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DOE OSTI2012

Suspect/Counterfeit Items Information Guide for Subcontractors/Suppliers

Counterfeiting of industrial and commercial grade items is an international problem that places worker safety, program objectives, expensive equipment, and security at risk. In order to prevent the introduction of Suspect/Counterfeit Items (S/CI), this information sheet is being made available as a guide to assist in the implementation of S/CI awareness and controls, in conjunction with subcontractor's/supplier's quality assurance programs. When it comes to counterfeit goods, including industrial materials, items, and equipment, no market is immune. Some manufactures have been known to misrepresent their products and intentionally use inferior materials and processes to manufacture substandard items, whose properties can significantly cart from established standards and specifications. These substandard items termed by the Department of Energy (DOE) as S/CI, pose immediate and potential threats to the safety of DOE and contractor workers, the public, and the environment. Failure of certain systems and processes caused by an S/CI could also have national security implications at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). Nuclear Safety Rules (federal Laws), DOE Orders, and other regulations set forth requirements for DOE contractors to implement effective controls to assure that items and services meet specified requirements. This includes techniques to implement and thereby minimizing the potential threat of entry of S/CI to LANL. As a qualified supplier of goods or services to the LANL, your company will be required to establish and maintain effective controls to prevent the introduction of S/CI to LANL. This will require that your company warrant that all items (including their subassemblies, components, and parts) sold to LANL are genuine (i.e. not counterfeit), new, and unused, and conform to the requirements of the LANL purchase orders/contracts unless otherwise approved in writing to the Los Alamos National Security (LANS) contract administrator/procurements specialist.

45 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY, WEAPONRY, AND NATIONAL DEF↗

DOE OSTI2016

MCNP6 simulation of light and medium nuclei fragmentation at intermediate energies

Fragmentation reactions induced on light and medium nuclei by protons and light nuclei of energies around 1 GeV/nucleon and below are studied with the Los Alamos transport code MCNP6 and with its CEM03.03 and LAQGSM03.03 event generators. CEM and LAQGSM assume that intermediate-energy fragmentation reactions on light nuclei occur generally in two stages. The first stage is the intranuclear cascade (INC), followed by the second, Fermi breakup disintegration of light excited residual nuclei produced after the INC. CEM and LAQGSM account also for coalescence of light fragments (complex particles) up to sup>4 He from energetic nucleons emitted during INC. We investigate the validity and performance of MCNP6, CEM, and LAQGSM in simulating fragmentation reactions at intermediate energies and discuss possible ways of further improving these codes.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2023

MARSAME Radiological Release Report for Metal Items from Technical Area 53, Set 25

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2016

High order magnetic optics for high dynamic range proton radiography at a kinetic energy of 800 MeV

Flash radiography with 800 MeV kinetic energy protons at Los Alamos National Laboratory is an important experimental tool for investigations of dynamic material behavior driven by high explosives or pulsed power. The extraction of quantitative information about density fields in a dynamic experiment from proton generated images requires a high fidelity model of the proton imaging process. It is shown that accurate calculations of the transmission through the magnetic lens system require terms beyond second order for protons far from the tune energy. The approach used integrates the correlated multiple Coulomb scattering distribution simultaneously over the collimator and the image plane. Comparison with a series of static calibration images demonstrates the model’s accurate reproduction of both the transmission and blur over a wide range of tune energies in an inverse identity lens that consists of four quadrupole electromagnets.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

DOE OSTI2013

Corrugated Metal Pipes Category of Transuranic Waste Stored Below Ground within Area G

The primary regulatory driver for environmental cleanup at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is the March 2005 Compliance Order on Consent (Consent Order), an agreement between LANL and the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) that contains specific requirements and schedules for cleaning up historical contamination at the LANL site. The Consent Order has a final deliverable date of December 2015 (Reference 1). The Consent Order does not address requirements for removing transuranic (TRU) waste from the LANL site; therefore TRU waste removal was typically placed at lower priority in budget decisions. Removal of TRU waste stored both above ground and below ground at Technical Area 54 (TA-54) Area G is required before a remedy is implemented under the Consent Order for Material Disposal Area G (MDA G, which is the below-ground portion of Area G). After the Las Conchas Fire burned large areas near Los Alamos in 2011, New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez asked the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to provide sufficient funding for cleanup of defense legacy wastes from LANL and for TRU waste disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). Discussions were held with the NMED on accelerating TRU waste removal from LANL.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

DOE OSTI2024

MARSAME Radiological Release Report for Metal Items from Technical Area 53, Set 28

Environmental Protection and Compliance, Environmental Stewardship Group (EPC-ES) has evaluated the survey results for metal items from the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) at Technical Area 53 (TA-53) and found that the metal items described in Table 1 of this report (identified by Radiation Protection [RP] Tracking Numbers) meet the criteria for unrestricted release under Department of Energy (DOE) Order 458.1 Chg 4, Radiation Protection of the Public and the Environment (DOE 2020) and can be recycled. This conclusion is based on the known history of the metal items and radiation survey data (see the completed RP-Form-031 LANSCE Metals Clearance Log [LANL 2021a] for each item in Attachment 1). Process knowledge indicates that items were released from radiological areas, including radiation areas, prior to the implementation of the 2000 metals moratorium. Therefore, the items are considered unencumbered and are not subject to the moratorium suspension on metal recycling from DOE facilities. Additionally, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) has determined that there is no practical opportunity for internal DOE reuse of this metal. Process knowledge indicates that these metal items were unlikely to ever be in direct contact with the beam and thus are unlikely to have become activated. Surface contamination measurements (both total and removable) showed either no detectable radioactivity or activity levels within the range of background. All measurements for volumetric contamination were indistinguishable from background based on calculated decision limits. Additionally, all gamma isotopic surveys conducted for defense-in depth showed no identifiable gamma radiation from beam activation.

61 RADIATION PROTECTION AND DOSIMETRY↗

DOE OSTI2023

Walking in his grandfather’s footsteps

During his August 11 visit to the Lab, Charles Oppenheimer participated in several events, and encountered a few surprises along the way Charles Oppenheimer never met his grandfather J. Robert Oppenheimer — the famed physicist died before Charles was born. But through family lore, popular narrative, and retracing his footsteps in Los Alamos, most recently on August 11, Charles knows this man well. Charles speaks on behalf of the Oppenheimer family, offering a perspective so many authors, filmmakers, and interviewers have forgotten to ask for. "The thing that stands out most is the family culture of being supportive of Robert Oppenheimer. It’s something I experienced as family culture … he had these really wide interests and was able to pursue them to his heart’s content," Charles said. During his visit Charles participated in a panel discussion with Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Jennifer Granholm, DOE Under Secretary and National Nuclear Security Administration Administrator Jill Hruby, and Lab Director Thom Mason following a screening of an abbreviated version of the National Security Research Center’s (NSRC) newly-released documentary, “Oppenheimer: Science, mission, legacy.” He then toured the Bradbury Science Museum and his grandparent’s Los Alamos residence.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

DOE OSTI2017

Crystallographic texture and microstructural changes in fusion welds of recrystallized Zry-4 rolled plates

This study presents a detailed characterization of the microstructural and crystallographic texture changes observed in the transition region in a weld between two Zircaloy-4 cold rolled and recrystallized plates. The microstructural study was performed by optical microscopy under polarized light and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Texture changes were characterized at different lengthscales: in the micrometric size, orientation imaging maps (OIM) were constructed by electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), in the millimetre scale, high energy XRD experiments were done at the Advanced Photon Source (USA) and compared to neutron diffraction texture determinations performed in the HIPPO instrument at Los Alamos National Laboratory. In the heat affected zone (HAZ) we observed the development of Widmanstätten microstructures, typical of the α( hcp ) to β( bcc ) phase transformation. Associated with these changes a rotation of the c-poles is found in the HAZ and fusion zone. While the base material shows the typical texture of a cold rolled plate, with their c-poles pointing 35° apart from the normal direction of the plate in the normal-transversal line, in the HAZ, c-poles align along the transversal direction of the plate and then re-orient along different directions, all of these changes occurring within a lengthscale in the order of mm. The evolution of texture in this narrow region was captured by both OIM and XRD, and is consistent with previous measurements done by Neutron Diffraction in the HIPPO diffractometer at Los Alamos National Laboratory, USA. The microstructural and texture changes along the HAZ were interpreted as arising due to the effect of differences in the cooling rate and β grain size on the progress of the different α variants during transformation. Fast cooling rates and large β grains are associated to weak variant selection during the β–>α transformation, while slow cooling rates and fine β grains result in strong variant selection.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

DOE OSTI2020

Accobeam - Acoustic Collimated Beam

Researchers at Los Alamos have developed a collimated acoustic imaging technology for non-destructive characterization of highly attenuating media, such as concrete, rocks, mud, and metal casings. The technology is used to investigate structural defects that could compromise important assets such as well boreholes, building structures and sensitive materials like explosives. Current acoustic methods are often unable to penetrate such materials deeply for more informative analysis, which limits what can be learned about asset structural integrity, crucial information companies require to make investment decisions such as fixing or replacing structures well before assets are completely compromised. ACCObeam provides requisite penetration and high-resolution acoustic imaging with applications in borehole imaging, explosives threat evaluation, and structural health evaluation. This technology will potentially save companies significant money by producing accurate and useful visual analyses to better understand the actual condition of assets in the field and respond accordingly. Los Alamos is searching for a collaboration partner to develop this technology for commercial applications that will lead to licensing opportunities for broad industry deployment.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2012

RLUOB Celebration

Los Alamos National Laboratory's newest facility, the Radiological Laboratory Utility Office Building (RLUOB), is also its first to achieve both the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) status and LEED Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). From its robust design to its advanced scientific equipment, RLUOB is essential to the Laboratory's national security mission in support of the National Nuclear Security Administration's (NNSA) nuclear weapons program. At more than 200,000 square feet, this building is the only radiological facility within the Department of Energy to have attained LEED Gold, which contributes to NNSA's achievement towards the high performance sustainable building goals outlined in Executive Order 13514, Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance. 'As we celebrate RLUOB being completed almost one year ahead of schedule and having achieved LEED certification at the Gold level, we approach our plutonium mission at Los Alamos and NNSA with a great sense of achievement,' said Don Cook, NNSA's deputy administrator for defense programs. 'RLUOB adds a major component to NNSA's plutonium support capability and RLUOB demonstrates our commitment in helping to deliver President Obama's nuclear security agenda which includes ensuring the safety, security and effectiveness of the nuclear deterrent without testing.' The facility contains laboratories for analytical chemistry and materials characterization of special nuclear material, along with space for offices, training and emergency operations. Its multi-functional purpose makes RLUOB a unique project for which LEED certification was sought. 'LEED certification was a huge goal and one we sought from the very beginning of this project,' said Laboratory Director Charlie McMillan. 'It's an important step forward, allowing us to advance national security science in modern, safer, more efficient infrastructure.' The Laboratory's project team and its contractor partners, especially in coordination with Jacobs Engineering, focused on green design and construction in LEED categories, such as sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality and innovation in design. RLUOB's features include: (1) Building envelope design (orientation, materials and insulation) yielded a 20 percent improvement in energy performance; (2) Incorporation of building materials with 24 percent recycled content; (3) Diversion of 72 percent of construction-generated materials through reuse, recycle and salvage; (4) Roofing comprised of 93 percent highly-reflective materials to reduce heat island effects; (5) High efficiency, gas-fired hot water boilers, air-cooled chillers, thermal storage systems and variable frequency drives for compressors, fans and pumps; (6) Energy efficient lighting for interiors, exteriors, process glove boxes and fume hoods; (7) Water efficient fixtures resulting in 30 percent reduction in usage; (8) Low emission paints and carpeting for improved indoor air quality; (9) Landscaping that doesn't require permanent irrigation; (10) Enhanced building system commissioning; and (11) Comprehensive transportation alternatives, including public transportation, bicycle storage and changing rooms, and a refueling station for government vehicles using alternative fuels. 'RLUOB's LEED certification demonstrates tremendous leadership in green building,' says Rick Fedrizzi, president and CEO of USGBC. 'The urgency of our mission has challenged the industry to move faster and reach further than ever before, and RLUOB serves as a prime example of just how much we can accomplish.'

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗

DOE OSTI2020

Science-informed Machine Learning to Increase Recovery Efficiency in Unconventional Reservoirs

Production of hydrocarbons from fractured, unconventional reservoirs is inherently inefficient. But machine learning offers a pathway both to increasing recovery efficiency at a site and to improving forecasts of production, thereby improving the economics of operations in unconventional reservoirs. Los Alamos—in partnership with DOE, NETL, and WVU—has been developing a science-informed workflow and platform for optimizing pressure-drawdown at a site, which will allow an operator to make reservoir-management decisions that optimize recovery in consideration of future production. This work relies on a hybridization of physics-based prediction and machine learning, whereby accurate synthetic data (in combination with available site data) can enable the application of machine learning methods for rapid forecasting and optimization. The physics-based prediction is built upon experimental and theoretical work to determine transport characteristics in shale at various scales, with an emphasis on materials from MSEEL-I; this fundamental shale R&D was conducted in partnership with DOE, NETL, and several other national labs. This work has resulted from a coordinated leveraging of developments across several projects within DOE FE30, along with internal investments from Los Alamos via LDRD. The development has utilized data from the MSEEL–I site for calibration and demonstration; however, the workflow and platform are readily extendable to operations at other sites, plays, and basins. This machine-learning method can aid operators to improve both recovery efficiency and competitiveness; to this end, future work would quantify processes for other plays/basins and integrate production details with economics.

04 OIL SHALES AND TAR SANDS↗

DOE OSTI2015

Electron-Beam Dynamics for an Advanced Flash-Radiography Accelerator

Beam dynamics issues were assessed for a new linear induction electron accelerator being designed for multipulse flash radiography of large explosively driven hydrodynamic experiments. Special attention was paid to equilibrium beam transport, possible emittance growth, and beam stability. Especially problematic would be high-frequency beam instabilities that could blur individual radiographic source spots, low-frequency beam motion that could cause pulse-to-pulse spot displacement, and emittance growth that could enlarge the source spots. Furthermore, beam physics issues were examined through theoretical analysis and computer simulations, including particle-in-cell codes. Beam instabilities investigated included beam breakup, image displacement, diocotron, parametric envelope, ion hose, and the resistive wall instability. The beam corkscrew motion and emittance growth from beam mismatch were also studied. It was concluded that a beam with radiographic quality equivalent to the present accelerators at Los Alamos National Laboratory will result if the same engineering standards and construction details are upheld.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

DOE OSTI2016

An Innovative Approach to Bridge a Skill Gap and Grow a Workforce Pipeline: The Computer System, Cluster, and Networking Summer Institute

Sustainable and effective computing infrastructure depends critically on the skills and expertise of domain scientists and of committed and well-trained advanced computing professionals. But, in its ongoing High Performance Computing (HPC) work, Los Alamos National Laboratory noted a persistent shortage of well-prepared applicants, particularly for entry-level cluster administration, file systems administration, and high speed networking positions. Further, based upon recruiting efforts and interactions with universities graduating students in related majors of interest (e.g., computer science (CS)), there has been a long standing skillset gap, as focused training in HPC topics is typically lacking or absent in undergraduate and in even many graduate programs. Given that the effective operation and use of HPC systems requires specialized and often advanced training, that there is a recognized HPC skillset gap, and that there is intense global competition for computing and computational science talent, there is a long-standing and critical need for innovative approaches to help bridge the gap and create a well-prepared, next generation HPC workforce. Our paper places this need in the context of the HPC work and workforce requirements at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and presents one such innovative program conceived to address the need, bridge the gap, and grow an HPC workforce pipeline at LANL. The Computer System, Cluster, and Networking Summer Institute (CSCNSI) completed its 10th year in 2016. The story of the CSCNSI and its evolution is detailed below with a description of the design of its Boot Camp, and a summary of its success and some key factors that have enabled that success.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

DOE OSTI2014

Pressure/temperature fluid cell apparatus for the neutron powder diffractometer instrument: Probing atomic structure in situ

This contribution describes a new local structure compatible gas/liquid cell apparatus for probing disordered materials at high pressures and variable temperatures in the Neutron Powder Diffraction instrument at the Lujan Neutron Scattering Center, Los Alamos National Laboratory. The new sample environment offers choices for sample canister thickness and canister material type. Finite element modeling is utilized to establish maximum allowable working pressures of 414 MPa at 15 K and 121 MPa at 600 K. High quality atomic pair distribution function data extraction and modeling have been demonstrated for a calibration standard (Si powder) and for supercritical and subcritical CO 2 measurements. As a result, the new sample environment was designed to specifically target experimental studies of the local atomic structures involved in geologic CO 2 sequestration, but will be equally applicable to a wide variety of energy applications, including sorption of fluids on nano/meso-porous solids, clathrate hydrate formation, catalysis, carbon capture, and H 2 and natural gas uptake/storage.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2013

Biota Dose Assessment at LANL for 2011

Beginning with the Manhattan Project, the earliest work with radioactive material was located in what is now the center of Los Alamos townsite, and some of those materials were released into the environment or disposed of as waste. These radioactive materials have been extensively studied and assessed in many reports during the past 60 years. The assessments consider many activities relevant to dose assessment, such as adventurous children who burrow into and eat the soil, as well as the activities of pets and wildlife. Even for the most extreme scenarios, the doses are less than a few mrem per year, well below the DOE limit for the public, and four orders of magnitude below the DOE limit to terrestrial animals, which is 0.1 rad per day. Locations that pose even a very small risk to humans or pets are fenced, locked, and posted as controlled areas. However, it is recognized that biota such as plants, birds, mice, and worms live in these controlled areas. The DOE standard is intended to protect these biota. Contaminated sites in and near Los Alamos consist of areas known as solid waste management units (SWMU) and areas of concern (AoC) that have been identified and studied extensively in many reports. LA-UR-90-4300 lists these locations, and many subsequent reports provide extensive details and assessments. Between these areas, the levels of detectable radioactive materials are many orders of magnitude smaller. Because they are not a focus of concern, the areas outside of SWMUs and AoCs have not been as extensively studied or sampled. The highest concentrations of radioactive materials resulting from historic LANL operations are buried in material disposal areas (MDAs) such as MDA A, B, C, G, T, etc. Much of this material is sealed in containers that are not accessible to biota (McNaughton 2005). In some cases, it is buried below the reach of tree roots or burrowing animals, and in some cases it is encased or embedded in concrete. Of particular relevance to the present report, the hills to the west of LANL, where the Las Conchas fire burned, are not contaminated with LANL‐derived substances. The radioactivity in these hills consists of naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM) and global fallout.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2020

2020 LANL Contributions to the BATS Test in WIPP

The DOE Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE) repository research and development program seeks to provide a sound technical basis for multiple viable disposal options, increase confidence in the robustness of generic disposal concepts, and develop science and engineering tools needed to support disposal concept implementation. Sandia, Los Alamos, and Lawrence Berkeley National labs are conducting research into salt, which includes the Brine Availability Test in Salt (BATS) field test at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), a DOE Office of Environmental Management facility. BATS is leveraging the existing infrastructure associated with the WIPP to advance science informing generic disposal concepts. BATS is an ongoing heated borehole experiment being conducted in the WIPP underground. The goal of this experiment is to reduce the uncertainty associated with spent nuclear fuel disposition in geologic salt formations. The BATS experiments is designed to accomplish this by increasing our understanding of brine migration in salt, assessing damaged zones from mining and drilling, simulating a post-closure environment, confirming salt properties, and providing data for model validation. Phased testing for generic salt repository R&D was proposed in 2015. Subsequently, borehole thermal testing was developed as a first step in this process. This document summarizes the work conducted on the BATS experiment during fiscal year 2020 with an emphasis on the contributions by Los Alamos National Lab.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

DOE OSTI2012

Article on Trident Laser Facility for NA-11 Stockpile Stewardship Quarterly

The Trident Intermediate-Scale Laser Facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory is an extremely versatile Nd:glass laser system dedicated to high energy density laboratory physics and weapons physics research and fundamental laser-matter interactions. Trident is a three-beam, 200 J/beam at the second harmonic for glass (527 nm wavelength), facility with tremendous flexibility and high beam quality. Pulse durations varying over 6 orders of magnitude, from 0.5 picoseconds to 1.0 microsecs, can be directed to either of two different target chambers with changeable illumination geometries, including the ability to achieve near-diffraction limited focus. This provides a unique range of capability at one facility from sub-picosecond pulses (and high-intensity laser science) to nanosecond pulses (and LPI physics relevant to ICF) to microsecond pulses (and driving flyer plates for supported shock dynamic materials science.) When in short-pulse mode (less than picosecond pulse), a single beam can provide up to 200 TW of power with uniquely controllable and measured pre-pulse contrast of 10 orders of magnitude. A recent external capability review at Los Alamos concluded that "Trident is generating excellent, cutting edge science and is a leading intermediate scale laser system worldwide."

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2014

Final Radiological Assessment of External Exposure for CLEAR-Line Americium Recovery Operations

Los Alamos National Laboratory is currently planning to implement an americium recovery program. The americium, ordinarily isotopically pure 241Am, would be extracted from existing Pu materials, converted to an oxide and shipped to support fabrication of americium oxide-beryllium neutron sources. These operations would occur in the currently proposed Chloride Extraction and Actinide Recovery (CLEAR) line of glove boxes. This glove box line would be collocated with the currently-operational Experimental Chloride Extraction Line (EXCEL). The focus of this document is to provide an in-depth assessment of the currently planned radiation protection measures and to determine whether or not further design work is required to satisfy design-goal and ALARA requirements. Further, this document presents a history of americium recovery operations in the Department of Energy and high-level descriptions of the CLEAR line operations to provide a basis of comparison. Under the working assumptions adopted by this study, it was found that the evaluated design appears to mitigate doses to a level that satisfies the ALARA-in-design requirements of 10 CFR 835 as implemented by the Los Alamos National Laboratory procedure P121. The analyses indicate that extremity doses would also meet design requirements. Dose-rate calculations were performed using the radiation transport code MCNP5 and doses were estimated using a time-motion study developed in consort with the subject matter expert. A copy of this report and all supporting documentation are located on the Radiological Engineering server at Y:\Rad Engineering\2013 PROJECTS\TA-55 Clear Line.

61 RADIATION PROTECTION AND DOSIMETRY↗