High Temperature Materials Laboratory 18th Annual Report October 1, 2004 Through September 30, 2005

HTML Annual Report for 10/1/04 - 9/30/05, assigned ORNL Technical Report - ORNL/TM-2006/41. Incorrect number appears in next field. The HTML User Program continued to work with industrial, academic, and governmental users this year, accepting a record number (110) of new projects and developing 33 new user agreements. Table 1 presents the breakdown of these statistics. Figure 1 depicts the continued growth in user agreements and user projects. The total number of HTML proposals has now exceeded 1450. Also, the number of new agreements bodes well for the future. At the end of this report is a list of proposals to the HTML and a list of agreements between HTML and universities and industries, broken down by state. Program highlights this year included several outstanding user projects (some of which are highlighted in later sections), the annual meeting of the HTML Programs Guidance and Evaluation Panel, and continued progress in equipment and facilities development. For instance, this year beneficial operation of the aberration-corrected electron microscope (ACEM) was initiated. Also, the upgraded neutron residual stress beamline (NRSF2) on the HFIR was made operational on user projects, including one featuring Caterpillar. The beamline possesses a much-improved full width at half maximum (FWHM) peak performance (about one-third narrower than previously) and a factor-of-ten improvement in peak intensity. The beamline now has much improved capability because of improvements made to the reactor itself, the beamline, and the diffraction instruments. Funding was received this year for HTML's participation in construction and operation of the VULCAN beamline at the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS). The SNS, an extremely high flux pulsed neutron source, is in the final stages of construction at ORNL, and the VULCAN beamline is to be the 'materials' diffractometer. Our funding will provide for development of an off-line specimen alignment system, which will allow users to have their experiment all set up at an off-line location, so that when their project time begins, they can put the specimen on the beam and begin taking data instantly. This will save much precious beamline time. Our funding also will purchase extra detectors, further increasing VULCAN's coverage and speed. The funding will also provide for staff time for VULCAN operations. Several other improvements in capability, facilities, and equipment have occurred, and some new staff have been added.