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UCOR accepting applications for education grants

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UCOR, a federal cleanup contractor in Oak Ridge, is accepting applications for education grants between $500 and $1,000.

The grants will support science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, or STEM, projects.

The grant applications are open to public school teachers in eight counties: Anderson (including Oak Ridge and Clinton City schools), Campbell, Knox, Loudon, Morgan, Roane, Scott, and Union.

“Teachers in those counties are welcome to apply, but applications should focus on STEM,” a press release said. “For instance, a music teacher might apply for a grant for a math-related project within the field of music.”

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‘Mud’ photography exhibit opens at K-25 History Center on Thursday

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The new K-25 History Center will be hosting “Mud, a Photographic Exhibition of Life in the Secret City.” The exhibit will open on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2020, and it will be available for viewing through the month of March. (Submitted photo)

The new K-25 History Center will be hosting “Mud, a Photographic Exhibition of Life in the Secret City.” The exhibit will open on Thursday, February 27, and it will be available for viewing through the month of March.

There will be a grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the K-25 History Center at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, February 27.

During World War II, Oak Ridge was a quickly built as a secret government town of 70,000 workers who lived in a camp-like environment of barbed wire, security checkpoints, and code words, a press release said. Workers were fingerprinted, interviewed, assigned a job, and given a clearance badge. Housing was limited and cramped and often unheated.

Oak Ridgers who ventured into Knoxville were easy to spot. The quickly constructed secret city was blanketed in a thick layer of mud. As a result, its residents’ muddy shoes were a dead giveaway as to their origin. “The muddy conditions of Oak Ridge during the war was a commonality that all residents, regardless of occupation, had to contend with,” the press release said.

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K-25 History Center to feature exhibits, artifacts, galleries

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K-25 History Center (Photo courtesy U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management)


The K-25 History Center in west Oak Ridge will feature exhibits with more than 250 original artifacts and interactive galleries developed with help from almost 1,000 oral histories.

There will be a grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the K-25 History Center at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, February 27.

“The K-25 History Center was created to honor the amazing stories of the men and women who helped construct and operate the uranium enrichment complex that altered the global landscape during the Manhattan Project and Cold War,” the U.S. Department of Energy said.

The History Center is housed in 7,500 square feet of space on the second floor of the city-owned fire station at the former K-25 site, now known as Heritage Center. It was developed as part of a 2012 agreement that allowed DOE to demolish the North Tower of the former mile-long, U-shaped K-25 Building.

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Nature walks scheduled on Oak Ridge Reservation

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Narrow leaved spring beauties are found on the Oak Ridge Reservation. (Submitted photo)

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On the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Reservation, located in East Tennessee, more than 1,100 vascular plants, 72 fish, 34 mammals, and more than 200 bird species have been observed.

This year, the public is invited to nine nature walks designed to highlight not only the rich flora and fauna diversity of the reservation, but also to demonstrate the work being done to sustainably manage and conserve this resource. Walks will take place on several locations across the Oak Ridge Reservation beginning in late winter through mid-summer. No pets, please.

Reservations for the following events must be made in advance by noon the Thursday prior to each walk by contacting Tracy Clem at (865) 574-5151 or [email protected] More information about these walks is available by contacting Trent Jett at (865) 574-9188 or [email protected]

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No damage reported on Oak Ridge Reservation after earthquake

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The Y-12 National Security Complex is pictured above. (Photo courtesy CNS Y-12)

No damage was reported on the Oak Ridge Reservation after a 3.8 magnitude earthquake was reported about 30 miles northeast of Oak Ridge on Monday, January 20.

The earthquake was felt in Oak Ridge and other communities, and it vibrated homes and windows here. The earthquake was reported by the U.S. Geological Survey.

Two lower magnitude 2.4 and 2.8 earthquakes were also reported on Sunday, January 19, and Tuesday, January 21, respectively, the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board said in its most recent report.

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ORISE to host virtual career fair for ORNL internships, fellowships, research associates

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Part of the ORAU campus in central Oak Ridge is pictured above on May 29, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

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The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education will host a virtual career fair on Thursday, February 20, from noon to 3 p.m. Eastern time to highlight the paid internships, fellowships, and research associate programs available to college students and recent graduates at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

During this time, attendees can interact with ORNL scientists, researchers, recruiters, and staff, as well as ORISE program representatives. They also can learn more about the different directorates, or major focus areas, that make up ORNL, such as Computing and Computational Sciences, Energy and Environmental Sciences, Neutron Sciences, Nuclear Science and Engineering, and Physical Sciences.

“The ORISE Virtual Career Fair provides a unique and exciting opportunity for university-level students and postgraduates to investigate internships, fellowships, and research associate programs available at Oak Ridge National Laboratory,” said ORISE Workforce Development Director Craig Layman. “Representatives from ORNL and ORISE will be on hand to chat with the virtual attendees.” [Read more…]

K-25 History Center has grand opening this month

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The K-25 History Center will have a grand opening ceremony on Thursday, February 27.

The ceremony, which will include a ribbon-cutting, is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Thursday, February 27, at 652 Enrichment Street in west Oak Ridge.

The K-25 site, now known as Heritage Center, was built during World War II to help enrich uranium for the top-secret Manhattan Project, a federal program to build the world’s first atomic bombs. K-25 helped enrich uranium for “Little Boy,” a nuclear weapon dropped over Hiroshima, Japan, on August 6, 1945, shortly before the end of World War II.

After the war, K-25 enriched uranium for nuclear weapons and commercial nuclear power plants through the Cold War. The site was shut down in the mid-1980s, and it is being cleaned up and converted into a private industrial park. The site’s large uranium enrichment buildings have been demolished and so have many of the support buildings. Most of the cleanup is expected to be completed this year.

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Lithium Processing Facility at Y-12 could cost up to $1.65 billion

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Federal officials have approved the need for a new Lithium Production Facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex, and in May 2018, they said it could be built on the east side of the 811-acre plant, possibly where the Biology Complex, the brick building at center, is now. The east side of Y-12 is pictured above from Scarboro Road on Sunday, May 20, 2018. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The proposed Lithium Processing Facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex could cost between $955 million and $1.65 billion, and it could be completed in 2031, the National Nuclear Security Administration said Thursday.

The Lithium Processing Facility could be built where the former Biology Complex is located on the east side of Y-12. That’s the NNSA’s preferred site. The Biology Complex is being prepared for demolition by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management.

On Thursday, the NNSA, which is part of the U.S. Department of Energy, said it had approved the conceptual design and cost range for the proposed 134,000-square-foot Lithium Processing Facility.

The facility will replace Y-12’s current lithium processing operations, which are located in a World War II-era building. That building, Building 9204-2, or Beta 2, has had materials fall from the ceiling, including chunks of concrete that reportedly weighed up to 200 pounds. The falling materials and concerns about worker safety have been cited by federal officials during congressional hearings in Washington, D.C.

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Roane State Foundation wins $6,000 grant from CNS Y-12

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Making the grant presentation, from left, are Robert Keen, chair of the Y-12 Employment Investment Advisory Committee; Scott Niermann, executive director of the Roane State Foundation; Teresa Duncan, Roane State vice president of workforce development and director of the college’s Oak Ridge Branch Campus; Meghan Lovelace, committee secretary; Mike McClamroch, East Tennessee Foundation president and CEO; and Amy Wilson, CNS senior director of transformation. (Photo by Roane State Community College)

The Roane State Foundation has won a $6,000 grant from the CNS Y-12 Community Investment Fund to help adult students in the community college’s programs in computer science, cybersecurity, and mechatronics, a press release said.

CNS operates the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, and the contractor established the fund through the East Tennessee Foundation in 2014 as part of its commitment to Oak Ridge and the surrounding communities.

Officials said the grant will fund scholarships to help students pay for industry-recognized certifications. Those certifications are important tools for graduates to pair with their college degree to demonstrate to employers they have the skills and documentations that often allow graduates to earn higher wages when going to work, the press release said.

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Roane State graduate doing climate change research at ORNL

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Rachel Andrews, a graduate of Roane State, is shown in an Oak Ridge National Laboratory lab getting serum bottles ready for an incubation experiment. (Photo courtesy Lynn Freeny/U.S. Department of Energy)

By Bob Fowler, Roane State staff writer

A recent Roane State Community College graduate is researching climate change and the microorganisms that contribute to it.

Rachel Andrews, a Morgan County resident who graduated from the community college in May 2019, is an intern at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. She’s doing research with Christopher Schadt in the Biosciences Division at the lab.

They are investigating methane production in peat, which is formed by the partial decomposition of plants in wet, acidic conditions of bogs. Scientists say methane gas is one of the major contributors to a warming planet.

“We study the methanogens that live in peatland soil,” Andrews said in an emailed response to questions about her research. She said these microorganisms produce quite a bit of methane and carbon dioxide, also identified as a culprit in climate change.

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UT professor with joint appointment at ORNL receives $1.7 million award

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David Mandrus
David Mandrus

A materials science professor in the University of Tennessee’s Tickle College of Engineering has received a five-year $1.7 million award from a leading scientific foundation for research in the emerging field of quantum materials.

David Mandrus, the Jerry and Kay Henry Endowed Professor, has a joint appointment at UT and Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Mandrus’s work has been cited thousands of times, and he has earned several notable accolades for his part in advancing materials science, a press release said. In recognition of his work, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation has named him an Emergent Phenomena in Quantum Systems  (EPiQS) Materials Synthesis Investigator.

“I’m honored to have again been selected by the Moore Foundation as someone whose work they have chosen to recognize,” Mandrus said. “Their support will help me further explore ideas and concepts related to quantum materials and the opportunities they make possible.”

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Volkswagen, UT, ORNL announce collaboration, innovation hub

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Volkswagen Group America Innovation North University Tennessee Research Park
Volkswagen Group of America will lease space in the Innovation North building on the UT Research Park campus. (Photo courtesy University of Tennessee)

Volkswagen Group of America, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and the University of Tennessee on Friday announced a collaboration to create Volkswagen’s first innovation hub in North America at the UT Research Park at Cherokee Farm.

“Working with the University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge National Laboratory is a great opportunity to continue growing Volkswagen’s engineering footprint in the North American region,” said Wolfgang Demmelbauer-Ebner, executive vice president and chief engineering officer for Volkswagen’s North American region. “This hub, along with other research institutions here, is an integral part of Volkswagen’s global research and development efforts and can also directly contribute to vehicles in North America.”

The collaboration involves research opportunities for doctoral students and space in the Innovation North building at the UT Research Park at Cherokee Farm in Knoxville, a press release said. Initial work will focus on developing lighter vehicle components made from composite materials and the electrification of vehicles.

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