermal and hydrologic flow processes have been recognized as important factors in the evaluation of Yucca Mountain as a potential repository for high-level radioactive wastes. As a result, several models and numerical codes such as TOUGH2 have been used to investigate the thermohydrologic conditions near a potential nuclear waste repository. However, very few of these models have been tested through laboratory or field scale studies. This work has therefore focused on modeling well-controlled experiments of non-isothermal flow processes in porous media at different scales to serve two primary objectives: (1) identify processes that are potentially important to thermal and hydrologic transport at Yucca Mountain and (2) build confidence in models and codes through combined experimental and numerical studies of thermohydrologic behavior at different scales and conditions. In this report, three independent studies of thermohydrologic flow processes at laboratory and field scales are presented. The experiments and field studies that are presented here were performed independently of this work. The main focus of this report was to use the numerical code TOUGH2 to simulate the non-isothermal flow behavior observed in each experiment to generate understanding of the thermohydrologic processes and to gain confidence in the code. TOUGH2 was chosen due to its current use in calculations associated with Yucca Mountain and its capability of modeling the coupled transport of air, water, vapor, and heat in porous media.

High heat flux testing for the United States fusion power program is the primary mission of the Plasma Materials Test Facility (PMTF) located at Sandia National Laboratories - New Mexico. This facility, which is owned by the United States Department of Energy, has been in operation for over 17 years and has provided much of the high heat flux data used in the design and evaluation of plasma facing components for many of the world's magnetic fusion, tokamak experiments. In addition to domestic tokamaks such as Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR) at Princeton and the DIII-D tokamak at General Atomics, components for international experiments like TEXTOR, Tore-Supra, and JET also have been tested at the PMTF. High heat flux testing spans a wide spectrum including thermal shock tests on passively cooled materials, thermal response and thermal fatigue tests on actively cooled components, critical heat flux-burnout tests, braze reliability tests and safety related tests. The objective of this article is to provide a brief overview of the high heat flux testing capabilities at the PMTF and describe a few of the experiments performed over the last year.

Radionuclide releases due to drilling into the potential Yucca Mountain nuclear-waste repository have been evaluated as part of a recent total-system performance assessment. The probability that a drilling event intersects a waste package is a function of the sizes of the drill bit and the waste package, and the density of placement of the containers in the repository. The magnitude of the releases is modeled as a random function that also depends on the amount of decay the radionuclides have undergone. Four cases have been analyzed, representing the combinations of two waste-package designs (small-capacity, thin-wall, vertically emplaced; and large-capacity, thick-wall, horizontally emplaced) and two repository layouts (lower thermal power dissipation, low waste-package placement density; and higher thermal power dissipation, high waste-package placement density). The results show a fairly pronounced dependence on waste-package design and slight dependence on repository layout. Given the assumptions in the model, releases from the larger containers are 4-5 times greater than from the smaller packages.

Polycarbonate rectangular honeycomb and acrylic capillary honeycomb, two types of transparent insulation material, were tested in flat-plate collectors. The honeycomb was inserted between the cover plate and the absorber, leaving a 1-cm air gap above the absorber to decouple radiative and conductive heat-transfer modes. Four 4 by 8 ft. collectors with selective black chrome absorbers were evaluated side by side using ASHRAE Standard 93-1986. They differed in thickness and type of material as follows: 1) no insulation material, 2) 1 in. of polycarbonate, 3) 4-in. of polycarbonate, and 4) 4 in. of acrylic honeycomb. Another set of tests was completed using absorbers coated with moderately selective black paint, and a third set with flat-black paint. A collector containing a selective chrome absorber and 4 in. of acrylic honeycomb achieved the best thermal performance. The amount of improvement in thermal performance was greatest when transparent insulation material was added to collectors with flat-black absorbers, and it decreased as absorber selectivity increased. Since small-cell honeycomb improves thermal performance by suppressing both convective and radiative transfer, combination with selective coatings is partially redundant because they are poor emitters. Also, the unacceptably low melting temperature of these materials preclude them from withstanding even a wet stagnation, thereby rendering this application impractical.