BRMA Brochure

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Become a Member B REACTOR of BRMA MUSEUM ASSOCIATION Be a part of the story. Be a benefactor with tax-deductible B Reactor Museum Association contributions. Be updated Our mission is to educate the public about the via our quarterly newsletter scientific and technological endeavors, designs, To learn more about BRMA, facilities and processes employed at Hanford. its role in preserving the We will address these from inception of the B Reactor and how to Manhattan Project through construction and become a member visit operation, as well as considering their long-term b-reactor.org impact and legacies. BRMA will carry out this mission primarily by supporting the Manhattan Project National Historical Park in collaboration with B REACTOR FOR RELATED SITES: MUSEUM ASSOCIATION all appropriate federal, state and local government manhattanprojectbreactor.hanford.gov and private entities associated with the Park sites. atomicheritage.org nps.gov/mapr Tri-Cities Visitor Information: VisitTRI-CITIES.com An Unprecedented Marvel of Science, Technology and B REACTOR Engineering MUSEUM ASSOCIATION b-reactor.org b-reactor.org facebook.com/BReactor facebook.com/BReactor The B Reactor Museum Association TOUR TIMELINE (BRMA) is an all-volunteer Hanford’s Historic B Reactor grassroots organization established Fermi Pile December, 1942 in 1990. It is a non-profit 501(c)(3), The world’s first large-scale plutonium-production reactor B Reactor Construction October, 1943 based in Richland, WA. that ushered in the Atomic Age. It’s now part of the B Reactor Startup September, 1944 Manhattan Project National Historical Park, which depicts Trinity Test July 16, 1945 BRMA BEGAN THE EFFORT the unique story of the massive World War II effort to build Hiroshima August 6, 1945 to preserve B Reactor and see it the world’s first nuclear weapon that would help opened to the public. In 2015, Nagasaki August 9, 1945 bring the war to an end. that culminated in the creation Surrender August 14, 1945 of the National Park, which BE A PART OF HISTORY! Shutdown March, 1946 includes Hanford, Los Alamos, and B Reactor Restart June, 1948 Oak Ridge. We encourage visitors to FREE TOURS • GROUP TOURS ALSO AVAILABLE Shutdown February, 1968 see all three sites to learn more of manhattanprojectbreactor.hanford.gov the Manhattan Project story. B REACTOR MUSEUM ASSOCIATION Courtesy of D.O.E..

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The Making of an Atomic Bomb
(Image: Courtesy of United States Government, public domain.) INTRODUCTORY ESSAY "DESTROYER OF WORLDS": THE MAKING OF AN ATOMIC BOMB At 5:29 a.m. (MST), the world’s first atomic bomb detonated in the New Mexican desert, releasing a level of destructive power unknown in the existence of humanity. Emitting as much energy as 21,000 tons of TNT and creating a fireball that measured roughly 2,000 feet in diameter, the first successful test of an atomic bomb, known as the Trinity Test, forever changed the history of the world. The road to Trinity may have begun before the start of World War II, but the war brought the creation of atomic weaponry to fruition. The harnessing of atomic energy may have come as a result of World War II, but it also helped bring the conflict to an end. How did humanity come to construct and wield such a devastating weapon? 1 | THE MANHATTAN PROJECT Models of Fat Man and Little Boy on display at the Bradbury Science Museum. (Image: Courtesy of Los Alamos National Laboratory.) WE WAITED UNTIL THE BLAST HAD PASSED, WALKED OUT OF THE SHELTER AND THEN IT WAS ENTIRELY SOLEMN. WE KNEW THE WORLD WOULD NOT BE THE SAME. A FEW PEOPLE LAUGHED, A FEW PEOPLE CRIED. MOST PEOPLE WERE SILENT. J. ROBERT OPPENHEIMER EARLY NUCLEAR RESEARCH GERMAN DISCOVERY OF FISSION Achieving the monumental goal of splitting the nucleus The 1930s saw further development in the field. Hungarian- of an atom, known as nuclear fission, came through the German physicist Leo Szilard conceived the possibility of self- development of scientific discoveries that stretched over several sustaining nuclear fission reactions, or a nuclear chain reaction, centuries.
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Wahlen, R. K. History of 100-B Area
WHC-EP-0273 History of 100-B Area R. K. Wahlen Date Published October 1989 Prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy Assistant Secretary for Management and Administration w Westinghouse P.O. Box 1970 0- Hanford mpany Richland, Washington &I352 Hanford Operations and Engineering Contractor for the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract DE-ACO6-87RLlOg30 WHC-EP-0273 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In August 1939, Albert Einstein wrote a letter to President Roosevelt that informed him of the work that had been done by Enrico Fermi and L. Szilard on converting energy from the element uranium. He also informed President Roosevelt that there was strong evidence that the Germans were also working on this same development. This letter initiated a program by the United States to develop an atomic bomb. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, under the Department of Defense, was assigned the task. The program, which involved several locations in the United States, was given the code name, Manhattan Project. E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company (Du Pont) was contracted to build and operate the reactors and chemical separations plants for the production of plutonium. On December 14, 1942, officials of Du Pont met in Wilmington, Delaware, to develop a set of criteria for the selection of a site for the reactors and separations plants. The basic criteria specified four requirements: (1) a large supply of clean water, (2) a large supply of electricity, (3) a large area with low population density, and (4) an area that would cover at least 12 by 16 mi.
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Mflfihflttflfi PROJECT
MflfiHflTTflfi PROJECT U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY The Hanford Site began as part and the reactor stack are the ofthe United States Manhattan only facilities that remain. Project to research, test and build atomic weapons during World War II. Today, the U.S. Department The original 670-square mile ofEnergy (DOE) Richland Hanford Site, then known as Operations Office offers escorted the Hanford Engineer Works, public access to B Reactor along a was the last ofthree top-secret designated tour route. The National sites constructed in order to Park Service (NPS) is studying produce enriched uranium and preservation and interpretation plutonium for the world's first options for sites associated with nuclear weapons. the Manahattan Project. A draft is expected in summer 2009. A final report will recommend whether B Reactor, located about 45 the B Reactor, along with other miles northwest ofRichland, Manhattan Project facilities, should Washington, is the world's first be preserved, and ifso, what roles full-scale nuclear reactor. the DOE, the NPS and community Not only was B Reactor a first partners will play in preservation of-a-kind engineering structure, and public education. it was built and fully functional in just 11 months. Eventually, the shoreline of the Columbia River in south eastern Washington State held nine nuclear reactors at the height ofHanford's nuclear defense production during the Cold War era. The B Reactor was shut down in 1968. During the 1980's, the U.S. Department ofEnergy began removing B Reactor's support facilities. The reactor B Reactor operating in 1945 building, the river pumphouse 2 ! N 200 West 200 East Area Area _1-+....&+04.01 B Reactor today, looking west with Umtanum Ridge in the background MRNHI\TTI\N ~~~.,".
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Hanford B Reactor and Beyond
How DOE and the Tri Cities Community are Working to Redefine Hanford’s Post‐Cleanup Future Colleen French DOE Richland Operations Office Government Programs Manager Hanford • Hanford was created in 1943 as part of the top secret Manhattan Project • 586 square miles • Production of plutonium increased during Cold War (peaking between 1959‐1965) • Hanford produced 2/3 of the nation’s plutonium between 1945‐1985 • Home to the first full‐scale nuclear producon reactor ― B Reactor Complex during operations (1940s‐1960s) the B Reactor, now a National Historic Landmark 2 The Hanford Site • Fuel fabrication and irradiation in nuclear reactors along the Columbia River • Chemical separations in canyon facilities to dissolve fuel and extract plutonium in the Central Plateau • Liquid and solid wastes disposed of in Central Plateau • Eventually, 9 reactors were built and Hanford operated for defense production through 1988 3 Hanford Cleanup Overview Two Department of Energy Offices Office of River Protection • Tank Waste Richland Operations Office • River Corridor • Central Plateau Cleanup Work • Treat contaminated groundwater • Demolish facilities • Move buried waste, contaminated soil away from Columbia River • Isolate contamination from environment on Central Plateau • Treat underground tank waste Workforce • 8,500 total Department of Energy and contractor employees 4 www.em.doe.gov HANFORD SITE CLEANUP 859 waste sites BY THE NUMBERS have been remediated SIX of Hanford’s nine reactors have been “cocooned” 12K cubic meters of underground waste have been removed more reactors will be TWO cocooned in the coming years 49K visitors have toured the B Reactor percent of the site’s spent National Historic fuel has been moved to dry Landmark 100 storage 10 billion gallons of buildings have been demolished contaminated 743 groundwater have been treated 5 What are Hanford’s “Assets”? 6 Hanford Site Post 2015 Cleanup Controlled Access Vision for Access and Use to Some of the Cleaned-up River Shoreline Natural Resource Preservation 1.
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Foundation Document Manhattan Project National Historical Park Tennessee, New Mexico, Washington January 2017 Foundation Document
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE • U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Foundation Document Manhattan Project National Historical Park Tennessee, New Mexico, Washington January 2017 Foundation Document MANHATTAN PROJECT NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK Hanford Washington ! Los Alamos Oak Ridge New Mexico Tennessee ! ! North 0 700 Kilometers 0 700 Miles More detailed maps of each park location are provided in Appendix E. Manhattan Project National Historical Park Contents Mission of the National Park Service 1 Mission of the Department of Energy 2 Introduction 3 Part 1: Core Components 4 Brief Description of the Park. 4 Oak Ridge, Tennessee. 5 Los Alamos, New Mexico . 6 Hanford, Washington. 7 Park Management . 8 Visitor Access. 8 Brief History of the Manhattan Project . 8 Introduction . 8 Neutrons, Fission, and Chain Reactions . 8 The Atomic Bomb and the Manhattan Project . 9 Bomb Design . 11 The Trinity Test . 11 Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan . 12 From the Second World War to the Cold War. 13 Legacy . 14 Park Purpose . 15 Park Signifcance . 16 Fundamental Resources and Values . 18 Related Resources . 22 Interpretive Themes . 26 Part 2: Dynamic Components 27 Special Mandates and Administrative Commitments . 27 Special Mandates . 27 Administrative Commitments . 27 Assessment of Planning and Data Needs . 28 Analysis of Fundamental Resources and Values . 28 Identifcation of Key Issues and Associated Planning and Data Needs . 28 Planning and Data Needs . 31 Part 3: Contributors 36 Appendixes 38 Appendix A: Enabling Legislation for Manhattan Project National Historical Park. 38 Appendix B: Inventory of Administrative Commitments . 43 Appendix C: Fundamental Resources and Values Analysis Tables. 48 Appendix D: Traditionally Associated Tribes . 87 Appendix E: Department of Energy Sites within Manhattan Project National Historical Park .
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Hanford's Historic B Reactor
NT O E F E TM N R E A R P G E Y D • • U United States Department of Energy N A I C T I E R D E M Richland Operations Office ST A ATES OF Hanford’s B Reactor Eventually, the lands along the A need Columbia River in southeastern Washington state supported The Hanford Site began as part nine nuclear reactors at the of the United States Manhattan height of Hanford's nuclear Project to research, test and build defense production during atomic weapons during World the Cold War era. War II. The B Reactor was shut down in The original 670-square mile 1968. In 1980, the U.S. Department Hanford Site, then known as of Energy began removing all the Hanford Engineer Works, B Reactor support facilities. The was the last of three top- reactor building is all that remains. secret sites constructed that produced enriched uranium and plutonium for the world's A future first nuclear weapons. Currently, workers are removing hazards from the building and A past expanding the area available for public access. A planning process B Reactor, located about 45 miles during the 2002 fiscal year will northwest of Richland, Wash., evaluate long-term uses for is the world's first full-scale B Reactor. plutonium-production reactor. Not only was B Reactor a first- of-its-kind engineering structure, it was built and fully functional in just 13 months. B Reactor in operation during the 1940s WASHINGTON Riv ia e b r m lu o Spokane C Seattle 100 Area (Reactors) Hanford Site B Reactor 200 West 200 East Area Area 300 Area City of Richland B Reactor Today In August 2000, DOE-RL and Bechtel Hanford Inc., the Ensuring A Safe Visit Environmental Restoration Contractor, partnered in a project to protect and maintain Follow the directions Hanford's B Reactor while of your escort providing limited public access.
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The Dupont Company the Forgotten Producers of Plutonium
The DuPont Company The Forgotten Producers of Plutonium Assembled by the “DuPont Story” Committee of the B Reactor Museum Association Ben Johnson, Richard Romanelli, Bert Pierard 2015 Revision 3 – March 2017 FOREWORD Like the world’s tidal waters, the study of our national story sometimes leads us into historical eddies, rich in human interest content, that have been bypassed by the waves of words of the larger accounting of events. Such is the case of the historical accounts of the Manhattan Project which tend to emphasize the triumphs of physicists, while engineering accomplishments, which were particularly important at the Hanford Site, have been brushed over and receive less recognition. The scientific possibility of devising a weapon based on using the energy within the nucleus of the atom was known by physicists in both the United States and Germany before World War II began. After the start of hostilities, these physicists were directed by their respective governments to begin development of atomic bombs. The success of the American program, compared with the German program, was due largely to the extensive involvement in the U.S. Manhattan Project of large and experienced engineering firms whose staff worked with the physicists. The result was the successful production of weapons materials, in an amazingly short time considering the complexity of the program, which helped end World War II. One view which effectively explains these two markedly different historical assessments of accomplishments, at least for Hanford, is noted in the literature with this quote. - "To my way of thinking it was one of the greatest interdisciplinary efforts ever mounted.
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Evaluation of Hanford B Reactor Experiments (PTA-069 and PTA-084) for Code and Data Benchmarking
ORNL/TM–2014/53 Evaluation of Hanford B Reactor Experiments (PTA-069 and PTA-084) for Code and Data Benchmarking March 18, 2014 Prepared by Germina Ilas Ian Gauld Robert M. Westfall Marco Pigni Approved for public release: distribution is unlimited. DOCUMENT AVAILABILITY Reports produced after January 1, 1996, are generally available free via US Department of Energy (DOE) SciTech Connect. Website http://www.osti.gov/scitech/ Reports produced before January 1, 1996, may be purchased by members of the public from the following source: National Technical Information Service 5285 Port Royal Road Springfield, VA 22161 Telephone 703-605-6000 (1-800-553-6847) TDD 703-487-4639 Fax 703-605-6900 E-mail [email protected] Website http://www.ntis.gov/support/ordernowabout.htm Reports are available to DOE employees, DOE contractors, Energy Technology Data Exchange representatives, and International Nuclear Information System representatives from the following source: Office of Scientific and Technical Information PO Box 62 Oak Ridge, TN 37831 Telephone 865-576-8401 Fax 865-576-5728 E-mail [email protected] Website http://www.osti.gov/contact.html This report was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States government. Neither the United States government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States government or any agency thereof.
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THE MANHATTAN PROJECT the U.S
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY AND THE MANHATTAN PROJECT The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management’s (EM) mission is to address the environmental legacy resulting from decades of nuclear weapons production and government-sponsored nuclear energy research, including at many sites involved in the once-secret Manhattan Project. HANFORD Created as part of the Manhattan Project, the B Reactor at DOE’s Hanford Site in Washington state was constructed in 1943 and produced plutonium used in the Trinity Test, as well as for the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, to end World War II. With its mission thought complete, the B Reactor was then shut down in 1946. However amidst tension between the Soviet Union and the United States in the late 1940s, it was restarted in 1948 to support production of plutonium for the Cold War until 1967. The B Reactor Museum Association (BRMA), a local non-profit organization that includes many former employees, worked since 1991 to advocate for the B Reactor to be preserved and opened to the public. Since 2008, when the B Reactor was named a National Historic Landmark, DOE has worked to make the facility accessible via escorted tours for people of all ages, abilities, and nationalities. Now one of five Hanford facilities in the Manhattan Project National Historical Park, B Reactor has had visitors from all 50 states and more than 90 countries worldwide. The reactor tours are an opportunity for the public to learn more about the Manhattan Project, the plutonium production process and legacy wastes, and how DOE is successfully cleaning up the site today.
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X-10 Reactor Forensic Analysis and Evaluation
X-10 REACTOR FORENSIC ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION USING A SUITE OF NEUTRON TRANSPORT CODES A Thesis Presented to The Academic Faculty by Evan Maxwell Redd In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science in Nuclear Engineering in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering Georgia Institute of Technology August 2015 COPYRIGHT © 2015 EVAN MAXWELL REDD X-10 REACTOR FORENSIC ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION USING A SUITE OF NEUTRON TRANSPORT CODES Approved by: Dr. Anna Erickson, Advisor Dr. Ce Yi School of Mechanical Engineering School of Mechanical Engineering Georgia Institute of Technology Georgia Institute of Technology Dr. Glenn Sjoden Air Force Technical Applications Center U.S. Air Force Dr. Kevin Manalo High Performance Computing Alabama School System HPC Date Approved: March 25, 2015 This thesis work is dedicated to my family. To my father, Alan, who taught me to never give up and to never stop learning. My late mother, Linda, who instilled the importance of happiness and selflessness. My sister, Lindsay, who showed me strong resolve and persistence in achieving happiness. Last but not least, my beautiful wife Michelle, who unconditionally supported and encouraged me throughout my academic career and life. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First, I would like to thank Dr. Glenn Sjoden for his career/research guidance and challenging reactor physics courses that imparted the skills needed for becoming a successful nuclear engineer. I would also like to thank Dr. Anna Erickson, who provided a smooth transition in advisement and was instrumental in shaping this research. Last and certainly not least, I would like to thank the former CRiTCEL team.
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Foundation Document Overview, Manhattan Project National
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE • U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Foundation Document Overview Manhattan Project National Historical Park New Mexico, Tennessee, Washington Contact Information For more information about the Manhattan Project National Historical Park Foundation Document, contact: [email protected] or write to: Superintendent, Manhattan Project National Historical Park, P.O. Box 25287, Denver, CO 80225-0287 Description Established on November 10, 2015, Manhattan Project National Historical Park preserves, interprets, and facilitates access to key historic resources associated with the Manhattan Project. The Manhattan Project was a massive, top-secret national mobilization of scientists, engineers, technicians, and military personnel charged with producing a deployable atomic weapon during World War II. It resulted in the first successful test of an atomic device on July 16, 1945, a few weeks before the United States dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. Coordinated by the U.S. Army, Manhattan Project activities took place in numerous locations across the United States. The park is managed through a collaborative partnership by the National Park Service and the U.S. Department of Energy, and incorporates three of the Manhattan Project’s most significant locations: Oak Ridge, Tennessee; Los Alamos, New Mexico; and Hanford, Washington. The unprecedented scientific and industrial activities of the Manhattan Project displaced many communities with thousands of people to make way for the rapid construction of Manhattan Project infrastructure. In addition to its MANHATTAN PROJECT NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK industrial plants, Hanford the U.S. government Washington built large residential neighborhoods to ! support the tens of thousands of workers who moved to these sites to support the project.
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Nuclear Reactors and Plutonium Production
Nuclear Reactors and Plutonium Production ISIS Course-Week 4 October 23, 2014 Nuclear Reactors • A nuclear reactor is an apparatus or machine in which fissile material can be made to undergo a controlled, self-sustaining nuclear reaction with the consequent release of energy. The Basic Parts of a Reactor http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnox • Fuel region • Heat removal equipment • Control system • Refueling capability Purposes of Reactors • Nuclear reactors are used for civilian purposes to – generate electricity – produce heat via steam – produce isotopes for medical, industrial, or research purposes – conduct research – propel surface ships, such as ice-breakers • Nuclear reactors are also used for military purposes to – produce plutonium for nuclear weapons – produce tritium for nuclear weapons – propel military submarines and surface ships – power aircraft and rockets (abandoned) Classification of Reactors • Power reactors – typically civilian, almost all now generate electricity. Some produced steam for district heating. Typically make large quantities of reactor-grade plutonium. • Research reactors – typically civilian aimed at making isotopes or conducting research. – In non-proliferation context, ostensibly civilian research reactors have also been used to make plutonium for nuclear weapons, e.g. Cirus and Dhruva reactors in India. The misuse of the Taiwan research reactor was planned. Is the Arak reactor in Iran in this category, ostensibly a civilian research reactor but in reality it would also have produced plutonium for nuclear weapons? • Propulsion reactors – either civilian or military • Production reactors – almost always military and dedicated to plutonium and tritium production for nuclear weapons, which means that the goal is the production of weapon- grade plutonium. Reactors • Reactor types vary greatly, some are far simpler to build than others • Production reactors and research reactors are the simplest to build.
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