April 2014

April 23, 2014January 28, 2019

The High-foot Implosion Campaign on the National Ignition Facility

SPEAKER:

DR. OMAR HURRICANE

DATE/TIME:

WED, 04/23/2014 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Spring 2014 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

Ignition has been a long sought-after goal needed to make fusion energy a viable alternative energy source, but ignition has yet to be achieved. For an inertially confined fusion (ICF) plasma to ignite, the plasma must be very well confined and very hot, to generate extremely high pressures needed for self-heating – achieving this state is not easy!

In this talk, we will discuss the technology, science, and progress towards ignition on the National Ignition Facility (NIF) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in Northern California. We will cover the some of the setbacks encountered during the progress of the research at NIF, but also cover the great advances that have been made.

In particular, we will cover the recent work using the new “high-foot” pulse-shape implosion that presently holds the record for fusion performance. High-foot implosions are the first facility based fusion experiments to generate more energy from fusion than was invested in the fusion fuel. Yield amplifications from alpha-particle self-heating of 2.25x have also been demonstrated.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Omar Hurricane is a Distinguished Member of the Technical Staff at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and lead scientist for the High-foot Implosion Campaign on the NIF. His research focuses on weapons physics, high energy density physics science, and plasma instability. Dr. Hurricane has authored 60 journal publications and 60 conference papers, largely in the area of plasma physics and HEDP. He has received several awards and honors, including the U.S. Department of Energy Ernest Orlando Lawrence Award for National Security and Nonproliferation (2009), five U.S. Department of Energy Defense Programs Recognition of Excellence Awards (2002, 2004, 2009 x 2, 2010), and three LLNL Directors Science & Technology awards (2010, 2011, and 2013). Dr. Hurricane received his B.S. in Physics and Applied Mathematics from Metropolitan State University of Denver, and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Physics from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

April 21, 2014January 28, 2019

Nuclear Energy, Risks, and Moral Emotions

SPEAKER:

PROF.DR. SABINE ROESER

DATE/TIME:

MON, 04/21/2014 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Spring 2014 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

Technological risks raise important ethical issues. Although technologies such as nanotechnology, biotechnology, ICT, and nuclear energy can improve human well-being, they may also convey risks due to, for example, accidents and pollution. As a consequence of such side effects, technologies can trigger emotions, including fear and indignation, which often leads to conflicts between experts and laypeople. Emotions are generally seen to be a disturbing factor in debates about risky technologies as they are taken to be irrational and immune to factual information. In my presentation I will review the psychological literature that seems to support this idea. I will then present an alternative account according to which this is due to a wrong understanding of emotions. Emotions can be a source of practical rationality. Emotions such as fear, sympathy, and compassion help to grasp morally salient features of risky technologies, such as fairness, justice, equity, and autonomy that get overlooked in conventional, technocratic approaches to risk. Emotions should be taken seriously in debates about risky technologies. This will lead to a more balanced debate in which all parties are taken seriously, which increases the chances to be willing to listen to each other and give and take. This is needed in order to come to well-grounded policies on how to deal with risky technologies. I will specifically focus on the example of nuclear energy to illustrate how an alternative approach of emotions can help to improve public discourse.

About the Speaker:

Prof.dr. Sabine Roeser (1970, Haan, Germany) is professor of ethics at the philosophy Department of TU Delft, Netherlands, where she holds a distinguished Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Chair. Sabine Roeser is head of a research group on Moral Emotions and Risk Politics, funded by the Dutch science foundation NWO. Roeser is former managing director of the 3TU.Centre for Ethics and Technology. Roeser did her PhD in the foundations of ethics in 2002 at the Free University Amsterdam. During the work for her PhD she spent time as a visiting student at the Philosophy Departments of the University of Reading (UK) and of the University of Notre Dame. Sabine Roeser holds degrees in fine arts (BA), political science (MA) and philosophy (MA, PhD). She publishes on risk, ethics and emotions.

April 14, 2014January 28, 2019

The Interface of Science and Policy

SPEAKER:

DR. DIMITRI KUSNEZOV

DATE/TIME:

MON, 04/14/2014 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

277 CORY HALL

Spring 2014 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

To provide insight on how science is drawn into time-urgent policy decisions through a series of examples. Many challenges exist on how to best inject science into decision processes and today it is often haphazard, requiring awareness of potential tools and involvement in the policy decisions. Examples range from the Fukushima Daiichi accident and aircraft safety to the Gulf oil spill.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Kusnezov received A.B. degrees in Physics and in Pure Mathematics with highest honors from UC Berkeley. Following a year of research at the Institut fur Kernphysik, KFA-Julich, in Germany, he attended Princeton University earning his MS in Physics and Ph.D. in Theoretical Nuclear Physics. At Michigan State University, he conducted postdoctoral research and then became an instructor. In 1991, he joined the faculty of Yale University as an assistant professor in physics, becoming an associate professor in 1996. He has served as a visiting professor at numerous universities around the world. Dr. Kusnezov has published over 100 articles and a book. He joined federal service at the National Nuclear Security Administration in late 2001 and is a member of the Senior Executive Service and is also a Visiting Researcher at Yale. He currently serves as a Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Energy.

April 7, 2014January 28, 2019

Closing the Fusion Fuel Cycle: Tritium Recovery and Processing

SPEAKER:

SUSANA REYES, PH.D.

DATE/TIME:

MON, 04/07/2014 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Spring 2014 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

Recent efforts on fusion energy at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) have been focused on delivering a transformative source of safe, secure, sustainable electricity, using a laser inertial confinement approach. A future fusion power plant shall demonstrate the feasibility of a closed fusion fuel cycle, including tritium breeding, extraction, processing, re-fueling, accountability and safety, in a continuously operating power-producing device. While many fusion plant designs require large quantities of tritium for start up and operations, a range of design choices made for an inertial fusion energy (IFE) fuel cycle act to substantially reduce the in-process tritium inventory. The high fractional burn-up in an IFE capsule greatly relaxes the tritium breeding requirements, while the use of only milligram quantities of fuel per shot and choice of a pure lithium heat transfer fluid substantially reduce the amount of tritium entrained in the facility. Additionally, the high solubility of tritium in the lithium is calculated to mitigate the need for development of permeation barriers in the engine systems, normally required to protect against routine releases. A methodology for recovery of the tritium fuel from the blanket via a solvent extraction process is being investigated, with various potential technology solutions under evaluation.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Reyes is a nuclear engineer at LLNL, with more than 15 years of experience in international fusion projects. She is currently leading LLNL’s Inertial Fusion Energy effort for tritium systems and fuel cycle, as is the current Vice-Chair, and upcoming Chair of the American Nuclear Society’s (ANS) Fusion Energy Division. She earned an M.Sci. in Power Engineering from the Polytechnic University of Madrid, and a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from the UNED University in Madrid in 2001. Dr. Reyes joined LLNL’s Fusion Energy Program in 1999 to work on the safety analysis of inertial fusion energy power plant designs. Since then, she has worked in a variety of fusion research projects, including the National Ignition Facility (NIF) in LLNL and the ITER Organization in Cadarache, France, where she supported the project through the coordination of safety analyses and associated documentation in preparation for ITER licensing. Her current interests are focused on the safety and environmental aspects of fusion so as the fuel cycle challenges for future fusion power commercialization.