Oak Ridge Today

Forensic anthropologist Bill Bass, founder of ‘Body Farm,’ to speak at Children’s Museum

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Bill Bass

The Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge will host a benefit presentation this fall by William “Bill” Bass, author, renowned forensic anthropologist, and founder of the “Body Farm,” the Forensic Anthropology Research Facility at the University of Tennessee.

Bass will speak at 7 p.m. Saturday, September 28, at the Museum, discussing the science behind the novel “Bones of Betrayal,” set in Oak Ridge, and answering questions from the audience. Frank Murphy, host of the afternoon show on Classic Hits 93.1 WNOX, will serve as emcee at the event.

The novel by Jefferson Bass, a collaboration between Bass and co-author Jon Jefferson, is a murder mystery set in Oak Ridge featuring a forensic anthropologist searching for clues to the death of a prominent scientist, a press release said. [Read more…]

Y-12 supporting work to make most widely used medical isotope

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Pictured above is a rendering of the proposed Coquí Radio Pharmaceuticals Corporation medical isotope production facility at the Heritage Center in west Oak Ridge. (Image courtesy Coquí)

Note: This story was updated at 5:30 p.m.

The Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge is supporting a program to make an isotope used in more than 40,000 medical procedures across the nation each day. The goal is to produce the isotope, molybdenum-99 (Mo-99), in the United States without using highly enriched uranium.

Some of that work could occur in Oak Ridge. A company called Coquí Radio Pharmaceuticals Corporation announced in April that it plans to build a $500 million medical isotope production facility at the Heritage Center in west Oak Ridge. Coquí’s facility would make medical isotopes, primarily Mo-99, and the company could start production in 2025.

In a video posted online, Y-12 said some of its researchers have extensive knowledge of Mo-99 and are sharing that information with Coquí and other companies hoping to produce the isotope.

Y-12 has been involved with Mo-99 since 2009, said Cole Jackson of Y-12 Global Security and Strategic Partnerships.

[Read more…]

ORNL engineer the first African American woman involved in discovery of an element

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Oak Ridge National Laboratory researcher Clarice Phelps represents einsteinium on the “Periodic Table of Younger Chemists.” (Photo courtesy ORNL)

A nuclear engineer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is the first African American woman to be involved with the discovery of an element, tennessine, the lab said Tuesday.

Clarice Phelps of ORNL’s Isotope and Fuel Cycle Technology Division is one of two researchers at the lab to be featured on the “Periodic Table of Younger Chemists,” ORNL said in a press release.

Also honored is Nathan Brewer, a postdoctoral researcher in ORNL’s Physics Division.

Phelps and Brewer are both early career researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, a U.S. Department of Energy laboratory.

[Read more…]

Outdoor Pool hours extended into August

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The Oak Ridge Outdoor Pool on Providence Road is pictured above. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge)

The Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department is extending open hours at the outdoor pool into the month of August. The new schedule will begin on Thursday, August 1, as follows: 

  • Monday-Friday: 100-meter Lap Swim from 9 a.m.-12 p.m.
  • Monday-Friday: Kiddie/Shallow Open Swim from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: After-school Open Swim from 3-8 p.m.
  • Saturday and Sunday: Open Swim from 10 a.m.-7 p.m.
[Read more…]

ORFD warns of fraudulent carbon monoxide safety campaign

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The Oak Ridge Fire Department is warning residents about a potentially fraudulent safety campaign. Firefighters were made aware this week that an unknown person claiming to be with the fire department is going to door to door, attempting to speak with homeowners about carbon monoxide detectors, a press release said.

The Oak Ridge Fire Department is not currently operating any door-to-door safety campaigns in our area, the press release said. ORFD personnel will also never try to sell items to residents.

[Read more…]

For members: Construction planned for SNS power upgrade

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The Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory reached its operational power design level by running a neutron production cycle at 1.4 megawatts, the lab said Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2018. (Photo courtesy ORNL)

Construction is planned in December for a project to upgrade proton power at the Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The construction could last about one year, and it will be limited to the buildout of what is known as the klystron gallery, ORNL said in June. The klystron gallery houses the radio-frequency systems that power the structures used to accelerate a negatively-charged hydrogen ion beam in the linear accelerator at SNS.


The Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory reached its operational power design level by running a neutron production cycle at 1.4 megawatts, the lab said Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2018. (Photo courtesy ORNL)

 

Construction is planned in December for a project to upgrade proton power at the Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The construction could last about one year, and it will be limited to the buildout of what is known as the klystron gallery, ORNL said in June. The klystron gallery houses the radio-frequency systems that power the structures used to accelerate a negatively-charged hydrogen ion beam in the linear accelerator at SNS.

SNS generates neutrons for scientific research by propelling protons down a linear accelerator. When the protons collide with a liquid mercury target, they create a “spall” of neutrons that are sent down beam lines surrounded by research instruments.

The proton power upgrade will eventually double the power of the SNS proton beam from 1.4 megawatts to 2.8 megawatts. The current total estimated project cost is $245 million.

The rest of this story, which you will find only on Oak Ridge Today, is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or recent contributor to Oak Ridge Today.  Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here. Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here: Basic

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If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to: Oak Ridge Today P.O. Box 6064 Oak Ridge, TN 37831 Note: Most news stories on Oak Ridge Today are free, brought to you by Oak Ridge Today with help from our advertisers, sponsors, and subscribers. Some are considered premium content. This story is premium content. Premium content can include in-depth, investigative, and exclusive stories.

Stop sign going in, stoplight coming out

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The intersection of Tyler Road and Tennessee Avenue, which now includes a stoplight, is pictured above on Thursday, July 18, 2019.

A new stop sign will be installed and the traffic signal will be removed at the intersection of Tyler Road and Tennessee Avenue in the Jackson Square area in central Oak Ridge.

The new stop sign will be uncovered on Tuesday, July 23, at about 8 a.m., the City of Oak Ridge said in a press release Thursday.

“At present, both Tyler Road and Tennessee Avenue are controlled by a traffic signal,” the press release said. “The change is being made after a traffic study indicated the traffic pattern and crash history at this location does not justify the need for a traffic signal. The study also indicated that changing the right-of-way assignment to favor Tennessee Avenue will reduce delays.”

[Read more…]

Four workers received small external doses, SNS outage started early after ‘pressure transient’

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An aerial view of the Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo by ORNL)

Note: This story was updated at 12 p.m. July 19.

Four workers received small external radiation doses and a planned outage of the Spallation Neutron Source was started a few days early after an unexpected “pressure transient” in March, according to Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The low radiation dose levels (less than 25 millirem) were well below the regulatory threshold of 5,000 mrem annual exposure, which was established to protect worker safety, ORNL said in June.

The pressure transient occurred in the SNS mercury loop. When radiation was detected, ORNL staff closed off the affected area and reviewed workers’ dosimeters.

“Readings showed four workers received small external doses, none more than 25 millirem,” ORNL said.

For comparison, a chest x-ray produces a radiation dose of about 6 mrem; a mammogram about 13 mrem, and a head and chest CT scan is 1,100 mrem[1].

[Read more…]

For members: Man sentenced to 8 months after fight with officers

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A man who fought with Oak Ridge police officers, injuring five of them, pleaded guilty last week to five counts of aggravated assault on an officer, and he was sentenced to serve eight months in the Anderson County jail, according to court records.

Thurman B. Bates

Thurman B. Bates, 40, pleaded guilty to the five counts in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge on Thursday, July 11. He was ordered to serve the eight-month sentence with his release eligibility set at 75 percent of his sentence and with credit for time served. Bates has been jailed at the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton since January 6, or more than six months.

Oak Ridge Police Department Badge

A man who fought with Oak Ridge police officers, injuring five of them, pleaded guilty last week to five counts of aggravated assault on an officer, and he was sentenced to serve eight months in the Anderson County jail, according to court records. 

The rest of this story, which you will find only on Oak Ridge Today, is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or recent contributor to Oak Ridge Today.  Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here. Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here: Basic

Pro

Temporary

If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to: Oak Ridge Today P.O. Box 6064 Oak Ridge, TN 37831 Note: Most news stories on Oak Ridge Today are free, brought to you by Oak Ridge Today with help from our advertisers, sponsors, and subscribers. Some are considered premium content. This story is premium content. Premium content can include in-depth, investigative, and exclusive stories.

No injuries reported when furnace door blows open in lab reaction at Y-12

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No injuries were reported when a furnace door blew open during an “unexpected violent reaction” in a chemistry laboratory at the Y-12 National Security Complex in May.

The door of the muffle furnace blew open while it was heating samples in an analytical chemistry laboratory in Building 9995 on Thursday, May 30, the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board said.

The muffle furnace was damaged, the DNFSB said. It is used to heat samples to high temperatures. The glass vials containing the samples shattered, and some were expelled from the muffle furnace into the work area, the safety board said in a June 7 report.

[Read more…]

No injuries reported in transformer fire at salt bath for depleted uranium

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No injuries were reported during a fire at a transformer for a salt bath used to heat depleted uranium at the Y-12 National Security Complex in May.

The transformer fire was reported Monday, May 20, in Building 9215 at Y-12. It burned no more than about 25 minutes, according to the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. No depleted uranium was being processed at the time of the fire, the board said.

The salt bath heats depleted uranium before metalworking operations.

The DNFSB said the system engineer had stepped away from the salt bath while it was slowly heating to a new temperature, and he noticed the fire after re-entering the area after a supervisor told him about an unusual odor, the DNFSB said. The engineer called 911, and all personnel evacuated the immediate area.

[Read more…]

Judge Elledge named president of Tennessee Judicial Conference

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Anderson County Circuit and Criminal Court Judge Don Elledge is pictured above on June 12, 2019, shortly after he was named president of the Tennessee Judicial Conference. (Photo courtesy Tennessee Supreme Court, Administrative Office of the Courts via Flickr)

Anderson County Circuit and Criminal Court Judge Don Elledge has been named president of the Tennessee Judicial Conference.

Here is a story about Elledge by Tennessee Supreme Court, Administrative Office of the Courts:

[Read more…]