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Fusion research: ORNL chosen for plasma materials experiment facility

Posted at 6:29 pm March 1, 2020
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Scientists use a laser to align the plasma created at the Proto-MPEX (Materials Plasma Exposure Experiment) machine at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo credit: Ted Biewer/ORNL, U.S. Department of Energy)

Oak Ridge National Laboratory has been chosen as the site of an experimental facility to test materials that would withstand the harsh conditions of the plasmas created in fusion devices, which, researchers hope, could eventually provide carbon-free energy to people around the world.

The proposed facility, the Materials Plasma Exposure Experiment facility, or MPEX, has an estimated cost range between $87 million and $175 million. It would be in an existing facility in an area at ORNL known as the Energy Systems Test Complex.

Fusion devices would use the same reactions that power the sun. Temperatures inside a fusion reactor could reach millions of degrees.

Scientists are studying materials that could withstand the conditions inside fusion reactors by exposing them to prototypical plasma conditions. Plasma, the heated matter created in a fusion device, has high-energy neutrons, electrons, and ions. MPEX would study materials that face the plasma. Finding materials capable of withstanding the harsh environment remains a major hurdle to using fusion to produce energy.

A critical decision for the MPEX facility was completed in early February by the U.S. Department of Energy. ORNL is a DOE Office of Science lab. The critical decision, CD-1, is the second step in the five-step process that DOE uses to manage projects. The CD-1 decision included an alternative selection and a cost range.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, ORNL, Science, Slider, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: DOE, fusion, fusion experiment, fusion materials, fusion plasma, fusion power, fusion reactor, International Tokamak Experimental Reasctor, ITER, Juergen Rapp, Materials Plasma eXposure Experiment, MPEX, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Office of Science, ORNL, plasma, Proto-MPEX, U.S. Department of Energy

Senate bill also rejects Trump’s science cut, increases funding instead

Posted at 8:39 am July 20, 2017
By John Huotari 4 Comments

Energy Secretary Rick Perry, left, talks to reporters after touring Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Manufacturing Demonstration Facility on Hardin Valley Road on Monday, May 22, 2017. Also pictured is U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander, center, a Tennessee Republican, and ORNL Director Thom Mason. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander, center, a Tennessee Republican, is pictured above with Energy Secretary Rick Perry, left, at Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility in Hardin Valley on Monday, May 22, 2017. Also pictured is former ORNL Director Thom Mason. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

An appropriations bill approved by a Senate subcommittee on Tuesday rejects the Trump administration’s proposal to cut $919 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science in the fiscal year that starts October 1.

Instead of cutting, the Senate bill would actually increase funding for the Office of Science, boosting it to $5.55 billion in fiscal year 2018. That would be again a record funding level in a regular appropriations bill, according to U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander, a Tennessee Republican who often advocates for the federal sites in Oak Ridge and chairs the Senate subcommittee.

Like the Senate this week, the House Appropriations Committee last week also rejected President Donald Trump’s request to cut DOE’s Office of Science.

Unlike the Senate bill, though, the House bill would keep funding flat at $5.39 billion, the same as in the current fiscal year. That level of funding was also a record in a regular appropriations bill, Alexander said in May.

The Office of Science is the nation’s largest supporter of research in the physical sciences.

The president’s budget request, submitted to Congress on May 23, would cut Office of Science funding by about 17 percent, dropping it to $4.47 billion.

Keeping Office of Science funding flat, or even increasing it, could be important to several of the federal sites in Oak Ridge. Oak Ridge National Laboratory is an Office of Science lab, and the Office of Scientific and Technical Information, or OSTI, is an Office of Science unit. [Read more…]

Filed Under: East Tennessee Technology Park, Government, National Nuclear Security Administration, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Office, Slider, U.S. Department of Energy, Y-12 National Security Complex Tagged With: 3D printing, advanced manufacturing, Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, Appalachian Regional Commission, appropriations bill, Army Corps of Engineers, ARPA-E, CASL, Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors, Dianne Feinstein, DOE, DOE Environmental Management, Donald Trump, East Tennessee Technology Park, EERE, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, environmental management, ETTP, House Appropriations Committee, International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, ITER, Jeanne Shaheen, Lamar Alexander, Lindsey Graham, Manufacturing Demonstration Facility, national laboratory, National Nuclear Security Administration, NNSA, Oak Ridge airport, Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Office, Office of Science, Office of Science Integrated Support Center, Office of Scientific and Technical Information, ORNL, OSTI, Senate bill, Senate Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee, Susan Collins, Thom Mason, Titan, Trump administration, U.S. Department of Energy, uranium processing facility, Y-12 National Security Complex

Friday lecture: Man’s quest for fusion, the role of ITER

Posted at 12:15 pm May 18, 2016
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Mark Henderson

Mark Henderson

A member of the technical staff at ITER, a magnetic fusion device in southern France, will discuss man’s quest for fusion and the role of ITER in a Friday evening lecture in Oak Ridge.

The lecture starts at 6 p.m. Friday, May 20, at the American Museum of Science and Energy. It will be by Mark Henderson, member of the Technical Staff, ITER Organization in St. Paul-les-Durrance, France.

Henderson will provide a first-hand account of the wide scope of technologies involved in operation of the ITER tokamak (the magnetic fusion device), as well as the current status of design, development, and construction of the experimental fusion facility, a press release said. ITER is the only fusion device in the world that is presently being designed to achieve a burning plasma of hydrogen isotopes. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Front Page News, Meetings and Events, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: American Museum of Science and Energy, fusion, fusion device, ITER, magnetic fusion, Mark Henderson, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, tokamak, US ITER

Alexander: Bill raises Office of Science funding to highest-ever, includes UPF, supercomputing, cleanup funding

Posted at 7:05 pm May 19, 2015
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander

Lamar Alexander

A bill approved by a U.S. Senate subcommittee on Tuesday would give $5.144 billion to the federal agency that oversees work at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. It’s the highest level of funding ever for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science, which oversees 10 national labs, including ORNL, federal officials said.

The bill would also provide $430 million for the proposed Uranium Processing Facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex, which will “continue to keep this project on time and on budget,” according to a press release from the office of U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander, a Tennessee Republican.

Alexander’s office also said the legislation would provide funding for:

  • a new mercury treatment plant in Oak Ridge,
  • cleanup of nuclear facilities that are no longer in service,
  • nuclear infrastructure at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and
  • advanced computing, which supports the new Summit supercomputer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The bill was unanimously approved on a voice vote by the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development on Tuesday afternoon. Alexander is chair of that subcommittee, and he said the approval shows that there is bipartisan support for energy research, waterways, and national security. [Read more…]

Filed Under: East Tennessee Technology Park, Federal, Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy, Y-12 National Security Complex Tagged With: advanced computing, Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, Appropriations Committee, Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, ARPA-E, Chickamauga Lock, cleanup, Dianne Feinstein, energy research, exascale computing, hot cells, International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, isotope production, isotopes, ITER, Lamar Alexander, mercury treatment, National Nuclear Security Administration, national security, nuclear facilities, nuclear power, nuclear waste, nuclear waste storage, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Office of Science, ORNL, physical sciences, science, small modular reactors, summit, Summit supercomputer, supercomputer, technology, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Senate, uranium processing facility, waterways, Y-12 National Security Complex

FORNL has third talk on international thermonuclear project on Tuesday

Posted at 11:13 am May 7, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Graeme Murdoch

Graeme Murdoch

Friends of Oak Ridge National Laboratory will have its third talk on the U.S. ITER project on Tuesday. ITER is the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, and it will be constructed at Cadarache, France, and is expected to be completed within 10 years.

The Friends of ORNL lecture starts at noon Tuesday at the University of Tennessee Resource Center. It will feature Graeme Murdoch, who will discuss U.S. ITER non-nuclear systems.

“The United States has joined with China, the European Union, India, Japan, Korea, and Russia to construct and operate ITER, a full-scale, 500 megawatt experimental fusion device,” a press release said. “U.S. Contributions to ITER include hardware (with supporting research and development and design), personnel (U.S. engineers and scientists) to the ITER site in Cadarache, and cash contributions to the ITER organization. US-supplied hardware includes magnets, blankets, diagnostics, tritium processing, ion cyclotron and electron cyclotron heating and current drive systems, pellet fueling, and more conventional systems such as cooling water and electrical power systems.”

ITER is a large-scale project that presents many engineering challenges, the press release said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Front Page News, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Science, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: Friends of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Friends of ORNL, Graeme Murdoch, International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, ITER, ORNL, SNS, Spallation Neutron Source, U.S. ITER, University of Tennessee Resource Center, UT Resource Center

Alexander: Red Team Review of UPF could be model for other DOE projects

Posted at 11:59 pm April 9, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Uranium Processing Facility

Pictured above is the proposed Uranium Processing Facility at Y-12 National Security Complex, with the administrative area in the front and the fortified section of the building in the rear. (Submitted image)

U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander on Wednesday called for a special Senate hearing on whether an ongoing review of the Uranium Processing Facility in Oak Ridge could serve as a model to improve oversight of U.S. Department of Energy projects, a press release said.

In a hearing held by the Appropriations Subcommittee for Energy and Water Development, of which he is the lead Republican, Alexander noted that Thom Mason, director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, is currently conducting a “Red Team” review of UPF. Mason’s Red Team members are using the same process that has made the Office of Science the only office in DOE that successfully manages efficient and cost-effective projects, said Alexander, a Tennessee Republican. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Federal, Government, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy, Y-12 National Security Complex Tagged With: Appropriations Subcommittee for Energy and Water Development, budget, Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Replacement Facility, DOE, Energy Secretary, Ernest Moniz, ITER, Lamar Alexander, Mixed Oxide Fuel Facility, MOX, Office of Science, Red Team, Red Team Review, Thom Mason, U.S. Department of Energy, UPF, uranium processing facility

ORNL division director to discuss international thermonuclear reactor Tuesday

Posted at 10:41 pm April 4, 2014
By Dawn Huotari Leave a Comment

Hans Vogel

Hans Vogel

A division director at Oak Ridge National Laboratory will discuss heating, fueling, and cooling the ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) project at ORNL during a Tuesday meeting in Oak Ridge.

The lunchtime meeting featuring Hans Vogel will be hosted by Friends of ORNL.

This will be the second in a series of three talks on the U.S. ITER project. The next one on May 13 will feature Graeme Murdoch.

During the Tuesday talk, Vogel, who is the ORNL Nuclear Systems division director, will discuss the Tokamak cooling water system, ion cyclotron transmission lines, electron cyclotron transmission lines, pellet injection system, disruption mitigation system, and the tokamak exhaust processing system. These systems are valued at more than $500 million, a press release said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Science, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: Connor Matthews, Friends of ORNL, Hans Vogel, International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, ITER, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, ORNL

Chief engineer for U.S. ITER at ORNL to give project overview on Tuesday

Posted at 9:21 am March 10, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Brad Nelson

Brad Nelson

The chief engineer for the U.S. ITER Project at Oak Ridge National Laboratory will give a project overview on Tuesday.

Brad Nelson is the chief engineer for the U.S. International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor Project. His Tuesday talk will be the first in a series of three presentations on the U.S. ITER project to Friends of ORNL, with Hans Vogel speaking on April 8 and Graeme Murdoch speaking on May 13.

The New Yorker published a story on ITER in its March 3 edition titled “A Star in a Bottle” by Raffi Khatchadourian.

Nelson’s Tuesday presentation during a Friends of ORNL luncheon lecture starts at noon at the University of Tennessee Resource Center in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Front Page News, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Science Tagged With: A Star in a Bottle, Brad Nelson, Cadarache, China, European Union, France, Friends of ORNL, fusion, fusion device, fusion power, Graeme Murdoch, Hans Vogel, hardware, India, International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, ITER, Japan, Korea, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Office of Science, ORNL, Raffi Khatchadourian, Russia, The New Yorker, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. ITER, United States, University of Tennessee Resource Center

Nuclear goes Hollywood: New film sheds light on old debate

Posted at 5:47 pm July 24, 2013
By Oak Ridge National Laboratory 9 Comments

Pandora's Promise Panel Discussion

Jeff Binder, Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s associate lab director of nuclear science and engineering, answers an audience question during a panel discussion following a screening of “Pandora’s Promise” in Knoxville on Saturday. (Submitted photo)

By Scott Jones

About 300 people attended a showing of the new pro-nuclear film “Pandora’s Promise” and heard a panel discussion about nuclear energy on Saturday, including perspectives from Oak Ridge National Laboratory staff.

The lab worked with Regal Entertainment Group to bring the film to the Downtown West theater from July 19-25.

Few phrases carry the ideological weight of the words “nuclear power.” [Read more…]

Filed Under: College, Education, Federal, Government, Movies, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Top Stories Tagged With: Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors, Doug Kothe, environmental, film, fission, fusion, Gordon Petersen, ITER, Jeff Binder, Lawrence Townsend, Mike Cohen, Ned Sauthoff, Nuclear Energy, nuclear engineering, nuclear power, nuclear reactors, nuclear weapons, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, ORNL, Pandora’s Promise, Regal Cinemas Downtown West, Robert J. Whalen, Robert S. Eby, Robert Stone, small modular reactor, SMR, Tennessee Valley Authority, United States Enrichment Corporation, University of Tennessee, USEC, utilities

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Classifieds

Public Notice: Comment period extended for Draft EA for Lithium Processing Facility at Y-12

EXTENSION OF THE COMMENT PERIOD FOR THE DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE LITHIUM PROCESSING … [Read More...]

Public Notice: Draft Environmental Assessment Available for Lithium Production Facility at Y-12

AVAILABILITY OF THE DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE LITHIUM PROCESSING FACILITY AT THE Y-12 … [Read More...]

Availability of the Final Environmental Assessment for the Oak Ridge Enhanced Technology and Training Center (ORETTC) (DOE/EA-2144), Finding of No Significant Impact, and Wetland Statement of Findings

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces the … [Read More...]

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