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Since 1951, the Nevada National Security Site has ensured the security of the US and its allies by supporting the stewardship of the nuclear deterrent, providing emergency response capability and training, and contributing key nonproliferation and arms control initiatives.
The mission of NNSA, as designated by Congress, is to maintain a safe, secure, and effective nuclear deterrent; to provide naval nuclear propulsion; and to prevent, counter, and respond to threats of nuclear proliferation and terrorism worldwide.
With geopolitical tensions high around the globe (Ukraine, Russia, China…), our mission is more important now than at any point since the Cold War – Our people help ensure the reliability of the deterrent, detect weapons of mass destruction, and advance the frontiers of science, engineering and computing.
Nuclear provides exciting solutions for real world challenges, and it is here today and will grow for tomorrow, even if the United States does not rise to the occasion due to societal or political whims of the current election cycle. In order to support Nuclear Technology, effective nuclear safety professionals are required.
Slides for a presentation discussing the history and mission of Los Alamos National Laboratory, as well as the career highlights of some of its current employees.
At Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, we focus on science and technology research to ensure our nation’s security. We also apply that expertise to solve other important national problems in energy, bioscience, and the environment. Science & Technology Review (S&TR) is published eight times a year to communicate, to a broad audience, the Laboratory’s scientific and technological accomplishments in fulfilling its primary missions. The publication’s goal is to help readers understand these accomplishments and appreciate their value to the individual citizen, the nation, and the world. In 2021, Lawrence Livermore technologies received three R&D 100 awards, which honor the year’s top 100 innovations from around the world. The feature article beginning on p. 4 describes the Laboratory’s winners: the Multiplicity Counter for Thermal and Fast Neutrons, Flux, and the Optical Transconductance Varistor. The 2021 awards raised the Laboratory’s total R&D 100 awards to 173 since 1978. The R&D 100 logo is reprinted in this issue with permission from R&D World magazine.
The objective of this collaboration between the DOE/NNSA International Nuclear Security Program (INS) and JAEA is to conduct a feasibility study on nuclear material accounting and control needs and requirements for NDA measurement of high-activity waste at TRP during the decommissioning process. Under this study, both sides will exchange information, perform an assessment of needs and requirements, and develop joint recommendations for development of the A-HMMS.
Potential benefits and drawbacks of using artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) for safeguards
The Laboratory’s nuclear nonproliferation and security portfolio is managed by the GS-NNS program office: NNSA’s Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation office (DNN) makes up ~80% of our work. We also support State Dept activities closely aligned with our work for DNN and NASAprograms. Our work is executed across the entire Laboratory, approximately half in the Global Security directorate and a third in the Weapons Program.
PRO-RR is the research reactor focused program element of the broader Proliferation Resistance Optimization program (PRO-X) under the National Nuclear Safety Administration (NNSA) in the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). PRO-X provides a framework for integrating proliferation resistance in nuclear system designs to minimize weapons usable nuclear materials (WUNM) production and diversion pathways while optimizing systems performance for peaceful use missions. PRO-RR applies the PRO-X mission objectives to research reactor system design. This document serves as one of the foundational documents for the PRO-RR-Fuel System Design technical team by documenting a baseline fuel fabrication facility to be used for further optimization studies. The PRO-RR-Fuel System Design technical team consists of subject matter experts from Argonne National Laboratory (Argonne) and Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL). In order to develop specific strategies for fuel fabrication facilities to optimize proliferation resistance, performance, and safety, a baseline fuel fabrication facility design basis was developed. Having a baseline design basis allows for the qualitative and quantitative comparison of design choices in the optimization process. This report describes the baseline fuel fabrication facility and general optimization strategy. Chapter 2 describes the fuel system selected for examination, the fabrication process used as the baseline, a description of the model developed to track uranium utilization, and a generic floorplan of the fabrication facility. Chapter 3 describes the overarching optimization strategy that could be implemented for a fabrication facility.
Abstract not provided.
This project is developing a prototype scanner array verification system for detection of missing fuel assemblies in spent-fuel storage casks. The prototype consists of six fast-neutron scintillator detectors mounted to a linear actuator frame that is placed on the top of a spent fuel cask to scan across all fuel assembly positions. The scanner array was assembled and tested at LLNL in FY2022. A field test schedule has been requested at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Cask Farm site for FY2023. Note that the Cask Farm contractor determines this scheduling and not INL directly. Further system automation will be designed and implemented with the goal of obtaining a level of system operation that meets IAEA needs. This includes integration of the scanner array and data-acquisition control software into a single interface for operator use. In addition, commercial operators and the IAEA may have special requirements for portability, shipping, lifting, and installation. Prior to the Field Test at INL, the system will be operated at LLNL to exercise lifting procedure and linear actuators, monitor stability of detector energy and pulse-shape discrimination calibration, and test system software integration efforts. Following the Field Test, we will present results and discuss the technology with the IAEA. We will incorporate additional improvements to the system based on lessons learned from the field test and feedback from the IAEA. If successful, the technology can be transferred to the IAEA or other stakeholders for assessment.
This plan outlines the systemic and coordinated management of the CNSSC technical support programme. In accordance with the CNSSC Strategy Implementation Plan and Memoranda of Understanding among stakeholders, Centralia Border Guards (CBG) and Centralia Nuclear Energy Agency (CNEA) will lead the effort to develop standardized approach to technical support and will provide technical support to the following CNSSC stakeholders: CBG, CNEA, Centralia National Police (CNP), Centralia Coast Guard (CCG), and CentrAtom/Centralia Nuclear Power Plant (CNPP).
This is the final scientific/technical report for a DOE project focused on the electrochemical conversion of CO 2 in non-aqueous solvents to novel products. Electrochemical reduction of CO 2 provides an attractive route to produce valuable fuels and chemicals that can simultaneously lower greenhouse gas emissions when powered by renewable electricity. While recent technological advances have shown the feasibility of industrial CO 2 electroreduction, many challenges remain to improve this technology and expand the list of economically viable products. The vast majority of electrochemical CO 2 reduction research has been conducted in aqueous media under neutral to alkaline conditions, leading to commonly reported products including carbon monoxide, formic acid, methane, methanol, ethylene, acetic acid, and ethanol. In comparison, non-aqueous media for CO 2 reduction has been underexplored but represents a possible avenue to yield new products and improved operating conditions. The aim of the project was to convert waste CO 2 in the form of flue gas to a multicarbon C2 - C4 chemical product in a reactor designed to achieve economically competitive values of current density and selectivity. The project strived to advance the technology readiness of an electrochemical CO 2 reduction process in alcohol solvents from the proof-of-concept stage to a device capable of meeting performance metrics for commercial viability. In the initial plan, the University of Louisville researchers were to focus on investigating the electrochemical process and improving the faradaic efficiency for novel C2 – C4 species, while also working on a parallel effort to build a practical electrolysis reactor to markedly increase the CO 2 reduction current density. The reactor development effort also aimed to engineer a dual-electrolyte feed strategy with non-aqueous catholyte and aqueous anolyte to promote water oxidation as the coupling anodic half-reaction to enable a sustainable and economical overall process. At the outset, the University of North Dakota was to investigate the feasibility of operating directly from coal-derived flue gas without separate capture and purification. The research team sought to determine impurity effects and test mitigation strategies, as well as engineer the gaseous feed system for high reactor tolerance to lower CO 2 concentration. In the last half year of the project, the focus was planned to shift to integrating the advances in the catalysis, electrochemical conditions, reactor design, and flue gas compatibility into a fully functional device and improve it for maximum current density and faradaic efficiency for C2 – C4 species. Knowledge of the full system components, constraints, and maximum performance was then to be used as the basis for a thorough technoeconomic analysis (TEA) and life cycle analysis (LCA) at the end of the project.
DRiFT (a Detector Response Function Toolkit) is LANL-developed software that postprocesses output from the extensively validated radiation transport code, MCNP, and generates realistic nuclear instrumentation response. DRiFT is designed to be flexible, enabling users to specify detector type and many experimental settings, as well as accommodating the addition of their own desired features. Although DRiFT development has included scintillator, gas, and semiconductor features, the focus of this release is on organic scintillator and associated capabilities. Organic scintillators are widely used in the areas of nuclear safeguards and nuclear non-proliferation efforts. DRiFT has several diagnostic and detector physics features relevant to detailed scintillator simulations including: tracking source particle information, scintillation light production, the effects of PMT quantum efficiency and gain, and digitizer settings. Users can select responses from many scintillator and PMT types supported natively by DRiFT, or add their own by following the instructions in this document. We acknowledge that DRiFT is under active development, bug reports and general questions and comments should be directed to Madison Andrews, madison@lanl.gov. This manual is divided into four parts: I) An overview of DRiFT, including how to obtain and install the executable, II) A description of the detector physics related to scintillators available, III) a description of more general DRiFT features the user may find useful, and IV) a description of the test suite and examples made available with the code release.
Interpretive text for several items related to J. Robert Oppenheimer. This will be on display at the Bradbury Science Museum.
Monthly summary of top achievements at Los Alamos National Laboratory in May 2023, including nuclear security; science, technology, and engineering; mission operations; and community relations.
Objectives of the Optimal and Nominal Nuclear-Testing Programs: Define optimal and nominal nuclear-testing programs; Discuss underground development for nuclear operations; Discuss underground nuclear operations, safety, and health; Compare drift complexes of optimal and nominal testing programs; Compare drift complexes for nuclear testing and commercial production; Discuss a potential future look of underground development and operations.