Publications

The Office of Environmental Management of the U.S. Department of Energy is responsible for the safe management and disposal of DOE owned defense spent nuclear fuel and high level waste (DSNF/DHLW). A desirable option, direct disposal of the waste in the potential repository at Yucca Mountain, depends on the final waste acceptance criteria, which will be set by DOE`s Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM). However, evolving regulations make it difficult to determine what the final acceptance criteria will be. A method of anticipating waste acceptance criteria is to gain an understanding of the DOE owned waste types and their behavior in a disposal system through a performance assessment and contrast such behavior with characteristics of commercial spent fuel. Preliminary results from such an analysis indicate that releases of 99Tc and 237Np from commercial spent fuel exceed those of the DSNF/DHLW; thus, if commercial spent fuel can meet the waste acceptance criteria, then DSNF can also meet the criteria. In large part, these results are caused by the small percentage of total activity of the DSNF in the repository (1.5%) and regulatory mass (4%), and also because commercial fuel cladding was assumed to provide no protection.

This paper describes the design and characterization of several types of micromirror devices to include process capabilities, device modeling, and test data resulting in deflection versus applied potential curves. These micromirror devices are the first to be fabricated in the state-of-the-art four-level planarized polysilicon process available at Sandia National Laboratories known as the Sandia Ultra-planar Multi-level MEMS Technology (SUMMiT). This enabling process permits the development of micromirror devices with near-ideal characteristics which have previously been unrealizable in standard three-layer polysilicon processes. This paper describes such characteristics as elevated address electrodes, individual address wiring beneath the device, planarized mirror surfaces using Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP), unique post-process metallization, and the best active surface area to date. This paper presents the design, fabrication, modeling, and characterization of several variations of Flexure-Beam (FBMD) and Axial-Rotation Micromirror Devices (ARMD). The released devices are first metallized using a standard sputtering technique relying on metallization guards and masks that are fabricated next to the devices. Such guards are shown to enable the sharing of bond pads between numerous arrays of micromirrors in order to maximize the number of on-chip test arrays. The devices are modeled and then empirically characterized using a laser interferometer setup located at the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, Ohio. Unique design considerations for these devices and the process are also discussed.

Transient solid dynamics simulations are among the most widely used engineering calculations. Industrial applications include vehicle crashworthiness studies, metal forging, and powder compaction prior to sintering. These calculations are also critical to defense applications including safety studies and weapons simulations. The practical importance of these calculations and their computational intensiveness make them natural candidates for parallelization. This has proved to be difficult, and existing implementations fail to scale to more than a few dozen processors. In this paper we describe our parallelization of PRONTO, Sandia`s transient solid dynamics code, via a novel algorithmic approach that utilizes multiple decompositions for different key segments of the computations, including the material contact calculation. This latter calculation is notoriously difficult to perform well in parallel, because it involves dynamically changing geometry, global searches for elements in contact, and unstructured communications among the compute nodes. Our approach scales to at least 3600 compute nodes of the Sandia/Intel Teraflop computer (the largest set of nodes to which we have had access to date) on problems involving millions of finite elements. On this machine we can simulate models using more than ten- million elements in a few tenths of a second per timestep, and solve problems more than 3000 times faster than a single processor Cray Jedi.

The policy debate that has surrounded the national laboratories of the Department of Energy since the end of the Cold War has been very confusing. Initially, with the passage of the National Competitiveness Technology Transfer Act of 1989, the laboratories were encouraged to form cooperative arrangements with industry to maintain their technology base and give a boost for U.S. industrial competitiveness. But in the 104th Congress, technology transfer programs were severely constrained.

Sandia National Laboratories and several subsystem contractors are developing technologies applicable to multispectral remote sensing from space. A proof of concept multispectral sensor system is under development. The objective of building this sensor is to demonstrate and evaluate multispectral imaging technologies for various applications. The three major subsystems making up the sensor are the focal plane assembly (FPA), the cryocooler, and the telescope. This paper covers the focal plane assembly, which is the basis of the sensor system. The focal plane assembly includes sensor chip assemblies, optical filters, and a vacuum enclosure with cold shielding. Linear detector arrays provide spatial resolution in the cross-track direction for a pushbroom imager configuration. The optical filters define 15 spectral bands in a range from 0.45 microns to 10.7 microns. All the detector arrays are mounted on a single focal plane and are designed to operate at 75 K. No beam splitters are used. The four spectral bands covering the visible to near infrared have roughly 2400 pixels each, and the remaining 11 spectral bands have roughly 600 pixels each. The average total rate of multispectral data from the FPA is approximately 15.4 megapixels per second. At the time this paper is being written, the multispectral focal plane assembly is in the fabrication phase. A thermal/mechanical mockup has been built and tested for the vibration environment and to determine the thermal load. Some of the sensor chip assemblies and filters have been built and tested. Several notable features of the design are covered in the paper as well as preliminary test data.

The Air Force Research Laboratory`s Satellite Threat Warning and Attack Reporting (STW/AR) program will provide technologies for advanced threat warning and reporting of radio frequency (RF) and laser threats. The STW/AR program objectives are: (a) develop cost- effective technologies to detect, identify, locate, characterize, and report attacks or interference against U.S. and Allied satellites. (b) demonstrate innovative, light-weight, low-power, laser and RF sensors. The program focuses on the demonstration of RF and laser sensors. The RF sensor effort includes the investigation of interferometric antenna arrays, multi-arm spiral and butler matrix antennas, wideband receivers, adaptive processors, and improved processing algorithms. The laser sensor effort includes the investigation of alternative detectors, broadband grating and optical designs, active pixel sensing, and improved processing algorithms.

The identification of crystallographic phases in the scanning electron microscope (SEM) has been limited by the lack of a simple way to obtain electron diffraction data of an unknown while observing the micro structure of the specimen. With the development of Charge Coupled Device (CCD) based detectors, backscattered electron Kikuchi patterns (BEKP), alternately referred to as electron backscattered diffraction patterns (EBSP), can be easily collected. Previously, BEKP has been limited to crystallographic orientation studies due to the poor pattern quality collected with video rate detector systems. With CCD detectors, a typical BEKP can now be acquired from a micron or sub-micron-sized crystal using an exposure time of 1-10 seconds with an accelerating voltage of 10-40 kV and a beam current as low as 0.1 nA. Crystallographic phase analysis using BEKP is unique in that the properly equipped SEM permits high magnification images, BEKP`s, and elemental information to be collected from bulk specimens. BEKP in the SEM has numerous advantages over other electron microscopy crystallographic techniques. The large angular view ( 70 degrees) provided by BEKP and the lack of difficult specimen preparation are distinct advantages of the technique. No sample preparation beyond what is commonly used for SEM specimens is required for BEKP.

This paper describes the design and fabrication of optical Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) devices using the Sandia Ultra planar Multilevel MEMS Technology (SUMMiT) fabrication process. This state of the art process, offered by Sandia National Laboratories, provides unique and very advantageous features which make it ideal for optical devices. This enabling process permits the development of micromirror devices with near ideal characteristics which have previously been unrealizable in standard polysilicon processes. This paper describes such characteristics as elevated address electrodes, individual address wiring beneath the device, planarized mirror surfaces, unique post-process metallization, and the best active surface area to date.

Since the end of the cold war, as our nuclear stockpile has decreased, the Department of Energy (DOE) has been working rapidly to safely dismantle weapons returned by the military. In order to be retired, weapons must be returned to the Pantex Plant in Amarillo, Texas. There they are reduced to their component parts. Although many of these parts are not hazardous, some, including certain explosive assemblies and radioactive materials, are sufficiently hazardous so that special handling systems are necessary. This paper will describe several of these systems developed by Sandia for Pantex and their technical basis.

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) is a planned geologic repository for permanent disposal of transuranic waste generated by the U.S. Department of Energy. Disposal regions consist of panels and drifts mined from the bedded salt of the Salado Formation at a depth of approximately 650 m below the surface. This lithology is part of the 225 million year old Delaware Basin, and is geographically located in southeastern New Mexico. Four shafts service the facility needs for air intake, exhaust, waste handling, and salt handling. As the science advisor for the project, Sandia National Laboratories developed the WIPP shaft sealing system design. This design is a fundamental component of the application process for facility licensing, and has been found acceptable by stakeholders and regulatory agencies. The seal system design is founded on results obtained from laboratory and field experiments, numerical modeling, and engineering judgment. This paper describes a field test program to characterize the fluid flow properties in the WIPP shafts at representative seal locations. This work was conducted by Duke Engineering and Services under contract to Sandia National Laboratories in support of the seal system design.

The mission of the Divertor Materials Evaluation System (DiMES) in DIII-D is to establish an integrated data base from measurements in the divertor of a tokamak in order to address some of the ITER and fusion power reactor plasma material interaction issues. Carbon and metal coatings of Be, W, V, and Mo were exposed to the steady-state outer strike point on DIII-D for 4--18 s. These short exposure times ensure controlled exposure conditions, and the extensive arrays of DIII-D divertor diagnostics provide a well-characterized plasma for modeling efforts. Post-exposure analysis provides a direct measure of surface material erosion rates and the amount of retained deuterium. For carbon, these results match closely with the results of accumulated carbon deposition and erosion, and the corresponding deuterium retention of long term exposure tiles in DIII-D. Under the carbon-contaminated background plasma of DIII-D, metal coatings of Be, V, Mo, and W were exposed to the steady-state outer strike point under ELMing and ELM-free H-mode discharges. The rate of material erosion and deuterium retention were measured. As expected, W shows the lowest erosion rate at 0.1 mm/s and the lowest deuterium uptake of 2 {times} 10{sup 20}/m{sup 2}.

The growth of the safeguards inspectorate of the Agency, spanning more than 40 years, has produced a variety of interesting subjects (legal, technical, political, etc.) for recollection, discussion, and study. Although the Agency was established in 1957, the first practical inspections did not occur until the early 1960s. In the early inspections, thee was little C/S equipment available, and no optical surveillance was used. However, by the third decade of the IAEA, the 1980s, many technology advances were made, and the level of C/S equipment activities increased. By the late 1980s, some 200 Twin Minolta film camera systems were deployed by the Agency for safeguards use. At the present time, the Agency is evaluating and beginning to implement remote monitoring as part of the Strengthened Safeguards System. However, adoption of remote monitoring by international agencies cannot occur rapidly because of the many technical and policy issues associated with this activity. A glimpse into the future indicates that an important element of safeguards instrumentation will be the merging of C/S and NDA equipment into integrated systems. The use of modern interior area monitors in International Safeguards also offers a great potential for advancing C/S measures. The research in microsensors is in its infancy, and the opportunities for their reducing the cost, increasing the life time, and increasing the reliability of sensors for safeguards applications are manifold. A period may be approaching in which the terminology of C/S will no longer have its original meaning, as integrated systems combining NDA instruments and C/S instruments are already in use and are expected to be the norm in the near future.

Sandia National Laboratories has refined a process for developing inherently safer system designs, based on methods used by the Laboratories to design detonation safety into nuclear weapons. The process was created when the Laboratories realized that standard engineering practices did not provide the level of safety assurance necessary for nuclear weapon operations, with their potential for catastrophic accidents. A systematic approach, which relies on mutually supportive design principles integrated through fundamental physical principles, was developed to ensure a predictably safe system response under a variety of operational and accident based stresses. Robust, safe system designs result from this thematic approach to safety, minimizing the number of safety critical features. This safety assurance process has two profound benefits: the process avoids the need to understand or limit the ultimate intensity of off normal environments and it avoids the requirement to analyze and test a bewildering and virtually infinite array of accident environment scenarios (e.g., directional threats, sequencing of environments, time races, etc.) to demonstrate conformance to all safety requirements.

A temperature end point method was developed for tungsten CMP (WCMP) processing in the Sandia Microelectronics Development Laboratory (MDL), a facility which develops and prototypes a variety of silicon based devices including ASIC, memory, radiation hardened CMOS and microelectromechanical systems. A large product variety and small production lot size prevents process recipe optimization or standardization for each mask level and product. Rigorous product reliability requirements and prohibitively expensive hardware qualifications essentially require that a single process and consumable set be established for all products, with minimal opportunity for adjustment. A timed process was not suitable without significant potential for manual inspections and rework. Over several weeks of processing on an IPEC 472, the temperature end point method gave a 7.7% 1-sigma end point time distribution. This enabled a 50% reduction in daily process qualification wafers, and allowed minimization of yield loss, rework, and oxide erosion.

Mass spectrometry of the plasma effluent during Reactive Ion Beam Etching (RIBE) of GaAs using an Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) source and a Cl{sub 2}/Ar gas chemistry shows that AsCl{sub 3}, AsCl{sub 2} and AsCl are all detected as etch products for As, while GaCl{sub 2} is the main signal detected for the Ga products. The variation in selective ion currents for the various etch products has been examined as a function of chuck temperature (30--100 C), percentage Cl{sub 2} in the gas flow, beam current (60--180 mA) and beam voltage (200--800 V). The results are consistent with AsCl{sub 3} and GaCl{sub 3} being the main etch product species under their conditions, with fragmentation being responsible for the observed mass spectra.

Germanosilicate glasses exhibit a significant photosensitive response which has been linked to the presence of oxygen- deficient germanium point defects in the glass structure. Based on this correlation, highly photosensitive thin films have been engineered which demonstrate the largest reported ultraviolet-induced refractive index perturbations (Δn) in an as-synthesized material. Our thin-film fabrication process avoids the use of hydrogen sensitizing treatments and, thus, yields stable films which retain their predisposition for large photosensitivity for over one year of storage. Understanding the nature of the defects in such films and their relationship to charge trapping and enhanced photosensitivity is of paramount importance in designing and optimizing the materials. Toward this end, our films have been studied using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), capacitance-voltage, and optical bleaching and absorption spectroscopies. We find experimental evidence suggesting a model in which a change in spin state and charge state of isolated paramagnetic neutral Ge dangling bonds form either diamagnetic positively or negatively charged Ge sites which are largely responsible for the charge trapping and photosensitivity in these thin films. We present experimental data and theoretical modeling to support our defect model and to show the relevance of the work. ©2005 Copyright SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering.

The benefits of a collocated sensor actuator pair are well known within the controls community. Generally speaking, collocation offers the use of simple control algorithms with reduced instabilities due to spillover. One method for achieving collocation is the implementation of a `sentuator' in which a piezoelectric element functions simultaneously as both a sensor and an actuator. Past work in utilizing a sentuator has primarily been limited to piezoelectric films and patches mounted to flexible structures. Additional papers have provided information and methodology for dealing with the non-linear aspects of a piezoceramic sentuator. The need arises for methods of self-sensing when performing active vibration control of very stiff structures. A method for understanding and using self-sensing lead zirconate titanate stacks for active vibration control is presented. This paper specifically provides a basic understanding of self-sensing methods as applied to stiff structures for the purposes of control. The discussion of the methodology is followed by a simple example in which active vibration control is applied to a model of a boring bar with embedded PZT stacks.

The most commonly used solder for electrical interconnections in electronic packages is the near eutectic 60Sn-40Pb alloy. This alloy has a number of processing advantages (suitable melting point of 183C and good wetting behavior). However, under conditions of cyclic strain and temperature (thermomechanical fatigue), the microstructure of this alloy undergoes a heterogeneous coarsening and failure process that makes the prediction of solder joint lifetime complex. A viscoplastic, microstructure dependent, constitutive model for solder, which is currently under development, was implemented into a finite element code. With this computational capability, the thermomechanical response of solder interconnects, including microstructural evolution, can be predicted. This capability was applied to predict the thermomechanical response of various leadless chip carrier solder interconnects to determine the effects of variations in geometry and loading. In this paper, the constitutive model will first be briefly discussed. The results of computational studies to determine the effect of geometry and loading variations on leadless chip carrier solder interconnects then will be presented.

Flashlamp pumped lasers use pulse power switches to commute energy stored in capacitor banks to the flashlamps. To lower the total cost of these switches, Sandia National Laboratories has a research program to evaluate large closing switches. The National Ignition Facility (NIF) is one of the applications of the program designed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, and Sandia National Laboratories. The target value of the energy switched by single devices is 1.6 MJ, from a 6 mF, 24 kV capacitor bank. The peak current is 500 ka. The lifetime of the NIF facility is 24 thousand shots. The goal of the experiment in Sandia is to test switches with the full NIF wave shape, and the correct voltage.

Quad-level polysilicon surface micromachining technology, comprising three mechanical levels plus an electrical interconnect layer, is giving rise to a new generation of micro-electromechanical devices and assemblies. Enhanced components can now be produced through greater flexibility in fabrication and design. New levels of design complexity that include multilevel gears, single-attempt locks, and optical elements have recently been realized. Extensive utilization of the fourth layer of polysilicon differentiates these latter generation devices from their predecessors.1 This level of poly enables the fabrication of pin joints, linkage arms, hinges on moveable plates, and multi-level gear assemblies. The mechanical design aspects of these latest micromachines will be discussed with particular emphasis on a number of design modifications that improve the power, reliability, and smoothness of operation of the microengine.2 The microengine is the primary actuation mechanism that is being used to drive mirrors out of plane and rotate 1600-μm diameter gears.3 Also discussed is our most advanced microme chanical system to date, a complex proof-of-concept batch-fabricated assembly that, upon transmitting the proper electrical code to a mechanical lock, permits the operation of a micro-optical shutter.

A project to estimate well costs in regions of current geothermal activity has been initiated. Costs associated with commonly encountered drilling problems will be included. Activity-based costing techniques will be employed to allow the identification of cost drivers and the evaluation of the economic effects of new technologies and operational procedures on well costs. The sensitivity of well costs to a number of parameters such as rate-of-penetration and daily operating costs will be examined. Additional sensitivity analyses and trade-off studies will evaluate the efficiency of various operational practices and preventive, as well as remedial, actions. These efforts should help provide an understanding of the consumption of resources in geothermal drilling.

An amp-hour counting battery charge control algorithm has been defined and tested using the Digital Solar Technologies MPR-9400 microprocessor based photovoltaic hybrid charge controller. This work included extensive laboratory and field testing of the charge algorithm on vented lead-antimony and valve regulated lead-acid batteries. The test results have shown that with proper setup amp-hour counting charge control is more effective than conventional voltage regulated sub-array shedding in returning the lead-acid battery to a high state of charge.

We developed a self-aligned emitter etchback technique that requires only a single emitter diffusion and no alignments to form self-aligned, patterned-emitter profiles. Standard, commercial, screen-printed gridlines mask a plasma-etchback of the emitter. A subsequent PECVD-nitride deposition provides good surface and bulk passivation and an antireflection coating. We succeeded in finding a set of parameters which resulted in good emitter uniformity and improved cell performance. We used full-size multicrystalline silicon (mc-Si) cells processed in a commercial production line and performed a statistically designed, multiparameter experiment to optimize the use of a hydrogenation treatment to increase performance. Our initial results found a statistically significant improvement of half an absolute percentage point in cell efficiency when the self-aligned emitter etchback was combined with a 3-step PECVD-nitride surface passivation and hydrogenation treatment.

Gear systems rotating on hubs have been operated to failure using Sandia's microengine as the actuation device. Conventional failure modes such as fatigue induced fracture did not occur, indicating that the devices are mechanically extremely robust. The generic route to failure observed for all rotating devices involves sticking of structures that are in sliding contact. This sticking evidently results from microscopic changes in the sliding surfaces during operation. The rate at which these changes occur is accelerated by excessive applied forces, which originate from non-optimized designs or inappropriate drive voltages. Precursors to failure are observed, enabling further understanding of the microscopic changes that occur in the sliding surfaces that ultimately lead to failure.

As a first step toward the development of a new remote sensing technique that we call "holographic correlation spectroscopy," we demonstrate that diffractive optics can be used to synthesize the IR spectra of real compounds. In particular, we have designed, fabricated, and characterized a diffractive element that successfully reproduces the major features of the spectrum of gaseous HF in the region between 3600 cm-1 and 4300 cm-1. The reflection-mode diffractive optic consists of 4096 lines, each 4.5 micrometers wide, at 16 discrete depths relative to the substrate, and was fabricated on a silicon wafer using anisotropic reactive ion-beam etching in a four-mask-level process. We envision the use diffractive elements of this type to replace the cumbersome reference cells of conventional correlation spectroscopy and thereby enable a new class of compact and versatile correlation spectrometers. ©2004 Copyright SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering.

A multi-level polysilicon surface-micromachining technology consisting of 5 layers of polysilicon is presented. Surface topography and film mechanical stress are the major impediments encountered in the development of a multilayer surface-micromachining process. However, excellent mechanical film characteristics have been obtained through the use of chemical-mechanical polishing for planarization of topography and by proper sequencing of film deposition with thermal anneals. Examples of operating microactuators, geared power-transfer mechanisms, and optical elements demonstrate the mechanical advantages of construction with 5 polysilicon layers.

Polysilicon surface-micromachining is a Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) manufacturing technology where the infrastructure for manufacturing silicon integrated circuits is used to fabricate micro-miniature mechanical devices. This presentation describes a multi-level mechanical polysilicon surface-micromachining technology and includes a discussion of the issues which affect device manufacture and performance. The multi-level technology was developed and is employed primarily to fabricate microactuated mechanisms. The intricate and complex motion offered by these devices is naturally accompanied by various forms of fraction and wear in addition to the classical stiction phenomena associated with micromechanical device fabrication and usage.

The National Energy Modeling System (NEMS) developed by the U.S. Department of Energy`s Energy Information Administration is a well-recognized model that is used to project the potential impact of new electric generation technologies. The NEMS model does not presently have the capability to model energy storage on the national grid. The scope of this study was to assess the feasibility of, and make recommendations for, the modeling of battery energy storage systems in the Electricity Market of the NEMS. Incorporating storage within the NEMS will allow the national benefits of storage technologies to be evaluated.

At the request of the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Geothermal Technologies, Sandia National Laboratories convened a group of drilling experts in Berkeley, CA, on April 15-16, 1997, to discuss advanced geothermal drilling systems. The objective of the workshop was to develop one or more conceptual designs for an advanced geothermal drilling system that meets all of the criteria necessary to drill a model geothermal well. The drilling process was divided into ten essential functions. Each function was examined, and discussions were held on the conventional methods used to accomplish each function and the problems commonly encountered. Alternative methods of performing each function were then listed and evaluated by the group. Alternative methods considered feasible or at least worth further investigation were identified, while methods considered impractical or not potentially cost-saving were eliminated from further discussion. This report summarizes the recommendations of the workshop participants. For each of the ten functions, the conventional methods, common problems, and recommended alternative technologies and methods are listed. Each recommended alternative is discussed, and a description is given of the process by which this information will be used by the U.S. DOE to develop an advanced geothermal drilling research program.

A program for evaluating packaging components that may be used in transporting mixed-waste forms has been developed and the first phase has been completed. This effort involved the screening of ten plastic materials in four simulant mixed-waste types. These plastics were butadiene-acrylonitrile copolymer rubber, cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE), epichlorohydrin rubber, ethylene-propylene rubber (EPDM), fluorocarbon (Viton or Kel-F), polytetrafluoroethylene, high-density polyethylene (HDPE), isobutylene-isoprene copolymer rubber (butyl), polypropylene, and styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR). The selected simulant mixed wastes were (1) an aqueous alkaline mixture of sodium nitrate and sodium nitrite; (2) a chlorinated hydrocarbon mixture; (3) a simulant liquid scintillation fluid; and (4) a mixture of ketones. The testing protocol involved exposing the respective materials to 286,000 rads of gamma radiation followed by 14-day exposures to the waste types at 60{degrees}C. The seal materials were tested using vapor transport rate (VTR) measurements while the liner materials were tested using specific gravity as a metric. For these tests, a screening criterion of 0.9 g/hr/m{sup 2} for VTR and a specific gravity change of 10% was used. Based on this work, it was concluded that while all seal materials passed exposure to the aqueous simulant mixed waste, EPDM and SBR had the lowest VTRs. In the chlorinated hydrocarbon simulant mixed waste, only Viton passed the screening tests. In both the simulant scintillation fluid mixed waste and the ketone mixture simulant mixed waste, none of the seal materials met the screening criteria. For specific gravity testing of liner materials, the data showed that while all materials with the exception of polypropylene passed the screening criteria, Kel-F, HDPE, and XLPE offered the greatest resistance to the combination of radiation and chemicals.

This paper presents an overview of the methodology used in the recent performance assessment (PA) to support the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Carlsbad Area Office`s (CAO`s) Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) Compliance Certification Application (CCA). The results of this recently completed WIPP PA will be presented. Major release modes contributing to the total radionuclide release to the accessible environment will be discussed. Comparison of the mean complementary cumulative distribution function (CCDF) curve against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) radionuclide release limits will be presented.

The Department of Energy submitted a Compliance Certification Application for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in October, 1996. A critical part of this application was a Performance Assessment which predicts the cumulative radioactive release to the accessible environment over a time period of 10,000 years. Comparison of this predicted release to the EPA standard shows a comfortable margin of compliance. The scientific understanding that was critical to developing this assessment spans a broad range of geotechnical disciplines, and required a thorough understanding of the site`s geology and hydrology. Evaluation of the geologic processes which are active in the site region establishes that there will be no natural breach of site integrity for millions of years, far longer than the 10,000 year regulatory period. Inadvertent human intrusion is, therefore, the only credible scenario to lead to potential radioactive release to the accessible environment. To substantiate this conclusion and to quantify these potential releases from human intrusion, it has been necessary to develop an understanding of the following processes: (1) salt creep and shaft seal efficacy; (2) gas generation from organic decomposition of waste materials and anoxic corrosion of metals in the waste and waste packages; (3) solubilities for actinides in brine; (4) fluid flow in Salado formation rocks, and (5) hydrologic transport of actinides in the overlying dolomite aquifers. Other issues which had to be evaluated to allow definition of breach scenarios were brine reservoir occurrences and their associated reservoir parameters, consequences of mining over the repository, and drilling for natural resources in the vicinity of the repository. Results of all these studies will be briefly summarized in this paper.

Many research activities in subsurface transport require the numerical simulation of multiphase flow in porous media. This capability is critical to research in environmental remediation (e.g. contaminations with dense, non-aqueous-phase liquids), nuclear waste management, reservoir engineering, and to the assessment of the future availability of groundwater in many parts of the world. This paper presents an unstructured grid numerical algorithm for subsurface transport in heterogeneous porous media implemented for use on massively parallel (MP) computers. The mathematical model considers nonisothermal two-phase (liquid/gas) flow, including capillary pressure effects, binary diffusion in the gas phase, conductive, latent, and sensible heat transport. The Galerkin finite element method is used for spatial discretization, and temporal integration is accomplished via a predictor/corrector scheme. Message-passing and domain decomposition techniques are used for implementing a scalable algorithm for distributed memory parallel computers. Illustrative applications are shown to demonstrate capabilities and performance, one of which is modeling hydrothermal transport at the Yucca Mountain site for a radioactive waste facility.

Adaptive numerical methods offer greater efficiency than traditional numerical methods by concentrating computational effort in regions of the problem domain where the solution is difficult to obtain. In this paper, the authors describe progress toward adding mesh refinement to MPSalsa, a computer program developed at Sandia National laboratories to solve coupled three-dimensional fluid flow and detailed reaction chemistry systems for modeling chemically reacting flow on large-scale parallel computers. Data structures that support refinement and dynamic load-balancing are discussed. Results using uniform refinement with mesh sequencing to improve convergence to steady-state solutions are also presented. Three examples are presented: a lid driven cavity, a thermal convection flow, and a tilted chemical vapor deposition reactor.

Wind-energy researchers at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are developing a new, light-weight, modular system capable of acquiring long-term, continuous time-series data from current-generation small or large, dynamic wind-turbine rotors. Meetings with wind-turbine research personnel at NREL and SNL resulted in a list of the major requirements that the system must meet. Initial attempts to locate a commercial system that could meet all of these requirements were not successful, but some commercially available data acquisition and radio/modem subsystems that met many of the requirements were identified. A time synchronization subsystem and a programmable logic device subsystem to integrate the functions of the data acquisition, the radio/modem, and the time synchronization subsystems and to communicate with the user have been developed at SNL. This paper presents the data system requirements, describes the four major subsystems comprising the system, summarizes the current status of the system, and presents the current plans for near-term development of hardware and software.

Disordered polymethacrylonitrile (PMAN) carbon monoliths have been studied as potential tailored electrodes for lithium ion batteries. A combination of electrochemical and surface spectroscopic probes have been used to investigate irreversible loss mechanisms. Voltammetric measurements show that Li intercalates readily into the carbon at potentials 1V positive of the reversible Li potential. The coulometric efficiency rises rapidly from 50% for the first potential cycle to greater than 85% for the third cycle, indicating that solvent decomposition is a self-limiting process. Surface film composition and thickness, as measured by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS), does not vary substantially when compared to more ordered carbon surfaces. Li{sup +} profiles are particularly useful in discriminating between the bound states of Li at the surface of solution permeable PMAN carbons.

VICTORIA is a mechanistic computer code designed to analyze fission product behavior within a nuclear reactor coolant system (RCS) during a severe accident. It provides detailed predictions of the release of radioactive and nonradioactive materials from the reactor core and transport and deposition of these materials within the RCS. A summary of the results and recommendations of an independent peer review of VICTORIA by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is presented, along with recent applications of the code. The latter include analyses of a temperature-induced steam generator tube rupture sequence and post-test analyses of the Phebus FPT-1 test. The next planned Phebus test, FTP-4, will focus on fission product releases from a rubble bed, especially those of the less-volatile elements, and on the speciation of the released elements. Pretest analyses using VICTORIA to estimate the magnitude and timing of releases are presented. The predicted release of uranium is a matter of particular importance because of concern about filter plugging during the test.

The US Department of Energy plans to dispose of transuranic waste at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), which is sited in southeastern New Mexico. The WIPP disposal facility is located approximately 2,150 feet (650 m) below surface in the bedded halite of the Salado Formation. Prior to initiation of disposal activities, the Department of Energy must demonstrate that the WIPP will comply with all regulatory requirements. Applicable regulations require that contaminant releases from the WIPP remain below specified levels for a period of 10,000 years. To demonstrate that the WIPP will comply with these regulations, the Department of Energy has requested that Sandia National Laboratories develop and implement a comprehensive performance assessment of the WIPP repository for the regulatory period. This document presents the conceptual model of the shaft sealing system to be implemented in performance assessment calculations conducted in support of the Compliance Certification Application for the WIPP. The model was developed for use in repository-scale calculations and includes the seal system geometry and materials to be used in grid development as well as all parameters needed to describe the seal materials. These calculations predict the hydrologic behavior of the system. Hence conceptual model development is limited to those processes that could impact the fluid flow through the seal system.

This work considers the problem of causing multiple (100's) autonomous mobile robots to converge to a target and provides a "follow-the- leader" approach to the problem. Each robot has only a limited-range sensor for sensing the target and also larger but also limited-range robot-to-robot communication capability. Because of the small amount of information available to the robots, a practical approach to improve convergence to the target is to have a robot follow the robot with the best quality of information. Specifically, each robot emits a signal that informs in-range robots what its status is. A robot has a status value of 0 if it is itself in range of the target. A robot has a status of 1 if it is not in range of the target but is is communication range of a robot that is in range of the target. A robot has a status of 2 if it is not in range of the target but is within range of another robot that has status 1, and so on. Of all the mobile robots that any given robot is in range of, it follows the one with the best status. The emergent behavior is the ant-like trails of robots following each other toward the target. If the robot is not in range of another robot that is either in range of the target or following another robot, the robot will assign -1 to its quality-of-information, and will execute an exhaustive search. The exhuastive search will continue until it encounters either the target or another robot with a nonnegative quality-of-information. The quality of information approach was extended to the case where each robot only has two-bit signals informing it of distance to in-range robots.

This work considers the problem of maximum utilization of a set of mobile robots with limited sensor-range capabilities and limited travel distances. The robots are initially in random positions. A set of robots properly guards or covers a region if every point within the region is within the effective sensor range of at least one vehicle. We wish to move the vehicles into surveillance positions so as to guard or cover a region, while minimizing the maximum distance traveled by any vehicle. This problem can be formulated as an assignment problem, in which we must optimally decide which robot to assign to which slot of a desired matrix of grid points. The cost function is the maximum distance traveled by any robot. Assignment problems can be solved very efficiently. Solution times for one hundred robots took only seconds on a Silicon Graphics Crimson workstation. The initial positions of all the robots can be sampled by a central base station and their newly assigned positions communicated back to the robots. Alternatively, the robots can establish their own coordinate system with the origin fixed at one of the robots and orientation determined by the compass bearing of another robot relative to this robot This paper presents example solutions to the multiple-target-multiple-agent scenario using a matching algorithm. Two separate cases with one hundred agents in each were analyzed using this method. We have found these mobile robot problems to be a very interesting application of network optimization methods, and we expect this to be a fruitful area for future research.

This contribution extends the Outside Nodal Hierarchy List (ONHL) procedures described in ATM Form Contribution 97-0766. These extensions allow multiple mobile networks to form either an ad hoc network or an extension of a fixed PNNI infrastructure. This contribution covers the simplest case where the top-most Logical Group Nodes (LGNs), in those mobile networks, all reside at the same level in a PNNI hierarchy. Future contributions will cover the general case where those top-most LGNs reside at different hierarchy levels. This contribution considers a flat ad hoc network architecture--in the sense that each mobile network always participates in the PNNI hierarchy at the preconfigured level of its top-most LGN.

Recent advances in smart materials have renewed interest in the development of improved manufacturing processes featuring sensing, processing, and active control. In particular, vibration suppression in metal cutting has received much attention because of its potential for enhancing part quality while reducing the time and cost of production. Although active tool clamps have been recently demonstrated, they are often accompanied by interfacing issues that limit their applicability to specific machines. Under the auspices of the Laboratory Directed Research and Development program, the project titled {open_quotes}Smart Cutting Tools for Precision Manufacturing{close_quotes} developed an alternative approach to active vibration control in machining. Using the boring process as a vehicle for exploration, a commercially available tool was modified to incorporate PZT stack actuators for active suppression of its bending modes. Since the modified tool requires no specialized mounting hardware, it can be readily mounted on many machines. Cutting tests conducted on a horizontal lathe fitted with a hardened steel workpiece verify that the actively damped boring bar yields significant vibration reduction and improved surface finishes as compared to an unmodified tool.

Throughout Sandia`s history, products have been represented by drawings. Solid modeling systems have recently replaced drawings as the preferred means for representing product geometry. These systems are used for product visualization, engineering analysis and manufacturing planning. Unfortunately, solid modeling technology is inadequate for life cycle systems engineering, which requires maintenance of technical history, efficient management of geometric and non-geometric data, and explicit representation of engineering and manufacturing characteristics. Such information is not part of the mathematical foundation of solid modeling. The current state-of-the-art in life cycle engineering is comprised of painstakingly created special purpose tools, which often are incompatible. New research on {open_quotes}chain modeling{close_quotes} provides a method of chaining the functionality of a part to the geometric representation. Chain modeling extends classical solid modeling to include physical, manufacturing, and procedural information required for life cycle engineering. In addition, chain modeling promises to provide the missing theoretical basis for Sandia`s parent/child product realization paradigm. In chain modeling, artifacts and systems are characterized in terms of their combinatorial properties: cell complexes, chains, and their operators. This approach is firmly rooted in algebraic topology and is a natural extension of current technology. The potential benefits of this approach include explicit hierarchical and combinatorial representation of physics, geometry, functionality, test, and legacy data in a common computational framework that supports a rational decision process and partial design automation. Chain modeling will have a significant impact on design preservation, system identification, parameterization, system reliability, and design simplification.

The Laser Sensor No. 1 (LS1) is a system designed and built by Sandia to detect and report laser illumination of an orbiting satellite. It was launched March 1994 as part of the U.S. Air Force Phillips Laboratory, Technology for Autonomous Operational Survivability (TAOS) satellite program. The engineering details of the system are described in this report. Operation characteristics and results have been reserved for inclusion in a classified Air Force report prepared by the TAOS Program Office of Phillips Laboratory.

Manufacturers widely recognize testing as a major factor in the cost, producability, and delivery of product in the $100 billion integrated circuit business: {open_quotes}The rapid development of VLSI using sub-micron CMOS technology has suddenly exposed traditional test techniques as a major cost factor that could restrict the development of VLSI devices exceeding 512 pins an operating frequencies above 200 MHz.{close_quotes} -- 1994 Semiconductor Industry Association Roadmap, Design and Test, Summary, pg. 43. This problem increases dramatically for stockpile electronics, where small production quantities make it difficult to amortize the cost of increasingly expensive testers. Application of multiple ICs in Multi-Chip Modules (MCM) greatly multiplies testing problems for commercial and defense users alike. By traditional test methods, each new design requires custom test hardware and software and often dedicated testing equipment costing millions of dollars. Also, physical properties of traditional test systems often dedicated testing equipment costing millions of dollars. Also, physical properties of traditional test systems limit capabilities in testing at-speed (>200 MHz), high-impedance, and high-accuracy analog signals. This project proposed a revolutionary approach to these problems: replace the multi-million dollar external test system with an inexpensive test system integrated onto the product wafer. Such a methodology enables testing functions otherwise unachievable by conventional means, particularly in the areas of high-frequency, at-speed testing, high impedance analog circuits, and known good die assessment. The techniques apply specifically to low volume applications, typical of Defense Programs, where testing costs represent an unusually high proportional of product costs, not easily amortized.

This document describes the DOSFAC2 code, which is used for generating dose-to-source conversion factors for the MACCS2 code. DOSFAC2 is a revised and updated version of the DOSFAC code that was distributed with version 1.5.11 of the MACCS code. included are (1) an overview and background of DOSFAC2, (2) a summary of two new functional capabilities, and (3) a user`s guide. 20 refs., 5 tabs.

Computer modeling of Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) reactors can greatly aid in the understanding, design, and optimization of these complex systems. Modeling is particularly attractive in these systems since the costs of experimentally evaluating many design alternatives can be prohibitively expensive, time consuming, and even dangerous, when working with toxic chemicals like Arsine (AsH{sub 3}): until now, predictive modeling has not been possible for most systems since the behavior is three-dimensional and governed by complex reaction mechanisms. In addition, CVD reactors often exhibit large thermal gradients, large changes in physical properties over regions of the domain, and significant thermal diffusion for gas mixtures with widely varying molecular weights. As a result, significant simplifications in the models have been made which erode the accuracy of the models` predictions. In this paper, the authors will demonstrate how the vast computational resources of massively parallel computers can be exploited to make possible the analysis of models that include coupled fluid flow and detailed chemistry in three-dimensional domains. For the most part, models have either simplified the reaction mechanisms and concentrated on the fluid flow, or have simplified the fluid flow and concentrated on rigorous reactions. An important CVD research thrust has been in detailed modeling of fluid flow and heat transfer in the reactor vessel, treating transport and reaction of chemical species either very simply or as a totally decoupled problem. Using the analogy between heat transfer and mass transfer, and the fact that deposition is often diffusion limited, much can be learned from these calculations; however, the effects of thermal diffusion, the change in physical properties with composition, and the incorporation of surface reaction mechanisms are not included in this model, nor can transitions to three-dimensional flows be detected.

This paper documents an investigation of approaches to improving the quality of Pro/Engineer-created solid model data for use by downstream applications. The investigation identified a number of sources of problems caused by deficiencies in Pro/Engineer`s geometric engine, and developed prototype software capable of detecting many of these problems and guiding users towards simplified, useable models. The prototype software was tested using Sandia production solid models, and provided significant leverage in attacking the simplification problem.

The CONTAIN 2.0 computer code is an integrated analysis tool used for predicting the physical conditions, chemical compositions, and distributions of radiological materials inside a containment building following the release of material from the primary system in a light-water reactor accident. It can also predict the source term to the environment. CONTAIN 2.0 is intended to replace the earlier CONTAIN 1.12, which was released in 1991. The purpose of this Code Manual is to provide full documentation of the features and models in CONTAIN 2.0. Besides complete descriptions of the models, this Code Manual provides a complete description of the input and output from the code. CONTAIN 2.0 is a highly flexible and modular code that can run problems that are either quite simple or highly complex. An important aspect of CONTAIN is that the interactions among thermal-hydraulic phenomena, aerosol behavior, and fission product behavior are taken into account. The code includes atmospheric models for steam/air thermodynamics, intercell flows, condensation/evaporation on structures and aerosols, aerosol behavior, and gas combustion. It also includes models for reactor cavity phenomena such as core-concrete interactions and coolant pool boiling. Heat conduction in structures, fission product decay and transport, radioactive decay heating, and the thermal-hydraulic and fission product decontamination effects of engineered safety features are also modeled. To the extent possible, the best available models for severe accident phenomena have been incorporated into CONTAIN, but it is intrinsic to the nature of accident analysis that significant uncertainty exists regarding numerous phenomena. In those cases, sensitivity studies can be performed with CONTAIN by means of user-specified input parameters. Thus, the code can be viewed as a tool designed to assist the knowledge reactor safety analyst in evaluating the consequences of specific modeling assumptions.

This report provides a summary of the Pulser In a Chip 9000-Discretionary LDRD. The program began in January of 1997 and concluded in September of 1997. The over-arching goal of this LDRD is to study whether laser diode triggered photoconductive semiconductor switches (PCSS) can be used to activate electro-optic devices such as Q-switches and Pockels cells and to study possible laser diode/switch integration. The PCSS switches we used were high gain GaAs switches because they can be triggered with small amounts of laser light. The specific goals of the LDRD were to demonstrate: (1) that small laser diode arrays that are potential candidates for laser-switch integration will indeed trigger the PCSS switch, and (2) that high gain GaAs switches can be used to trigger optical Q-switches in lasers such as the lasers to be used in the X-1 Advanced Radiation Source and the laser used for direct optical initiation (DOI) of explosives. The technology developed with this LDRD is now the prime candidate for triggering the Q switch in the multiple lasers in the laser trigger system of the X-1 Advanced Radiation Source and may be utilized in other accelerators. As part of the LDRD we developed a commercial supplier. To study laser/switch integration we tested triggering the high gain GaAs switches with: edge emitting laser diodes, vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs), and transverse junction stripe (TJS) lasers. The first two types of lasers (edge emitting and VCSELs) did activate the PCSS but are harder to integrate with the PCSS for a compact package. The US lasers, while easier to integrate with the switch, did not trigger the PCSS at the US laser power levels we used. The PCSS was used to activate the Q-switch of the compact laser to be used in the X-1 Advanced Radiation Source.

During November/96 to April/97 Sandia National Laboratories provided consulation, data collection, analysis and project documentation to the U.S. Army for a series of four geothermal exploratory slimholes drilled on the McGregor Range approximately 25 miles north of El Paso, Texas. This drilling was directed toward evaluating a potential reservoir for geothermal power generation in this area, with a secondary objective of assessing the potential for direct use applications such as space heating or water de-salinization. This report includes: representative temperature logs from the wells; daily drilling reports; a narrative account of the drilling and testing; a description of equipment used; a summary and preliminary interpretation of the data; and recommendations for future work.

The WCEDS prototype software system was developed to investigate the usefulness of waveform correlation methods for CTBT monitoring. The WCEDS prototype performs global seismic event detection and has been used in numerous experiments. This report documents the software system design, presenting an overview of the system operation, describing the system functions, tracing the information flow through the system, discussing the software structures, and describing the subsystem services and interactions. The effectiveness of the software design in meeting project objectives is considered, as well as opportunities for code refuse and lessons learned from the development process. The report concludes with recommendations for modifications and additions envisioned for regional waveform-correlation-based detector.

This report presents a detailed analysis of the results from fatigue studies of wind turbine blade composite materials carried out at Montana State University (MSU) over the last seven years. It is intended to be used in conjunction with the DOE/MSU composite Materials Fatigue Database. The fatigue testing of composite materials requires the adaptation of standard test methods to the particular composite structure of concern. The stranded fabric E-glass reinforcement used by many blade manufacturers has required the development of several test modifications to obtain valid test data for materials with particular reinforcement details, over the required range of tensile and compressive loadings. Additionally, a novel testing approach to high frequency (100 Hz) testing for high cycle fatigue using minicoupons has been developed and validated. The database for standard coupon tests now includes over 4,100 data points for over 110 materials systems. The report analyzes the database for trends and transitions in static and fatigue behavior with various materials parameters. Parameters explored are reinforcement fabric architecture, fiber content, content of fibers oriented in the load direction, matrix material, and loading parameters (tension, compression, and reversed loading). Significant transitions from good fatigue resistance to poor fatigue resistance are evident in the range of materials currently used in many blades. A preliminary evaluation of knockdowns for selected structural details is also presented. The high frequency database provides a significant set of data for various loading conditions in the longitudinal and transverse directions of unidirectional composites out to 10{sup 8} cycles. The results are expressed in stress and strain based Goodman Diagrams suitable for design. A discussion is provided to guide the user of the database in its application to blade design.

An efficient method is presented for calculation of RMS von Mises stresses from stress component transfer functions and the Fourier representation of random input forces. An efficient implementation of the method calculates the RMS stresses directly from the linear stress and displacement modes. The key relation presented is one suggested in past literature, but does not appear to have been previously exploited in this manner.

This study is the second phase in a combined analytical and experimental effort to characterize and improve the ride quality of the Department of Energy tractor/trailer. The discussion includes a brief overview of the finite element model of the vehicle and experimental road and modal test results. A novel system identification approach is used, employing both lab-based modal tests, and modal data derived using the Natural Excitation Technique (NExT), a scheme that utilizes the roadway surface as a natural forcing function. The use of a cab isolation system is investigated with the computer model for purposes of improving the ride quality of the vehicle. To validate these analytical predictions, an engineering prototype vehicle was developed, which included a cab isolation system, to experimentally assess ride quality. Ride quality improvements due to the addition of the isolation system are then assessed both experimentally and analytically, and the results are compared.

The predictive modeling of vibration of many structural systems is crippled by an inability to predictively model the mechanics of joints. The lack of understanding of joint dynamics is evidenced by the substantial uncertainty of joint compliances in the numerical models and by the complete inability to predict joint damping. The lore is that at low amplitudes, joint mechanics are associated with Coulomb friction and stick-slip phenomena and that at high amplitudes, impact processes result in dissipation as well as shift of energy to other frequencies. Inadequate understanding of the physics precludes reliable predictions. In this introductory work, joint compliance is studied in both a numerical and experimental setting. A simple bolted interface is used as the test article and compliance is measured for the joint in both compression and in tension. This simple interface is shown to exhibit a strong non-linearity near the transition from compression to tension (or vice-versa). Modeling issues pertaining to numerically solving for the compliance are addressed. It is shown that the model predicts the experimental strains and compliance fairly well. It will be seen that the joint behavior is a mechanical analogy to a diode. In compression, the joint is very stiff, acting almost as a rigid link, while in tension the joint is soft, acting as a soft spring. Although there have been many other studies performed on bolted joints, the variety of joint geometries has demonstrated large variations in behavior. This study is an attempt to quantify the behavior of typical joints found in today`s weapon systems.

In the past thirty-six months, tremendous strides have been made in x-ray production using high-current z-pinches. Today, the x-ray energy (1.9 MJ) and power (200 TW) output of the Z accelerator (formerly PBFA-II) is the largest available in the laboratory. These z-pinch x-ray sources are being developed for research into the physics of high energy density plasmas of interest in weapon behavior and in inertial confinement fusion. Beyond the Z accelerator current of 20 MA, an extrapolation to the X-1 accelerator level of 60 MA may have the potential to drive high-yield ICF reactions at affordable cost if several challenging technical problems can be overcome. New developments have also taken place at Sandia in the area of high current, mm-diameter electron beams for advanced hydrodynamic radiography. On SABRE, x-ray spot diameters were less than 2 mm, with a dose of 100R at 1 meter in a 40 ns pulse.

This paper describes how variable structure control can be used to describe the overall behavior of multiple autonomous robotic vehicles with simple finite state machine rules. The importance of this result is that we can then begin to design provably asymptotically stable group behaviors from a set of simple control laws and appropriate switching points with variable structure control. The ability to prove convergence to a goal is especially important for applications such as locating military targets or land mines.

Three methods for fiber end-face preparation based on the availability of exceptionally good cleaved surfaces from a commercial vendor were discussed. A few breakdown and damage processes were studied for this purpose. Results were also compared to previous measurements obtained from fibers which were mechanicallly polished using an optimized polishing. The mean values for maximum transmitted energy before breakdown or damage for the cleaved-only and cleaved-plus-flame polished fibers were a bit higher than the corresponding value for mechanical polished fibers.

A buckling calculation procedure based on the method of quadratic components is presented. Recently developed for simulating the motion of rotating flexible structures, the method of quadratic components is shown to be applicable to buckling problems with either conservative or nonconservative loads. For conservative loads, stability follows from the positive definiteness of the system`s stiffness matrix. For nonconservative loads, stability is determined by solving a nonsymmetric eigenvalue problem, which depends on both the stiffness and mass distribution of the system. Buckling calculations presented for a cantilevered beam are shown to compare favorably with classical results. Although the example problem is fairly simple and well-understood, the procedure can be used in conjunction with a general-purpose finite element code for buckling calculations of more complex systems.

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in southeast New Mexico has been studied as a transuranic waste repository for the past 23 years. During this time, an extensive site characterization, design, construction, and experimental program was completed to provide in-depth understanding of the dominant processes that are most likely to influence the containment of radionuclides for 10,000 years. The success of the program, however, is defined by the regulator in the context of compliance with performance criteria, rather than by the in-depth technical understanding typical of most scientific programs. The WIPP project was successful in making a transformation from science to compliance by refocusing and redirecting programmatic efforts toward the singular goal of meeting regulatory compliance requirements while accelerating the submittal of the Compliance Certification Application (CCA) by two months from the April 1994 Disposal Decision Plan (DDP) date of December 1996, and by reducing projected characterization costs by more than 40%. This experience is unparalleled within the radioactive waste management community and has contributed to numerous lessons learned from which the entire community can benefit.

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in southeast New Mexico has been studied as a transuranic waste repository for the past 23 years. During this time, an extensive site characterization, design, construction, and experimental program was completed, which provided in-depth understanding of the dominant processes that are most likely to influence the containment of radionuclides for 10,000 years. Nearly 1,500 parameters were developed using information gathered from this program; the parameters were input to numerical models for WIPP Compliance Certification Application (CCA) Performance Assessment (PA) calculations. The CCA probabilistic codes frequently require input values that define a statistical distribution for each parameter. Developing parameter distributions begins with the assignment of an appropriate distribution type, which is dependent on the type, magnitude, and volume of data or information available. The development of the parameter distribution values may require interpretation or statistical analysis of raw data, combining raw data with literature values, scaling of lab or field data to fit code grid mesh sizes, or other transformation. Parameter development and documentation of the development process were very complicated, especially for those parameters based on empirical data; they required the integration of information from Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) code sponsors, parameter task leaders (PTLs), performance assessment analysts (PAAs), and experimental principal investigators (PIs). This paper, Part 1 of two parts, contains a discussion of the parameter development process, roles and responsibilities, and lessons learned. Part 2 will discuss parameter documentation, traceability and retrievability, and lessons learned from related audits and reviews.

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in southeast New Mexico has been studied as a transuranic waste repository for the past 23 years. During this time, an extensive site characterization, design, construction, and experimental program was completed, which provided in depth understanding of the dominant processes that are most likely to influence the containment of radionuclides for 10,000 years. Nearly 1,500 parameters were developed using information gathered from this program and were input to numerical models for WIPP Compliance Certification Application (CCA) Performance Assessment (PA) calculations. The CCA probability models require input parameters that are defined by a statistical distribution. Developing parameters begins with the assignment of an appropriate distribution type, which is dependent on the type, magnitude, and volume of data or information available. Parameter development may require interpretation or statistical analysis of raw data, combining raw data with literature values, scaling laboratory or field data to fit code grid mesh sizes, or other transformations. Documentation of parameter development is designed to answer two questions: What source information was used to develop this parameter? and Why was this particular data set/information used? Therefore, complete documentation requires integrating information from code sponsors, parameter task leaders, performance assessment analysts, and experimental principal investigators. This paper, Part 2 of 2 parts, contains a discussion of the WIPP CCA PA Parameter Tracking System, document traceability and retrievability, and lessons learned from related audits and reviews.

The design of an effective physical protection system (PPS) includes the determination of the PPS objectives, the initial design of a PPS, the evaluation of the design, and probably, the redesign or refinement of the system. To develop the objectives, the designer must begin by gathering information about facility operation and conditions, such as a comprehensive description of the facility, operating conditions, and the physical protection requirements. The designer then needs to define the threat. This involves considering factors about potential adversaries: class of adversary, adversary`s capabilities, and range of adversary`s tactics. Next, the designer should identify targets. Determination of whether or not the materials being protected are attractive targets is based mainly on the ease or difficulty of acquisition and desirability of the material. The designer now knows the objectives of the PPS, that is, ``what to protect against whom.`` The next step is to design the system by determining how best to combine such elements as fences, vaults, sensors and assessment devices, entry control devices, communication devices, procedures, and protective force personnel to meet the objectives of the system. Once a PPS is designed, it must be analyzed and evaluated to ensure it meets the PPS objectives. Evaluation must allow for features working together to ensure protection rather than regarding each feature separately. Due to the complexity of the protection systems, an evaluation usually requires modeling techniques. If any vulnerabilities are found, the initial system must be redesigned to correct the vulnerabilities and a reevaluation conducted. After the system is installed, the threat and system parameters may change with time. If they do, the analysis must be performed periodically to ensure the system objectives are still being met.

A split Hopkinson bar technique has been developed to evaluate the performance of accelerometers that measure large amplitude pulses. An evaluation of this technique has been conducted in the Mechanical Shock Laboratory at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) to determine its use in the practical calibration of accelerometers. This evaluation consisted of three tasks. First, the quartz crystal was evaluated in a split Hopkinson bar configuration to evaluate the quartz gage`s sensitivity and frequency response at force levels of 18,000, 35,000 and 53,000 N at ambient temperature, {minus}48 C and +74 C. Secondly, the fly away technique was evaluated at shock amplitudes of 50,000, 100,000, 150,000 and 200,000 G (1 G = 9.81 m/s{sup 2}) at ambient temperature, {minus}48 C and +74 C. Lastly, the technique was performed using a NIST calibrated reference accelerometer. Comparisons of accelerations calculated from the quartz gage data and the measured acceleration data have shown very good agreement. Based on this evaluation, the authors expect this split Hopkinson fly away technique to be certified by the SNL Primary Standards Laboratory.

Many dynamical systems tested in the field and the laboratory display significant nonlinear behavior. Accurate characterization of such systems requires modeling in a nonlinear framework. One construct forming a basis for nonlinear modeling is that of the artificial neural network (ANN). However, when system behavior is complex, the amount of data required to perform training can become unreasonable. The authors reduce the complexity of information present in system response measurements using decomposition via canonical variate analysis. They describe a method for decomposing system responses, then modeling the components with ANNs. A numerical example is presented, along with conclusions and recommendations.

Sandia National Laboratories and Tracor Applied Sciences have developed a proof-of-concept Expert System for the automatic detection and diagnosis of several important problems in geothermal drilling. The system is designed to detect loss of circulation, influx, loss of pump efficiency, and sensor problems. Data from flow sensors (including the rolling float meter), the pump stroke counter and other sensors are processed and examined for deviations from expected patterns. The deviations from expected patterns. The deviations are transformed into evidence for a Bayesian Network (a probabilistic reasoning tool), which estimates the probability of each fault. The results are displayed by a Graphical User Interface, which also allows the user to see data related to a specific fault. The prototype was tested on real data, and successfully detected and diagnosed faults.

This paper presents the results of tests performed on a variety of electrochemical microactuators and arrays of these actuators fabricated in the SUMMiT process at the U.S. Department of Energy`s Sandia National Laboratories. These results are intended to aid designers of thermally actuated mechanisms, and they apply to similar actuators made in other polysilicon MEMS processes such as the MUMPS process. Measurements include force and deflection versus input power, maximum operating frequency, effects of long term operation, and ideal actuator and array geometries for different applications` force requirements. Also, different methods of arraying these actuators together are compared. It is found that a method using rotary joints, enabled by the advanced features of the SUMMiT fabrication process, is the most efficient array design. The design and operation of a thermally actuated stepper motor is explained to illustrate a useful application of these arrays.

The response of a system containing an energetic material (EM) to an abnormal thermal environment is termed cookoff. To predict the violence of reaction of confined energetic materials during cookoff requires a description of the relevant physical processes that occur on time scales Ranging from days to submicroseconds. The time-to-ignition can be characterized accurately using heat transfer with chemistry and quasistatic mechanics. After ignition the energetic material deflagrates on a millisecond time scale. During this time the mechanical processes become dynamic. If the confinement survives burning then accelerated deflagration can lead to shock formation and deflagration to detonation transition. The focus of this work is the dynamic combustion regime in the millisecond time domain. Due to the mathematical stiffness of the chemistry equations and the prohibitively fine spatial resolution requirements needed to resolve the structure of the flame, an interface tracking approach is used to propagate the burn front. Demonstrative calculations are presented that illustrate the dynamic interaction of the deflagrating energetic material with its confinement.

The authors report on an integrated program to understand the fundamentals of LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} performance as a cathode for lithium ion rechargeable batteries. Specifically, this program is designed to address the effects of doping on the crystal chemistry, lattice constants, and electrochemical performance. The work is being expanded to include studies on LiCoO{sub 2} and LiNiO{sub 2}.

The authors conducted experiments that monitored the response of heated, confined energetic materials in both fixed-volume and fixed-load configurations. They studied a variety of HMX-based materials, looking at the effects of particle size and binders. The {beta}-{delta} phase transition near 170 C led to a more reactive state. Materials that underwent complete transition in the fixed-load experiments (allowed to expand fully to accommodate the 5% volume increase) cooked off faster than those in the fixed-volume configuration.

International relations are often devoted to establishing agreements that define, control, or regulate issues of potential conflict or dispute. These agreements span a full range of national and international issues from human rights to resource allocations and national security. The scope of these agreements can vary from bilateral arrangements to global treaties or control regimes. In many cases, elements of the agreement are monitored to verify compliance or increase confidence among parties that the terms of the agreement are being met. This article outlines options for cooperation on the Korean peninsula that could build confidence and reduce tension. The role of monitoring technology in helping to implement such agreements is also described.

The Federal Aviation Administration`s Airworthiness Assurance NDI Validation Center (AANC) and the Center for Aviation Systems Reliability (CASR) are currently working to develop a liquid penetrant inspection (LPI) system evaluation capability that will support the needs of the penetrant manufacturers, commercial airline industry and the FAA. The main focus of this facility is to support the evaluation of penetrant inspection materials, penetrant systems and to apply resources to support industry needs. This paper discusses efforts to create such a facility and an initial project to produce fatigue crack specimens for evaluation of Type 1 penetrant sensitivities.

One role of the Intelligent Robotics and System Center (ISRC) at Sandia National Laboratories is to address certain aspects of Sandia`s mission to design, manufacture, maintain, and dismantle nuclear weapon components. Hazardous materials, devices, and environments are often involved. Because of shrinking resources, these tasks must be accomplished with a minimum of prototyping, while maintaining high reliability. In this paper, the authors describe simulation, off-line programming/planning, and related tools which are in use, under development, and being researched to solve these problems at the ISRC.

A technique is presented to simultaneously diffuse boron and phosphorus in silicon, and grow an in-situ passivating oxide in a single furnace step. It is shown that limited solid doping sources made from P and B Spin-On Dopant (SOD) films can produce optimal n{sup +} and p{sup +} profiles simultaneously without the deleterious effects of cross doping. A high quality passivating oxide is grown in-situ beneath the thin ({approximately} 60 {angstrom}) diffusion glass, resulting in low J{sub o} values below 100 fA/cm{sup 2} for transparent ({approximately} 100 {Omega}/{open_square}) phosphorus and boron diffusions. For the first time it is shown that impurities present in the boron SOD film can be effectively filtered out by employing separate source wafers, resulting in bulk lifetimes in excess of 1 ms for the sample wafers. The degree of lifetime degradation in the sources is related to the gettering efficiency of boron in silicon. This novel simultaneous diffusion, in-situ oxidation, impurity filtering and gettering technique was successfully used to produce 20.3% Fz, and 19.1% Cz solar cells, in one furnace step.

A survey of US system integrators, charge controller manufacturers, and battery manufacturers was conducted in 1996 to determine market and application trends. This survey was sponsored by the USDOE. Results from 21 system integrators show a 1995 PV battery sales of $4.76 million. Using the survey results, a top down market analysis was conducted with a total predicted US battery market of $34.7 million and a world wide market of US $302 million. The survey also indicated that 71% (of dollars) were spent on VRLA and 29% on flooded lead-acid batteries. Eighty percent of charge controllers were ON-OFF, vs. PWM or constant voltage.

The Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratories have one of the longest and most consistent histories of supercomputer use. The authors summarize the architecture of DOE`s new supercomputers that are being built for the Accelerated Strategic Computing Initiative (ASCI). The authors then argue that in the near future scaled-down versions of these supercomputers with petaflop-per-weekend capabilities could become widely available to hundreds of research and engineering departments. The availability of such computational resources will allow simulation of physical phenomena to become a full-fledged third branch of scientific exploration, along with theory and experimentation. They describe the ASCI and other supercomputer applications at Sandia National Laboratories, and discuss which lessons learned from Sandia`s long history of supercomputing can be applied in this new setting.

Composite doublers are gaining popularity for their ability to repair and reinforce commercial aircraft structures and it is anticipated that the potential cost savings may spur wider use of this technology. But before composite doublers can be accepted by the civil aviation industry, inspection techniques must be developed to verify the integrity of the doubler and the parent material under the doubler. The Federal Aviation Administration Airworthiness Assurance NDI Validation Center (AANC) is currently developing test methods to inspect aircraft structures under composite doublers using low kilovoltage radiography. This paper documents the radiographic techniques developed by the AANC which have been found to give the best contrast of the radiographic image with reduced image distortion.

In this report, a study of wave propagation and damping in a fluid loaded Flexural Plate Wave (FPW) sensor is presented. Previous to this study, it was believed that supersonic radiation was the dominate mechanism of loss in FPW devices. However, because no previous theory had been developed to explain finite length effects, this belief was never challenged. In this paper, it will be shown that the dominate mechanism of damping is not only due to supersonic radiation, but is also due to a fluid/structure resonance arising from finite length effects. The two-dimensional equations of motion for a single port FPW sensor plate are derived and coupled to the equations of motion for a viscous Newtonian fluid. These coupled equations are solved by using a wave number transform approach. This approach captures dynamics due to source terms at infinity. The resulting solution is comprised of terms derived by Wenzel, plus additional terms representing diffracted wave dynamics. The displacement field above the plate is then determined by using the Helmholtz integral equation.

In 1995, Salt River Project (SRP), a public power utility located in Phoenix, Arizona, collaborated with the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and Sandia National Laboratories (Sandia) to initiate a photovoltaic (PV) power system with battery energy storage to match PV output with residential customer peak energy demand periods. The PV power system, a 2.4kW PV array with 25.2kWh of energy storage, was designed and installed by Southwest Technology Development Institute (SWTDI) at an SRP-owned facility, known as the Chandler Research House during August 1995. This paper presents an overview of the system design, operation and performance. 3 refs., 2 figs., 2 tabs.

The Ministry of the Russian Federation for Atomic Energy (MINATOM) and the US Department of Energy (DOE) are engaged in joint, cooperative efforts to reduce the likelihood of nuclear proliferation by enhancing Material Protection, Control and Accounting (MPC&A) systems in both countries. Mayak Production Association (MPA) is a major Russian nuclear enterprise within the nuclear complex that is operated by MINATOM. This paper describes the nature, scope, and status of the joint, cooperative efforts to enhance existing MPC&A systems at MPA. Current cooperative efforts are focused on enhancements to the existing MPC&A systems at four plants that are operated by MPA and that produce, process, handle and/or store proliferation-sensitive nuclear materials.

PV hybrid electric power systems can offer an economically competitive alternative to engine generator (genset) systems in many off-grid applications. Besides the obvious `green` advantages of producing less noise and emissions, the PV hybrid can, in some cases, offer a lower life-cycle cost (LCC) then the genset. This paper evaluates the LCC of the 9.6 kWp PV hybrid power system installed by the National Park Services (NPS) at Pinnacles National Monument, CA. NPS motivation for installation of this hybrid was not based on economics, but rather the need to replace two aging diesel gensets with an alternative that would be quieter, fuel efficient, and more in keeping with new NPS emphasis on sustainable design and operations. In fact, economic analysis shows a lower 20-year LCC for the installed PV hybrid than for simple replacement of the two gensets. The analysis projects are net savings by the PV hybrid system of $83,561 and over 162,000 gallons of propane when compared with the genset-only system. This net savings is independent of the costs associated with environmental emissions. The effects of including emissions costs, according to NPS guidelines, is also discussed. 5 refs., 2 figs., 3 tabs.

This document describes the results of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) Infrasound Prototype Development Test and Evaluation (DT&E). During DT&E the infrasound prototype was evaluated against requirements listed in the System Requirements Document (SRD) based on the Conference on Disarmament/Ad Hoc Committee on a Nuclear Test Ban/Working Papers 224 and 283 and the Preparatory Commission specifications as defined in CTBT/PC/II/1/Add.2, Appendix X, Table 5. The evaluation was conducted during a two-day period, August 6-7, 18997. The System Test Plan (STP) defined the plan and methods to test the infrasound prototype. Specific tests that were performed are detailed in the Test Procedures (TP).

The results of the investigation of retention and thermal desorption of hydrogen isotopes of B{sub 4}C coated RGT (a recrystallized graphite with high thermal conductivity, 600 W/mK) after the exposure to high heat flux in the divertor strike point region of DIII-D using the DiMES sample exchange system are reported. It is shown that the material is very promising for plasma facing elements of tokamaks.

Neutron reflection is used to examine the structure of an epoxy near an interface. Variations in both the density and the crosslink density within the interphase region are examined. The density is increased near the interface relative to that in the bulk of the film, but the crosslink density over the same region is reduced relative to that in the bulk of the film. These observations are interpreted via packing of the resin oligamers next to the wall, which leads to an increased density and also inhibits the crosslinking reaction. The effect is more pronounced the more slowly the resin is cured. Significant variations in reflectivity are observed with thermal cycling, which indicate an increase in the size of the interfacial layer of excess toluene. However, data for samples with greater number of thermal cycles are required to determine the relation of this effect to the fracture process.

SEMATECH was established in 1987 for defense and economic reasons to help the U.S. regain a competitive posture in semiconductor manufacturing. For 10 years SEMATECH was jointly funded by the federal government and semiconductor manufacturing companies representing 85 percent of the U.S. semiconductor industry. SEMATECH has spent about 80 percent of these funds on activities intended to produce useful results between 1 and 3 years. Very early in the establishment of SEMATECH, its members determined that their first priority would be to strengthen their U.S. based suppliers of semiconductor manufacturing equipment. This has been the primary thrust of SEMATECH. SEMATECH first held some 30 workshops on a broad set of technical topics to assess the needs and opportunities to help the industry recover. These workshops scoped manufacturing areas where SEMATECH should focus. These early meetings were an early form of what later came to be termed roadmapping. The scope of R&D needs identified in these workshops well exceeded what SEMATECH could hope to accomplish with its $200 million annual budget. Wayne Johnson of Sandia participated in five of these workshops and used the knowledge gained as the basis for proposals later submitted to SEMATECH on behalf of Sandia. In the fall of 1989 the SETEC program was established at Sandia to support SEMATECH. This was initially a funds-in, work-for-others project that was fully funded by SEMATECH. Thus, the early work was entirely focused on SEMATECH`s needs. Later in the program when SEMATECH funds were supplemented by Department of Energy Cooperative Research and Development funds, attention was given to how this project would benefit Sandia`s defense microelectronics program.

This paper presents an analysis of how the US government responded to the concern in the 1980`s that US companies were experiencing problems of competitiveness in international markets. By the mid 1980`s there was great and growing concern throughout the US that US companies were experiencing difficulties in international competition. Pressure on Congress to take action came from constituents seeking jobs and companies that would directly benefit (this usually means receive public money) from programs that Congress might initiate. The fact that most constituent calls to Congress were about job creation was lost in the on-rush of R&D performers seeking funds for their favorite R&D project. In response, Congress created the Advanced Technology Program, the Technology Transfer Initiative, and the Technology Reinvestment Project, expanded the responsibilities of ARPA/DARPA, increased funding for the Small Business Initiative, expanded the Manufacturing Extension Partnership, funded SEMATECH, and increased NSF funding for basic research at universities. Many of these programs were later criticized for being industrial welfare and several were cut-back or stopped. Retrospective analysis shows that few of these programs addressed the root cause of competitiveness difficulties. In fact, by the time most of these programs were in place, US companies were well on their way to correcting their competitiveness problems. In addition, few were relevant to companies` often expressed concerns about workforce training, regulatory costs, and access to foreign markets. Twenty percent reductions in health care costs, regulatory costs, and education costs could annually pump $500 billion into the US economy and make companies operating in the US much more competitive in international markets.

The papers in this Faraday Discussion represent the state-of-the-art in using acoustic devices to measure the properties of thin films and interfaces. Sauerbrey first showed that the mass sensitivity of a quartz crystal could be used to measure the thickness of vacuum-deposited metals. Since then, significant progress has been made in understanding other interaction mechanisms between acoustic devices and contacting media. Bruckenstein and Shay and Kanazawa and Gordon showed that quartz resonators could be operated in a fluid to measure surface mass accumulation and fluid properties. The increased understanding of interactions between acoustic devices and contacting media has allowed new information to be obtained about thin films and interfaces. These closing remarks will summarize the current state of using acoustic techniques to probe thin films and interfaces, describe the progress reported in this Faraday Discussion, and outline some remaining problems. Progress includes new measurement techniques, novel devices, new applications, and improved modeling and data analysis.

Efforts to optimize the design of mechanical systems for preestablished use environments and to extend the durations of use cycles establish a need for in-service health monitoring. Numerous studies have proposed measures of structural response for the identification of structural damage, but few have suggested systematic techniques to guide the decision as to whether or not damage has occurred based on real data. Such techniques are necessary because in field applications the environments in which systems operate and the measurements that characterize system behavior are random. This paper investigates the use of artificial neural networks (ANNs) to identify damage in mechanical systems. Two probabilistic neural networks (PNNs) are developed and used to judge whether or not damage has occurred in a specific mechanical system, based on experimental measurements. The first PNN is a classical type that casts Bayesian decision analysis into an ANN framework; it uses exemplars measured from the undamaged and damaged system to establish whether system response measurements of unknown origin come from the former class (undamaged) or the latter class (damaged). The second PNN establishes the character of the undamaged system in terms of a kernel density estimator of measures of system response; when presented with system response measures of unknown origin, it makes a probabilistic judgment whether or not the data come from the undamaged population. The physical system used to carry out the experiments is an aerospace system component, and the environment used to excite the system is a stationary random vibration. The results of damage identification experiments are presented along with conclusions rating the effectiveness of the approaches.

Many nuclear power plants use instrument and control systems based on analog electronics. The state of the art in process control and instrumentation has advanced to use digital electronics and incorporate advanced technology. This technology includes distributed microprocessors, fiber optics, intelligent systems (neural networks), and advanced displays. The technology is used to optimize processes and enhance the man-machine interface while maintaining control and safety of the processes. Nuclear power plant operators have been hesitant to install this technology because of the cost and uncertainty in the regulatory process. This technology can be directly applied in an operating nuclear power plant provided a surety principle-based {open_quotes}administrator{close_quotes} hardware system is included in parallel with the upgrade Sandia National Laboratories has developed a rigorous approach to High Consequence System Surety (HCSS). This approach addresses the key issues of safety, security, and control while satisfying requirements for reliability and quality. HCSS principles can be applied to nuclear power plants in a manner that allows the off-the-shelf use of process control instrumentation while maintaining a high level of safety and enhancing the plant performance. We propose that an HCSS administrator be constructed as a standardized approach to address regulatory issues. Such an administrator would allow a plant control system to be constructed with commercially available, state-of-the-art equipment and be customized to the needs of the individual plant operator.

Given the complex geometry of most wind turbine blades, structural modeling using the finite element method is generally performed using a unique model for each particular blade analysis. Development time (often considerable) spent creating a model for one blade may not aid in the development of a model for a different blade. In an effort to reduce model development time and increase the usability of advanced finite element analysis capabilities, a new software tool, NuMAD, is being developed.

If there should be an accident involving drainage of all the water from a spent fuel pool, the fuel elements will heat up until the heat produced by radioactive decay is balanced by that removed by natural convection to air, thermal radiation, and other means. If the temperatures become high enough for the cladding or other materials to ignite due to rapid oxidation, then some of the fuel might melt, leading to an undesirable release of radioactive materials. The amount of melting is dependent upon the fuel loading configuration and its age, the oxidation and melting characteristics of the materials, and the potential effectiveness of recovery actions. The authors have developed methods for modeling the pertinent physical phenomena and integrating the results with a probabilistic treatment of the uncertainty distributions. The net result is a set of complementary cumulative distribution functions for the amount of fuel melted.

A freeform fabrication technique for dense ceramics and composites has been developed. The technique requires less than 2 volume percent of organic additives and relies on the principle of layerwise deposition of highly loaded colloidal slurries. Components can be manufactured into complex geometries with thick solid sections as well as with thin-walled sections with high aspect ratios. Process feasibility and quality is dependent on the processing parameters of solids loading, slurry rheology, deposition rate, and drying rate. These interrelated parameters must be controlled so that sintering defects are prevented and shape tolerance is maintained. A review of this freeform fabrication technique, called robocasting, will be discussed for fabrication of aluminum oxide parts. Recent developments for a finite element analysis technique for modeling the drying process will also be presented.

Using molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) and lattice engineering techniques, the feasibility of combining photonic devices applicable to the 1.3 to 1.55 {micro}m wavelength range and monolithic microwave (or mm-wave) integrated circuits (MMICs) on GaAs is demonstrated. A key factor in the MBE growth is incorporation of an InGaAs active layer having an indium arsenide mole fraction of 0.35 or greater and its lattice compatibility with the underlying semi-insulating GaAs substrate. The InGaAs layer used for the photonic devices, can also serve as the active channel for the high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) for application in MMICs. Several examples of active and passive photonic devices grown by MBE are presented including an optical ridge waveguide, and a photodetector for detection of light in the 1.3 {micro}m range. The material structure includes a 3-layer AlGaAs/GaAs/AlGaAs optical waveguide and a thin InGaAs absorbing layer situated directly above the optical waveguide. Metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) photodetectors are formed on the top surface of the InGaAs layer for collection of the photo-induced carriers. The optical ridge waveguide is designed for lateral incidence of the light to enhance the MSM photodetector responsivity. Initial measurements on the optical waveguide and photodetector are presented.

The purpose of this project is to develop and extend the electron beam joining process to applications related to Mo/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} cermets for neutron tube fabrication, glass seals for flat panel displays, and ceramics for structural applications. The key issue is the identification of the allowable operating ranges that produce thermal conditions favorable to robust joining and sealing. High strength, hermetic braze joints between ceramic components have been produced using high energy electron beams. With a penetration depth into a typical ceramic of {approximately} 1 cm for a 10 MeV electron beam, this method provides the capability for rapid, transient brazing operations where temperature control of heat sensitive components is essential. The method deposits energy directly into a buried joint, allowing otherwise inaccessible interfaces to be brazed. The combination of transient heating, with higher thermal conductivity, lower heat capacity, and lower melting temperature of braze metals relative to the ceramic materials, enables a pulsed high power beam to melt a braze metal without producing excessive ceramic temperatures. The authors have demonstrated the feasibility of this process related to ceramic coupons a well as ceramic and glass tubes and cylindrical shapes. The transient thermal response was predicted, using as input the energy absorption predicted from the coupled electron-photon and thermal transport analysis. The joining experiments were conducted with an RF linear accelerator at 10--13 MV. Joining experiments have provided high strength joints between alumina and alumina and between alumina and cermet joints in cylindrical geometry. These joints provided good hermetic seals.

Intense pulsed high-power ion beams have been demonstrated to produce enhanced surface properties by changes in microstructure caused by rapid heating and cooling of the surface. Additional improvements can be effected by the mixing of a previously deposited thin-film layer (surface alloying or ion beam mixing) into any number of substrate materials. The authors have conducted surface treatment and alloying experiments with Al, Fe, and Ti-based metals on the RHEPP-1 accelerator (0.8 MV, 20 W, 80 ns FHWM, up to 1 Hz repetition rate) at Sandia National Laboratories. Ions are generated by the MAP gas-breakdown active anode, which can yield a number of different beam species including H, N, and Xe, depending upon the injected gas. Enhanced hardness and wear resistance have been produced by treatment of 440C stainless steel, and by the mixing of Pt into Ti-6Al-4V alloy. Mixing of a thin-film Hf layer into Al 6061-T6 alloy (Al-1.0Mg-0.6Si) has improved its corrosion resistance by as much as four orders of magnitude in electrochemical testing, compared with untreated and uncoated Al6061. Experiments are ongoing to further understand the microstructural basis for these surface improvements.

The Hardware Design Document (HDD) describes the various hardware components used in the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) Infrasound Prototype and their interrelationships. It divides the infrasound prototype into hardware configurations items (HWCIs). The HDD uses techniques such as block diagrams and parts lists to present this information. The level of detail provided in the following sections should be sufficient to allow potential users to procure and install the infrasound system. Infrasonic monitoring is a low cost, robust, and effective technology for detecting atmospheric explosions. Low frequencies from explosion signals propagate to long ranges (few thousand kilometers) where they can be detected with an array of sensors.

In this paper we describe a new method for creating three-dimensional images using pairs of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images obtained from a unique collection geometry. This collection mode involves synthetic apertures that have a common center. In this sense the illumination directions for the two SAR images are the same, while the slant planes are at different spatial orientations. The slant plane orientations give rise to cross-range layover (fore-shortening) components in the two images that are of equal magnitude but opposite directions. This differential cross-range layover is therefore proportional to the elevation of a given target, which is completely analogous to the situation in stereo optical imaging, wherein two film planes (corresponding to the two slant planes) result in elevation-dependent parallax. Because the two SAR collections are coherent in this particular collection mode, the images have the same speckle patterns throughout. As a result, the images may be placed into stereo correspondence via calculation of correlations between micro-patches of the complex image data. The resulting computed digital stereo elevation map can be quite accurate. Alternatively, an analog anaglyph can be displayed for 3-D viewing, avoiding the necessity of the stereo correspondence calculation.

Chromium-contaminated soil is a common environmental problem in the United States as a result of numerous industrial processes involving chromium. Hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)] is the species of most concern because of its toxicity and mobility in groundwater. One method of diminishing the environmental impact of chromium is to reduce it to a trivalent oxidation state [Cr(III)], in which it is relatively insoluble and nontoxic. This study investigated a stabilization and solidification process to minimize the chromium concentration in the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) extract and to produce a solidified waste form with a compressive strength in the range of 150 to 300 pounds per square inch (psi). To minimize the chromium in the TCLP extract, the chromium had to be reduced to the trivalent oxidation state. The average used in this study was an alluvium contaminated with chromic and sulfuric acid solutions. The chromium concentration in the in the in situ soil was 1212 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg) total chromium and 275 mg/kg Cr(VI). The effectiveness of iron, ferrous sulfate to reduce Cr(VI) was tested in batch experiments.

The temperature, curing, and filler dependencies of the viscosities of common epoxies used at Sandia encapsulants are presented along with examples of useful applications.