[en] A new fabrication of silicon carbide is described which has very high resistance to thermal stress and thermal shock, exceptional resistance to corrosion, high resistance to wear, improved mechanical strength and absolute impermeability. It is made by a proprietary reaction bonding technique in which a cold-compacted body of alpha-SiC and graphite powders is heated in contact with liquid silicon which impregnates the body, converting the graphite to beta-SiC which bonds the original alpha grains. Physical and mechanical properties of the new product (registered trade mark REFEL) are compared with those of other materials. Diamond machining is used to obtain a high accuracy and surface finish on precision components. (U.K.)

[en] The Radwaste Cementation Laboratory at Winfrith Atomic Energy Establishment in Dorset, England, is currently engaged in researching improved techniques for the cementation of low and medium level radioactive wastes. This article looks at the problems involved, and examines the contribution of diamond tooling to efficient sample assessment. (author)

[en] These experiments indicated that bacterial strain CL0145A of Pseudomonas fluorescens is equally lethal to the 2 zebra mussel species present in North America, Dreissena polymorpha and Dreissena bugensis. Thus, this bacterial strain should be equally effective at killing zebra mussels in power plant pipes, irrespective of which species is present

[en] These tests have indicated that the bacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens strain CL0145A is effective at killing zebra mussels in environments having dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations ranging from very low to very high. The results suggest that the highest mussel kill can be achieved in moderately to highly aerated environments, while kill may be 0-20% lower under conditions of very low oxygen. For example, under highly oxygenated conditions 97% kill was achieved while conditions having low DO produced 79% mussel kill. Service water measured in a local power plant indicated that DO concentrations were in the range of 8-9 ppm (e.g., highly aerated) within their pipes. Therefore, we will not expect to see decreases in the efficacy of CL0145A treatments due to oxygen levels within such power plant pipes

[en] Testing over the last quarter has indicated the following regarding control of zebra mussels with bacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens strain CL0145A: (1) the concentration of bacteria suspended in water is directly correlated with mussel kill; (2) the ratio of bacterial mass per mussel, if too low, could limit mussel kill; a treatment must be done at a high enough ratio so that mussels do not deplete all the suspended bacteria before the end of the desired exposure period; (3) bacteria appear to lose almost all their toxicity after suspension for 24 hr in highly oxygenated water; (4) in a recirculating pipe system, the same percentage mussel kill will be achieved irrespective of whether all the bacteria are applied at once or divided up and applied intermittently in smaller quantities over a 10-hr period. Since this is the fourth quarterly report, a summation of all test results over the last twelve months is provided as a table in this report. The table includes the above-mentioned fourth-quarter results

[en] This study assessed chemical treatment options for decomposing the tetraphenylborate in High Level Waste (HLW) Tank 48H. Tank 48H, located at the Savannah River Site in Aiken, SC, contains approximately one million liters of HLW. The tetraphenylborate slurry represents legacy material from commissioning of an In Tank Precipitation process to separate radioactive cesium and actinides from the non radioactive chemicals. During early operations, the process encountered an unplanned chemical reaction that catalytically decomposed the excess tetraphenylborate producing benzene. Subsequent research indicated that personnel could not control the operations within the existing equipment to both meet the desired treatment rate for the waste and maintain the benzene concentration within allowable concentrations. Since then, the Department of Energy selected an alternate treatment process for handling high-level waste at the site. However, the site must destroy the tetraphenylborate before returning the tank to HLW service. The research focuses on identifying treatments to decompose tetraphenylborate to the maximum extent feasible, with a preference for decomposition methods that produce carbon dioxide rather than benzene. A number of experiments examined whether the use of oxidants, catalysts or acids proved effective in decomposing the tetraphenylborate. Additional experiments developed an understanding of the solid, liquid and gas decomposition products. The testing identified several successful treatment options including: an iron catalyst combined with hydrogen peroxide (Fenton's reagent) with added acid; sodium permanganate with added acid; and copper catalyst with added acid. A mistake occurred in the selection and make-up of the Tank 48H simulant recipe which led to an under representation of the amount of monosodium titanate and insoluble sludge solids compared to the simulant target. The amount of added MST and sludge proved about a factor of 40 low relative to the measured Tank 48H values. The MST and sludge are insoluble solids that were likely inert in the testing completed. As a result, the mistake had no impact on the testing. Any future Tank 48H research should be completed using the latest Tank 48H simulant recipe

[en] The excitation spectrum of the nucleon provides a stringent constraint on the dynamics and interactions of its internal constituents and therefore probes the mechanism of confinement in the light quark sector. Our detailed knowlege of this excitation spectrum is poor, with many predicted states not yet observed in experiment and many 'established' states having poorly known properties. To address these shortcomings a worldwide effort is currently underway exploiting the latest generation of electron and photon beams in detailed studies of meson photoproduction from nucleon targets. A major contribution to this effort will come from the experimental programme at Jefferson Lab exploiting the frozen spin target (FROST) with the CLAS spectrometer. The status of this project will be presented along with preliminary results and analyses.

[en] The experiments conducted this past quarter have suggested that the bacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens strain CL0145A is effective at killing zebra mussels throughout the entire range of pH values tested (7.2 to 8.6). Highest mortality was achieved at pH values characteristic of preferred zebra mussel waterbodies, i.e., hard waters with a range of 7.8 to 8.6. In all water types tested, however, ranging from very soft to very hard, considerable mussel kill was achieved (83 to 99% mean mortality), suggesting that regardless of the pH or hardness of the treated water, significant mussel kill can be achieved upon treatment with P. fluorescens strain CL0145A. These results further support the concept that this bacterium has significant potential for use as a zebra mussel control agent in power plant pipes receiving waters with a wide range of physical and chemical characteristics

[en] The excitation spectrum of the nucleon provides a stringent constraint on the dynamics and interactions of its internal constituents and therefore probes the mechanism of confinement in the light quark sector. Our detailed knowlege of this excitation spectrum is poor, with many predicted states not yet observed in experiment and many 'established' states having poorly known properties. To address these shortcomings a worldwide effort is currently underway exploiting the latest generation of electron and photon beams in detailed studies of meson photoproduction from nucleon targets. A major contribution to this effort will come from the experimental programme at Jefferson Lab exploiting the frozen spin target (FROST) with the CLAS spectrometer. The status of this project will be presented along with preliminary results and analyses.

[en] These tests indicated that: (1) duration of exposure to bacterial strain CL0145A of Pseudomonas fluorescens is a key variable in obtaining zebra mussel mortality; (2) that given a choice of exposure periods up to 96 hr, the longer the exposure period, the higher the mean mortality that will be achieved; (3) that the first few hours that the mussels are exposed to the bacteria are the most important in achieving kill; (4) that the mortality achieved by exposure periods ≥72 hr may be somewhat amplified by the degraded water quality conditions which can develop in recirculating water systems over such extended time periods