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This presentation is titled American Nuclear Society 2023 Student Conference and is led by with introductions from a few of the students. This presentation touches on how operations serve the mission, and everyone is a part of it. In order for anyone to operate with special nuclear material (SNM) the responsible contractor or licensee must comply with several regulations. The presentation touches on how there are several roles involved in operations. This talk also includes a page of references, regulations, standards and guidance. The presentation concludes with a section on Material Balance Areas (MBA).

Estimating the ultimate storage capacity of deep saline aquifers is important to address the formation potential to store the envisioned large volumes of CO₂. Injection data (i.e. injection rate, bottomhole pressure, and cumulative injected volume of CO₂) are routinely recorded during storage operations. These data contain valuable information on the subsurface (e.g. the reservoir pore volume and the formation storage capacity) that can be extracted. In this paper, we present a two-step graphical technique to infer the pore volume and the ultimate storage capacity of closed saline aquifers by analyzing the available injection data. First, the pore volume is inferred through adapting the concept of the material balance time. Material balance time is an approximate superposition time function developed to interpret production data from oil and gas wells operating at variable pressure/rate conditions during the boundary-dominated flow period. Using material balance techniques, the ultimate storage capacity is then estimated through linear extrapolation of the average pressure trend to the maximum allowable pressure the formation can withstand. The average pressure is not available in practice, but is can be obtained from the injection data. Two approaches are presented in this study to calculate the average pressure; namely the rigorous and the approximate approaches. Unlike the rigorous approach, the approximate approach does not require a prior knowledge of some reservoir properties (e.g. relative permeability, absolute permeability, formation porosity and thickness) to calculate the average pressure. To investigate its potential and reliability in analyzing CO₂ injection data, the proposed technique is applied to four synthetic cases representing different well operating conditions. Results indicate that the approximate approach consistently overestimates the actual (simulated) storage capacity as compared to the rigorous approach. The agreement - between the inferred and the simulated reservoir pore volume, and between the analytical and numerical estimates of storage capacity - validates the potential application of the technique to CO₂ storage in closed saline aquifers. The technique is further substantiated through application to a field data set utilized from a commercial-scale geological storage (CGS) project. Finally, field data interpretation shows that the proposed technique can be utilized to identify the degree of hydraulic continuity and reservoir compartmentalization within a target formation by interpreting the corresponding pressure and rate responses.

Understanding different thermal performance aspects of phase change material heat exchangers (PCM-HX) is critical for designing future energy-efficient thermal energy storage systems. This paper presents an experimental performance analysis of a vertically oriented annular finned-tube PCM-HX in a cylindrical container tested under six different melting and solidification test conditions, varied by heat transfer fluid’s (HTF) inlet temperatures and flow directions. The PCM-HX structure with 20 evenly spaced fins was 3D printed in aluminum, and the PCM-HX container was 285 mm in height. The PCM-HX average porosity was 89.7%, where the PCM mass was 246.4 g. Water served as the HTF, and a PCM with a nominal phase change temperature of 35 °C was selected. Instead of opaque conventional insulation sheets, a combination of air-and-argon-filled see-through insulation cylinders was assembled with the PCM-HX to visualize the phase-change phenomena, while minimizing the uncertainties due to heat loss. In total, there were 78 T-type thermocouples installed in the test section which allows a more precise assessment of thermal mass and heat loss, which are often neglected in similar studies found in the literature. We validated the reliability of the test facility as the repeated test results had negligible deviations under the same test conditions. The energy balances between the estimated theoretical and experimentally calculated PCM storage, considering heat loss and thermal mass, were within ±9% deviation for all test conditions. From the experimental investigations, we made several following observations. It was found that the melting pattern of the finned-tube PCM-HX with small gaps between the container wall and the fins was largely affected by the HTF flow directions, unlike the typical straight annular tube PCM-HX. For effective charging and discharging processes, a combination of upward melting and downward solidification is recommended to shorten the test duration. However, an upward solidification should be considered to minimize the cavity formation between the fins caused by the PCM volume contraction during the solidification process.

The Hanford Site has accumulated millions of gallons of tank waste from reprocessing spent fuel to recover plutonium, uranium, cesium, and strontium. The supernatant from the accumulated tank waste will be treated using a Direct Feed Low-Activity Waste approach. The supernatant will be treated to remove solids and cesium in the Tank-Side Cesium Removal process in the Hanford tank farm, then vitrified in a semi-batch process in the Hanford Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP). Currently, each batch of feed is sampled at three locations prior to being fed to the melter: the feed qualification tank in the Hanford tank farm as well as the concentrate receipt vessel (CRV) and melter feed preparation vessel (MFPV) in the WTP. The feed qualification sample is taken from a large batch of accumulated feed, only two to three samples are expected each year. Approximately 275 samples from the CRVs and 1100 samples from the MFPV are expected each year. An evaluation was performed to determine if a material balance based on the feed qualification sample could replace most of the sampling in the CRVs and MFPVs. The evaluation consisted of three elements: (1) determination of the practicality of using a material balance to estimate the stream composition of the CRV and MFPV contents, (2) evaluation of whether the material balance could be automated using the existing process control system, and (3) determination of the uncertainty in glass composition using the material balance approach. It is assumed that periodic sampling at the CRV and MFPV would be performed periodically to re-baseline the material balance, evaluations are in progress to determine the frequency of this periodic sampling. Process sample locations downstream of the melter were reviewed as well, but the partitioning of semi-volatile species in the melter was determined to preclude extending the material balance approach past the melter. It was determined that replacement of the CRV sample location was feasible and did not increase process uncertainty or significantly impact waste loading. Replacement of the MFPV sample was also determined to be feasible, but that measurement of the glass former chemical addition may be needed prior to addition of these chemicals to the MFPV. This measurement could be performed by an in situ laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) system. Limited tests were performed to evaluate LIBS for direct measurements of the low-activity waste melter feed. The use of a material balance would eliminate over 1200 samples each year if only 10% of the CRV and MFPV batches are sampled and could likely allow the WTP laboratory to operate on days only versus 24/7 operation. (authors)

We investigate source characteristics and emission dynamics of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in a single-family house in California utilizing time- and space-resolved measurements. About 200 VOC signals, corresponding to more than 200 species, were measured during 8 weeks in summer and five in winter. Spatially resolved measurements, along with tracer data, reveal that VOCs in the living space were mainly emitted directly into that space, with minor contributions from the crawlspace, attic, or outdoors. Time-resolved measurements in the living space exhibited baseline levels far above outdoor levels for most VOCs; many compounds also displayed patterns of intermittent short-term enhancements (spikes) well above the indoor baseline. Compounds were categorized as "high-baseline" or "spike-dominated" based on indoor-to-outdoor concentration ratio and indoor mean-to-median ratio. Short-term spikes were associated with occupants and their activities, especially cooking. High-baseline compounds indicate continuous indoor emissions from building materials and furnishings. Indoor emission rates for high-baseline species, quantified with 2-hour resolution, exhibited strong temperature dependence and were affected by air-change rates. Decomposition of wooden building materials is suggested as a major source for acetic acid, formic acid, and methanol, which together accounted for ~75% of the total continuous indoor emissions of high-baseline species.

We investigated the effect of Al-C composite pellets (ACCP) on the reduction behavior of FeO in electric arc furnace (EAF) slag and the iron recovery at different n{sub Al}/(n{sub Al} + n{sub C}) at 1823 K (1550 °C). A carbothermic reaction was the dominant process at n{sub Al}/(n{sub Al} + n{sub C}) < 0.4, whereas aluminothermic reduction was the major process at n{sub Al}/(n{sub Al} + n{sub C}) > 0.6; these observations are based on the final content of FeO and Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} in the molten slag. The aluminum and carbon present in the ACCP competitively affected the reaction stoichiometry (i.e., the material balance) between the production of CO + Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} and the consumption of FeO. Iron recovery increased up to a yield of approx. 90 pct as the n{sub Al}/(n{sub Al} + n{sub C}) ratio increased. Because Al in the ACCP readily reacts to reduce FeO in the molten slag, iron recovery is proportional to the n{sub Al}/(n{sub Al} + n{sub C}) ratio. The precipitation of solid compounds in the slag phase, such as monoxide ([Mg,Fe]·O) and spinel (MgO·Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}), occurred during FeO reduction; this was experimentally confirmed as well as by thermochemical computation. Furthermore, we proposed a schematic reaction mechanism in the present study.

Highlights: • Reduce CO{sub 2} emission is a referential index for future sludge disposal. • Synergetic digestion technology of kitchen waste and sludge contributes to the CO{sub 2} reduction. • Synergetic digestion technology reduced more CO{sub 2} emission than sludge landfill. • Synergetic digestion technology should be effectively promoted and applied. - Abstract: With the popularization of municipal sewage treatment facilities, the improvement of sewage treatment efficiency and the deepening degree of sewage treatment, the sludge production of sewage plant has been sharply increased. Carbon emission during the process of municipal sewage treatment and disposal has become one of the important sources of greenhouse gases that cause greenhouse effect. How to reduce carbon dioxide emissions during sewage treatment and disposal process is of great significance for reducing air pollution. Kitchen waste and excess sludge, as two important organic wastes, once uses anaerobic synergetic digestion technology in the treatment process can on the one hand, avoid instability of sludge individual anaerobic digestion, improve sludge degradation rate and marsh gas production rate, and on the other hand, help increase the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions to a great extent. The paper uses material balance method, analyzes and calculates the carbon dioxide emissions from kitchen waste and sludge disposed by the anaerobic synergetic digestion technology, compares the anaerobic synergetic digestion technology with traditional sludge sanitary landfill technology and works out the carbon dioxide emission reductions after synergetic digestion. It takes the kitchen waste and sludge synergetic digestion engineering project of Zhenjiang city in Jiangsu province as an example, makes material balance analysis using concrete data and works out the carbon dioxide daily emission reductions. The paper analyzes the actual situation of emission reduction by comparing the data, and found that the synergetic digestion of kitchen waste and sludge can effectively reduce the carbon dioxide emission, and the reduction is obvious especially compared with that of sludge sanitary landfill, which has a certain effect on whether to promote the use of the technology.

The objective of this project is to describe the impact that NDA measurements have on the material balance evaluation and the determination of MUF.

The performance loss and recovery of the fuel cell due to Balance of Plant (BOP) contaminants was identified via a combination of experimental data and a mathematical model. The experiments were designed to study the influence of organic contaminants (e.g. those from BOP materials) on the resistance of the catalyst, ionomer and membrane, and a mathematical model was developed that allowed us to separate these competing resistances from the data collected on an operating fuel cell. For this reason, based on the functional groups, four organic contaminants found in BOP materials, diethylene glycol monoethyl ether (DGMEE), diethylene glycol monoethyl ether acetate (DGMEA), benzyl alcohol (BzOH) and 2,6-diaminotoluene (2,6-DAT) were infused separately to the cathode side of the fuel cell. The cell voltage and high frequency impedance resistance was measured as a function of time. The contaminant feed was then discontinued and voltage recovery was measured. It was determined that compounds with ion exchange properties like 2,6-DAT can cause voltage loss with non-reversible recovery, so this compound was studied in more detail. Finally, the degree of voltage loss increased with an increase in concentration, and/or infusion time, and increased with a decrease in catalyst loadings.

The IAEA has verified the declared nuclear material according to the comprehensive safeguards agreement under NPT between the Republic of Korea and the IAEA, as well as the undeclared nuclear material and nuclear activities under the Additional Protocol. In the safeguards Implementation Report for 2007, the Agency drew a broader conclusion for Korea that all nuclear material has remained in peaceful activities in Korea because there was no indication of the diversion of declared nuclear material, and no indication of undeclared nuclear material and activities in the ROK. The IAEA also informed that the implementation of Integrated Safeguards (IS) in Korea started on 1 July, 2008 in accordance with the state level IS approach after a drawing of the broader conclusion. In addition, for now, a State-Level Safeguards Approach (SLA) is adopted for the ROK, including 11 Material Balance Areas (MBAs) in KAERI. This paper describes a comparison analysis between IS and SLA.