Oak Ridge Today

Record funding in federal budget could help Oak Ridge, senator says

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Lamar-Alexander-Warren-Gooch-Terry-Frank-Nov-20-2015

U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, a Tennessee Republican, at a brief press conference with Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch, center, and Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank at the Oak Ridge Municipal Building on Friday, Nov. 20, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The federal budget expected to be complete by mid-December should have record funding, and the money could help Oak Ridge in areas ranging from mercury and Cold War cleanup to scientific research and the proposed Uranium Processing Facility, U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander said Friday.

The Oak Ridge area now receives about $3 billion per year in federal funding, and the level will be increased although he doesn’t have a number yet, said Alexander, a Tennessee Republican.

Alexander held a brief press conference at the Oak Ridge Municipal Building on Friday.

He said the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science, which provided $1.4 billion to Oak Ridge National Laboratory this year, will have a record level of funding. [Read more…]

Startup Day, which has ties to Oak Ridge, is in Knoxville on Thursday

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Knoxville’s 3rd annual Startup Day is Thursday, November 19, at the Bijou Theatre in downtown Knoxville. More than 400 attendees participate in the event that highlights East Tennessee as the hub for startups and entrepreneurs, organizers said.

Startup Day has ties to Oak Ridge. Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Tech 2020 are presenting sponsors.

Doors open at 1:45 p.m. Thursday. [Read more…]

Budget plans for Secret City Festival discussed; DOE landfill raises concerns for Council

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Warren Gooch

Warren Gooch (Photo by Savanna Schubert)

By Savanna Schubert

There are no changes to the 2016 Secret City Festival, but Oak Ridge may enjoy the festival in a new season in 2017.

The first resolution on the Oak Ridge City Council agenda on Monday related to the Secret City Festival, an annual two-day festival that is the city’s biggest event each year but is in transition. It’s now in June, but it could be a fall event starting in 2017 and it could be transformed into a celebration that lasts a week or more.

“We are looking to broaden the festival into a series of concerts and festivals to last throughout the year,” City Manager Mark Watson said.

The 2016 festival will continue the tradition of nightly concerts, war re-enactments, and fun family-oriented activities for all ages. [Read more…]

Controlled burns scheduled on Oak Ridge Reservation

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The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office is starting a controlled burn of a small forestland area on the Oak Ridge Reservation for prescribed burning at the East Tennessee Technology Park and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Beginning Monday, November 16, weather permitting, a controlled burn was expected to take place on approximately four acres south of West Bear Creek Road near the DOE Central Training Facility southeast of ETTP.

The planned burn is being conducted as an effort to reduce the risk of wildfires and will be overseen by the State of Tennessee Division of Forestry, which maintains fire control equipment, certified burn managers, and trained personnel at the burn area with the support of the Oak Ridge Fire Department and the ORNL forester, a press release said.

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UT, Y-12 chemical sensing technology wins national R&D100 award

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Michael-Sepaniak

Michael Sepaniak

A low-cost chemical sensor invented by a University of Tennessee chemistry professor in partnership with the Y-12 National Security Complex has been recognized by R&D Magazine as a top technology product in the marketplace, a press release said.

The invention, the product of UT Chemistry Professor Michael Sepaniak and collaborators at Y-12, was selected this weekend for the 2015 R&D100 Award—known in the field as the “Oscars of innovation.” The award recognizes the top 100 technology projects of the year and honors the inventors.

ChIMES (Chemical Identification by Magneto-Elastic Sensing) is a new low-cost passive chemical sensing technology. The sensors are based on a set of target response materials that expand in the presence of a target. The expanding volume puts stress on materials, changing their magnetic properties so they can be detected wirelessly. [Read more…]

ORNL wins six R&D 100 awards

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BAAM-RD100-ORNL-2015

The Big Area Additive Manufacturing-CI system, developed by ORNL and Cincinnati Incorporated, was among ORNL’s six 2015 R&D 100 award winners. (Photo courtesy ORNL)

 

Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have received six R&D 100 awards, increasing the lab’s total to 193 since the award’s inception in 1963.

The competition, sponsored by R&D Magazine, recognizes advances in the nation’s most impactful technologies and the scientists and engineers who led the effort. This year, ORNL researchers earned awards for the following innovations:

The Big Area Additive Manufacturing-CI system was developed by ORNL researchers and Cincinnati Incorporated. BAAM-CI also received an Editor’s Choice award from R&D Magazine. [Read more…]

Today: Council to consider Secret City Festival agreement, comments on DOE landfill

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The Oak Ridge City Council will consider an agreement worth up to $150,000 for the 2016 Secret City Festival and will also consider comments on the federal proposal to build a new landfill west of the Y-12 National Security Complex.

The meeting starts at 7 p.m. Monday, November 16, in the Oak Ridge Municipal Building Courtroom at 200 South Tulane Avenue.

See the City Council agenda here. The Secret City Festival agreement is on Page 18 under Resolutions.

See the proposed comments on the U.S. Department of Energy landfill starting on Page 2 of the additions to the agenda. [Read more…]

DOE director’s presentation to include discussion of proposed landfill near Y-12

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Laura Wilkerson

Laura Wilkerson

A Tuesday presentation by federal official Laura Wilkerson will include information on the proposed new Environmental Management Disposal Facility, a landfill that would be on the west side of the Y-12 National Security Complex.

Laura Wilkerson is a portfolio federal project director for the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management. She will be the guest speaker at Lunch with the League at noon Tuesday, November 17, in the Social Hall of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Her presentation will focus on environmental management and waste management in Oak Ridge.

Lunch with the League is sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge. In a press release, the League said it has a position on waste disposal that addresses full disclosure of intent and public participation in the decision-making process.

“The League position is to protect the health of the community and environment,” the press release said. [Read more…]

INCITE grants awarded to 56 research projects at ORNL, Argonne

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Oak Ridge National Laboratory Sign

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science has announced 56 projects aimed at accelerating discovery and innovation to address some of the world’s most challenging scientific questions. The projects will share 5.8 billion core hours on America’s two most powerful supercomputers dedicated to open science at Oak Ridge and Argonne national laboratories.

The diverse projects will advance knowledge in critical areas ranging from sustainable energy technologies to next-generation materials, a press release said.

Researchers from academia, government research facilities, and industry received computing time through the Innovative and Novel Computational Impact on Theory and Experiment, or INCITE, program. The program was created as the primary means of accessing the DOE Leadership Computing Facilities at Argonne and Oak Ridge national laboratories.

“The INCITE program drives some of the world’s most ambitious and groundbreaking computational research in science and engineering,” said James Hack, director of the National Center for Computational Sciences, home to the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility, a DOE Office of Science User Facility. “The program has a very strong and diverse collection of projects in 2016, and we look forward to working with investigators to ensure they succeed with their challenging objectives.” [Read more…]

ORNL’s Titan still No. 2 as China triples Top500 supercomputers

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Titan Supercomputer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

The Titan supercomputer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory was once ranked as the world’s most powerful supercomputer, but it has since been ranked number two. (Photo courtesy of ORNL)

 

The Titan supercomputer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory remained at number two on a list of the world’s top 500 supercomputers released Monday. China tripled the number of its systems on the semiannual Top500 list, while the number of systems in the United States fell to the lowest point since the list was created in 1993.

The Tianhe-2 supercomputer in China again maintained the number one spot on the list of the world’s most powerful supercomputers. It’s the sixth consecutive time Tianhe-2 has been the top supercomputer. The system was developed by China’s National University of Defense Technology.

Titan was once the most powerful supercomputer.

The 46th edition of the twice-yearly TOP500 list of the world’s most powerful supercomputers was released Monday. [Read more…]

Photos: Oak Ridge celebrates new national park

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Ed Westcott and National Park Staff at Celebration on Nov. 12, 2015

Ed Westcott, left, the official government photographer in Oak Ridge during World War II, is pictured above with National Park Service staff members during a celebration of the new Manhattan Project National Historical Park on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This post was last updated at 8:05 a.m. Nov. 13.

Oak Ridge residents and officials celebrated the new Manhattan Project National Historical Park on Thursday, two days after the park was formally established in a signing ceremony in Washington, D.C. Here are photos of Thursday’s celebration at Oak Ridge High School and Jackson Square by John Huotari of Oak Ridge Today.

We will add captions to the photos as we can.

The new park includes Oak Ridge, Tennessee; Hanford, Washington; and Los Alamos, New Mexico. The Manhattan Project was a top-secret program to build the world’s first atomic weapons in World War II, before Germany could. The new park is the first of its type to commemorate the Manhattan Project, which is considered one of the top scientific achievements of the 20th century.

The new park includes four buildings in Oak Ridge: the Graphite Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the footprint of the former K-25 Building at East Tennessee Technology Park, and Building 9731 and Building 9204-3, or Beta-3, at Y-12 National Security Complex. The Alexander Inn, which is not a U.S. Department of Energy building, is also eligible for inclusion.

See a story on the establishment of the park on Tuesday here, and see a story on Thursday’s celebration here.

Colin Colverson, Tracy Atkins, and Warren Gooch at Manhattan Project Park Celebration on Nov. 12, 2015

From left above at a celebration for the new Manhattan Project National Historical Park on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2015, are Colin Colverson, Oak Ridge Reservation lead for the park in the DOE Oak Ridge Office; Tracy Atkins, project manager for the agreement between DOE and the National Park Service; and Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

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Oak Ridge celebrates new national park

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National Park Celebration at Jackson Square on Nov. 12, 2015

The iconic “War Ends” photo is recreated in part on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2015, with a “Park Opens” photo that celebrates the new Manhattan Project National Historical Park, which includes Oak Ridge. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 8:20 a.m. Nov. 13.

Federal officials established the new national park that includes Oak Ridge on Tuesday. Oak Ridge residents celebrated on Thursday.

The new park, the Manhattan Project National Historical Park, commemorates the Manhattan Project. That was a top-secret federal program to build the world’s first atomic weapons during World War II, before Germany could.

Oak Ridge was the main production site for the Manhattan Project, and uranium enriched at the Y-12 National Security Complex fueled the first atomic bomb used in wartime. It was dropped over Hiroshima, Japan, on August 6, 1945, shortly before the war ended. [Read more…]