Los Alamos National Laboratory Opportunities for Students
Presentation illustrating the benefits of working and studying at the Los Alamos site
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Processing Meteorological Data for the CAP-88 PC Model at Los Alamos National Laboratory
The Environmental Protection and Compliance-Compliance Programs (EPC-CP) group at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) uses the Clean Air Act Assessment Package 1988 (CAP-88, Littleton 2020) PC model (Version 4.1) to estimate radiological doses for a set of areal sectors surrounding a release location, in order to satisfy the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) dose calculation requirement in 40 CFR 61 Subpart H. Among several types of data that must be prepared for CAP-88 input is a text file of meteorological data (“WIND” file), consisting of the joint frequency of wind direction, wind speed, and atmospheric stability categories. EPC-CP produces customized WIND files by running a CAP-88 utility program on a user generated text file of wind data in a different format, known as a STability ARray (STAR) file (Turner, 1964). At LANL, EPC-CP meteorologists prepare customized STAR files with data over desired time periods at selected meteorological towers. A custom program written in Precision Visuals -Workstation Analysis and Visualization Environment (PV-WAVE), a commercial Fortran-like language, is used to read LANL meteorological data and write a STAR file; the executable filename is “Star.out”. However, the outdated PV-WAVE utility program is being phased out by EPC-CP, due to the inefficient process to run it and an inability to modify the code. To preserve the ability to create customized meteorological data for CAP-88 in a way that will be easy to use and maintain, a new replacement utility program, written in the Python programming language, has been developed. The new, improved program reads a data file from any LANL meteorological tower, and at each desired observation time, determines the wind direction, wind speed, and stability categories defined in the CAP-88 documentation. The frequencies of all combinations of the three sets of categories are calculated and written to a file in the STAR format, which can later be converted to a WIND file for input into CAP-88.
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
Los Alamos National Laboratory Design Basis Flood Level Modeling Report
This report describes a project conducted by Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and 3AE Green to determine the base flood elevations for the return periods associated with Flood Design Categories (FDC) 1-3 as identified in DOE-STD-1020-2016. As part of this work, 3AE Green performed two-dimensional (2D) hydraulic modeling of the Design Basis Flood Level (DBFL) for the primary watersheds within the LANL boundary and site-specific sub-watersheds associated with specific existing LANL facilities. The modeling covered an area of approximately 67 square miles.
58 GEOSCIENCES↗
The Los Alamos neutron spectrometer for the Lunar Scout-1 mission
We review the current status of the Los Alamos program to develop a neutron spectrometer for the Lunar Scout-1 mission, which is the first of two such missions to obtain global compositional, gravity, topography, and image maps of the lunar surface during nominal one-year missions. The neutron spectrometer will measure fast and slow (epithermal and thermal) neutrons in the ranges of 0.5 MeV to 25 MeV and 0.01 eV to more than 1 keV, respectively. The neutron spectrometer will consist of two independent instruments, a fast-neutron one, and a thermal and epithermal one. The measured neutron fluxes are very sensitive to hydrogen in the top meter of the lunar surface and provide additional information about lunar composition.
Auchampaugh, George↗
Preparing Los Alamos National Laboratory's Waste Management Program for the Future - 12175
The waste management program at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is undergoing significant transition to establish a lean highly functioning waste management program that will succeed the large environmental cleanup waste management program. In the coming years, the environmental cleanup activities will be mostly completed and the effort will change to long-term stewardship. What will remain in waste management is a smaller program focused on direct off-site shipping to cost-effectively enable the enduring mission of the laboratory in support of the national nuclear weapons program and fundamental science and research. It is essential that LANL implement a highly functioning efficient waste management program in support of the core missions of the national weapons program and fundamental science and research - and LANL is well on the way to that goal. As LANL continues the transition process, the following concepts have been validated: - Business drivers including the loss of onsite disposal access and completion of major environmental cleanup activities will drive large changes in waste management strategies and program. - A well conceived organizational structure; formal management systems; a customer service attitude; and enthusiastic managers are core to a successful waste management program. - During times of organizational transition, a project management approach to managing change in a complex work place with numerous complex deliverables is successful strategy. - Early and effective engagement with waste generators, especially Project Managers, is critical to successful waste planning. - A well-trained flexible waste management work force is vital. Training plans should include continuous training as a strategy. - A shared fate approach to managing institutional waste decisions, such as the LANL Waste Management Recharge Board is effective. - An efficient WM program benefits greatly from modern technology and innovation in managing waste data and reports. - Use of six-sigma tools can help improve the quality and efficiency of waste management processes. - A fair, easy to understand, transparent, and well-overseen process for distributing the cost of waste disposal and waste program oversight is essential. (authors)
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Maturing ceramic am and establishing a qualification framework at los alamos national laboratory
We successfully produced specimens made from porcelain resin (Tethon3D) in three different orientations (Z=45mm, Z=4mm and Z=3mm) without any cracks or delamination, both before and after post-processing. Four-point flexural tests were conducted on these specimens. Among the three orientations, specimens printed in the Z=4mm direction showed the best flexural strength, followed by Z=3mm and Z=45mm.
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
World's Largest Gold Crystal Studied at Los Alamos
When geologist John Rakovan needed better tools to investigate whether a dazzling 217.78-gram piece of gold was in fact the world's largest single-crystal specimen - a distinguishing factor that would not only drastically increase its market value but also provide a unique research opportunity - he traveled to Los Alamos National Laboratory's Lujan Neutron Scattering Center to peer deep inside the mineral using neutron diffractometry. Neutrons, different from other probes such as X-rays and electrons, are able to penetrate many centimeters deep into most materials. Revealing the inner structure of a crystal without destroying the sample - imperative, as this one is worth an estimated $1.5 million - would allow Rakovan and Lujan Center collaborators Sven Vogel and Heinz Nakotte to prove that this exquisite nugget, which seemed almost too perfect and too big to be real, was a single crystal and hence a creation of nature. Its owner, who lives in the United States, provided the samples to Rakovan to assess the crystallinity of four specimens, all of which had been found decades ago in Venezuela.
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(U) Los Alamos National Laboratory Pit Manufacturing
This is a photograph/poster of the Pit Manufacturing-A990 team at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
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Top Ten Weapons Breakthrough in Los Alamos' History
The dawn of the Nuclear Age occurred on the morning of July 16,1945, when Los Alamos conducted the Trinity test. Scientists and engineers from the U.S., Britain, and Canada proved the feasibility of weaponizing energy from plutonium nuclear fission using an implosion mechanism.
45 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY, WEAPONRY, AND NATIONAL DEF↗
2019 Results for Avian Monitoring of Inorganic and Organic Element Concentrations in Passerine Eggs and a Nestling Collected from Technical Area 16 Burn Grounds, Technical Area 36 Minie, and Technical Area 39 Point 6 at Los Alamos National Laboratory
In 2019, non-viable avian eggs and one nestling were opportunistically collected at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) near open detonation sites located at Technical Area (TA) 16 burn grounds, TA-36 Minie, and TA-39 Point 6. These samples were evaluated for inorganic elements (mostly metals), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins, and furans. A total of 26 western bluebird (Sialia mexicana) and five mountain bluebird (Sialia currucoides) egg samples and one non-viable ash-throated flycatcher (Myiarchus cinerascens) nestling were collected among the three locations of interest. Concentrations of inorganic elements observed in this study were compared with the regional statistical reference level (RSRL) which is the upper-level bounds of background concentrations (mean + three standard deviations = 99% confidence interval). Several inorganic elements were not detected in avian eggs and the majority of inorganic elements detected were below the RSRL. The few elements that exceeded the RSRL were below the lowest observable adverse effect level (LOAEL), when available. One nestling collected from TA-16 contained detectable concentrations of some dioxin and furan congeners. Octachlorodibenzodioxin-1,2,3,4,6,7,8,9 concentration exceeded the RSRL, but did not exceed the calculated tetrachlorodibenzodioxin-2,3,7,8 (TCDD) toxic equivalent LOAEL. PCBs were also detected in the nestling sample and were above the RSRL but below the LOAEL. These data suggest that inorganic and organic element concentrations in eggs and nestlings are not of ecological concern. More data are needed to make a robust assessment and to evaluate trends over time.
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
2020 Results for Avian Monitoring of Inorganic and Organic Element Concentrations in Passerine Eggs and Nestlings Collected from Technical Area 16 Burn Grounds, Technical Area 36 Minie, and Technical Area 39 Point 6 at Los Alamos National Laboratory
In 2020, non-viable avian eggs and two nestling were opportunistically collected at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) near open detonation sites located at Technical Area (TA) 16 burn grounds, TA-36 Minie, and TA-39 Point 6. These samples were evaluated for inorganic elements (mostly metals), dioxins, and furans. A total of six eggs and two deceased western bluebird (Sialia mexicana) nestling samples were collected among the three locations of interest. Concentrations of inorganic elements observed in this study were compared with the regional statistical reference level (RSRL) which is the upper-level bounds of background concentrations (mean + three standard deviations = 99% confidence interval). Several inorganic elements were not detected in avian eggs and all inorganic elements detected were below the RSRL and the lowest observable adverse effect level (LOAEL), when available. One nestling collected from TA-39 contained detectable concentrations of two dioxin congeners. Heptachlorodibenzodioxin-1,2,3,4,6,7,8 and octachlorodibenzodioxin-1,2,3,4,6,7,8,9 concentration exceeded the RSRL, but did not exceed the calculated tetrachlorodibenzodioxin 2,3,7,8 (TCDD) toxic equivalent LOAEL. These data suggest that inorganic and organic element concentrations in eggs and nestlings are not of ecological concern. More data are needed to make a robust assessment and to evaluate trends over time.
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
Los Alamos National Laboratory LiDAR Processing and Hydro-Enforcement Report
This report describes a project conducted by Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and 3AE Green to process and hydro-enforce LiDAR data over approximately 170 square miles. A variety of Government Furnished Information (GFI) including LiDAR (2021), 3-inch pixel resolution natural-color imagery (2018), stormwater infrastructure, culvert, bridge, and building features were analyzed to develop a hydro-enforced digital elevation model (DEM). Where overland flow was obstructed by elevation surface feature, representational cutline features were placed and integrated into the LiDAR-based elevation surface to allow for more appropriate flow across roadbeds and other impediments to natural flow. This hydro-enforced DEM was utilized to model and develop more than 6.5 million three-dimensional (3D) vector flow line features (prior to line joining / merging) representing the derived digital drainage network deliverable.
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US Senator Deb Fischer Visit: Infrastructure at Los Alamos
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Moisture Monitoring at Area G, Technical Area 54, Los Alamos National Laboratory, 2016 Status Report
Hydrological characterization and moisture monitoring activities provide data required for evaluating the transport of subsurface contaminants in the unsaturated and saturated zones beneath Area G, and for the Area G Performance Assessment and Composite Analysis. These activities have been ongoing at Area G, Technical Area 54 of the Los Alamos National Laboratory since waste disposal operations began in 1957. This report summarizes the hydrological characterization and moisture monitoring activities conducted at Area G. It includes moisture monitoring data collected from 1986 through 2016 from numerous boreholes and access tubes with neutron moisture meters, as well as data collected by automated dataloggers for water content measurement sensors installed in a waste disposal pit cover, and buried beneath the floor of a waste disposal pit. This report is an update of a nearly identical report by Levitt et al., (2015) that summarized data collected through early 2015; this report includes additional moisture monitoring data collected at Pit 31 and the Pit 38 extension through December, 2016. It also includes information from the Jennings and French (2009) moisture monitoring report and includes all data from Jennings and French (2009) and the Draft 2010 Addendum moisture monitoring report (Jennings and French, 2010). For the 2015 version of this report, all neutron logging data, including neutron probe calibrations, were investigated for quality and pedigree. Some data were recalculated using more defensible calibration data. Therefore, some water content profiles are different from those in the Jennings and French (2009) report. All of that information is repeated in this report for completeness. Monitoring and characterization data generally indicate that some areas of the Area G vadose zone are consistent with undisturbed conditions, with water contents of less than five percent by volume in the top two layers of the Bandelier tuff at Area G. These data also indicate that other areas of the vadose zone are affected by waste disposal activities that have been ongoing at Area G since 1957, a period of nearly 60 years. In some areas, water content profiles indicate increases in water content to depths of tens of meters, especially in areas covered by asphalt and structures.
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Mortality among workers at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, 1943–2017
During World War II (WWII), the Manhattan Engineering District established a secret laboratory in the mountains of northern New Mexico. The mission was to design, construct and test the first atomic weapon, nicknamed ‘The Gadget’ that was detonated at the TRINITY site in Alamogordo, NM. After WWII, nuclear weapons research continued, and the laboratory became the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). The mortality experience of 26,328 workers first employed between 1943 and 1980 at LANL was determined through 2017. Included were 6157 contract workers employed by the ZIA Company. Organ dose estimates for each worker considered all sources of exposure, notably photons, neutrons, tritium, 238Pu and 239Pu. Vital status determination included searches within the National Death Index, Social Security Administration and New Mexico State Mortality Files. Standardized Mortality Ratios (SMR) and Cox regression models were used in the analyses. Most workers (55%) were hired before 1960, 38% had a college degree, 25% were female, 81% white, 13% Hispanic and 60% had died. Vital status was complete, with only 0.1% lost to follow-up. The mean dose to the lung for the 17,053 workers monitored for radiation was 28.6 weighted-mGy (maximum 16.8 weighted-Gy) assuming a Dose Weighting Factor of 20 for alpha particle dose to lung. The Excess Relative Risk (ERR) at 100 weighted-mGy was 0.01 (95%CI -0.02, 0.03; n = 839) for lung cancer. The ERR at 100 mGy was -0.43 (95%CI -1.11, 0.24; n = 160) for leukemia other than chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), -0.06 (95%CI -0.16, 0.04; n = 3043) for ischemic heart disease (IHD), and 0.29 (95%CI 0.02, 0.55; n = 106) for esophageal cancer. Among the 6499 workers with measurable intakes of plutonium, an increase in bone cancer (SMR 2.44; 95%CI 0.98, 5.03; n = 7) was related to dose. The SMR for berylliosis was significantly high, based on 4 deaths. SMRs for Hispanic workers were significantly high for cancers of the stomach and liver, cirrhosis of the liver, nonmalignant kidney disease and diabetes, but the excesses were not related to radiation dose. There was little evidence that radiation increased the risk of lung cancer or leukemia. Esophageal cancer was associated with radiation, and plutonium intakes were linked to an increase of bone cancer. IHD was not associated with radiation dose. More precise evaluations will await the pooled analysis of workers with similar exposures such as at Rocky Flats, Savannah River and Hanford.
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTAN↗
Los Alamos National Laboratory Comprehensive Security Briefing
This report discusses the importance and details of security procedures at the Los Alamos National Laboratory.
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Research on fission induced plasmas and nuclear pumped lasers at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory
A program of research on gaseous uranium and uranium plasmas is being conducted at The Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory under sponsorship of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The objective of this work is twofold: (1) to demonstrate the proof of principle of a gaseous uranium fueled reactor, and (2) pursue fundamental research on nuclear pumped lasers. The relevancy of the two parallel programs is embodied in the possibility of a high-performance uranium plasma reactor being used as the power supply for a nuclear pumped laser system. The accomplishments in the two above fields are summarized
Helmick, H. H.↗
Analytical chemistry of nuclear material: case studies from Los Alamos National Laboratory
Presented here are three case studies that demonstrate the breadth of bulk actinide analytical chemistry at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). This laboratory was established during the Manhattan Project and is still considered one of the premier analytical laboratories for special nuclear materials characterization around the globe. First, the analytical chemistry of 238 Pu is presented, showcasing the unique challenges of this high activity isotope. Next, the analysis of 241 AmO 2 is discussed from the perspective of supporting nascent production at LANL. Finally, the analytical chemistry support of the production of plutonium non-destructive assay standards is discussed. Furthermore these examples paint a picture of the analytical capabilities needed to meet the dynamic challenges of LANL’s nuclear programs.
38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEA↗