Fall 2018 Colloquium Series

November 26, 2018January 10, 2019

Hadron Therapy–Current Progress and Research Issues

SPEAKER:

DR. ELEANOR A. BLAKELY

LAWRENCE BERKELEY NATIONAL LABORATORY

DATE/TIME:

MON, 11/26/2018 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Fall 2018 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

Hadron radiotherapy for cancer treatment with protons or carbon ions was originally developed at the Berkeley Laboratory. Today the United States has more than 25 proton treatment facilities nation wide, but no carbon ion radiotherapy (CIRT) facility. Currently, approximately 20,000 cancer patients worldwide have received CIRT, primarily in Asia and in Europe. This presentation will describe the progress made in this field, and the research and societal issues that still must be addressed.

About the Speaker:

Eleanor A. Blakely is a graduate of the University of San Diego, San Diego, CA (B.A. Biology with Chemistry minor), and the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL (M.S. Biophysics and Ph.D. Physiology) as a U.S. Atomic Energy Commission Special Fellow in Radiation Science and Protection. She has spent her entire professional career at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) where she is a Senior Staff Biophysicist with more than 44 y of professional experience in molecular, cellular and animal radiobiological research directed at studying the basic mechanisms of radiation responses, with an emphasis on charged particle radiation effects. She also holds a Faculty Affiliate Appointment in the Department of Radiological Health Sciences at Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado and is a Clinical Professor of Radiation Medicine (nontenured) at Loma Linda University, School of Medicine, Loma Linda, California. Her professional activities have included service on advisory panels for several hospitals, universities, and numerous federal agencies including the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Department of Defense (DOD). In June, 2015 she retired after 40 years at LBNL, but was rehired by LBNL in October 2015, and continues to work part-time. In 2015 she received the Berkeley Laboratory Director’s Award for Exceptional Achievement: the Berkeley Lab Citation Award. Dr. Blakely is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a recipient of the Distinguished Service Award of the Radiation Research Society, and a Distinguished Emeritus Member of the NCRP.

November 19, 2018January 10, 2019

Laser-driven Pulsed Neutron Sources as a potential Pool-side Characterization Tool for Nuclear Fuels

SPEAKER:

SVEN C. VOGEL

TECHNICAL STAFF

MATERIALS SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY DIVISION

LOS ALAMOS NATIONAL LABORATORY

DATE/TIME:

MON, 11/19/2018 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Fall 2018 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

The unique advantages of neutrons for characterization of nuclear fuel materials are applied at the pulsed spallation neutron source at LANSCE to accelerate the development and ultimately licensing of new nuclear fuel forms. Neutrons allow to characterize the crystallography of phases consisting of heavy elements (e.g. uranium) and light elements (e.g. oxygen, nitrogen, or silicon). The penetration ability in combination with comparably large (e.g. cm sized) beam spots provide microstructural characterization of typical fuel geometries for phase composition, strains, and textures from neutron diffraction.

In parallel, we are developing energy-resolved neutron imaging and tomography with which we can complement diffraction characterization. This unique approach not only allows to visualize cracks, arrangement of fuel pellets in rodlets etc., but also characterization of isotope or element densities by means of neutron absorption resonance analysis.

Laser-driven pulsed neutron sources have the potential to provide these capabilities “pool-side”, e.g. at the Advanced Test Reactor at Idaho National Laboratory. Compared to proton accelerator driven spallation sources, requiring investments exceeding $1B, the investment cost for a laser-driven neutron source would be of the order of several $10M with the potential of similar flux to that of a smaller, earlier generation spallation neutron source. Compared to electron accelerator-driven neutron sources, the flux of a laser-driven source would be at least one order of magnitude higher. Compared to reactor neutron sources, the pulse structure of the laser-driven neutron source would enable unique characterization not possible with steady-state reactor neutrons.

In this presentation, we provide an overview of our recent accomplishments in fuel characterization for accident-tolerant fuel consisting of uranium nitride/uranium silicide composite fuels as well as metallic fuels. We will further discuss recent results demonstrating the use of laser-driven neutron sources for these efforts.

November 5, 2018January 10, 2019

Production of the Transplutonium Elements

SPEAKER:

SUSAN HOGLE

NUCLEAR ENGINEER

DATE/TIME:

MON, 11/05/2018 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Fall 2018 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

The transplutonium elements were discovered beginning in the 1940s and 50s, with many synthesized for the first time at UC Berkeley. Since that time, large scale reactor production programs have taken place at the Savannah River Site, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, amongst others. Production and isolation of the transplutonium elements present many unique challenges, including high radiotoxicity, short half-lives, poor nuclear data, and significant heat production. These challenges, and the research underway to address them, will be discussed during this talk, as well as ongoing and potential future applications of various transplutonium isotopes.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Susan Hogle received her PhD in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Tennessee in 2012, and her Bachelors of Applied Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Toronto in 2004. Dr. Hogle currently works at the Radiochemical Engineering Development Center at Oak Ridge National Laboratory where her primary area of research is in the reactor production of isotopes, in particular actinides such as 229Th, 249Bk, and 252Cf. Additional areas of research include optimization and evolutionary modeling, sensitivity and uncertainty analysis for depletion, and integral cross-section measurements.

October 29, 2018January 10, 2019

Nuclear Forensics and What it Can Tell Us about Materials from the Front End of the Uranium Fuel Cycle

SPEAKER:

NAOMI E. MARKS

RESEARCH SCIENTIST

DATE/TIME:

MON, 10/29/2018 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Fall 2018 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

Cohosted together with the NSSC

The illicit trafficking of radioactive and nuclear materials has been the subject of increasing concern in the international community over the past decade. These materials are problematic because of their radiotoxicity, and have been lately discovered in settings ranging from contaminated scrap metal to Am-241-laced gambling dice. The trafficking of nuclear materials poses a greater concern, as these materials pose a proliferation risk if they are diverted and escape regulatory control. Nuclear forensic signatures can help to elucidate the origin of a material, and are also relevant for assessing the consistency of a state’s declarations. In this talk I will describe case studies and research on elemental and isotopic signatures that can be used to address questions of nuclear forensic interest.

About the Speaker:

Naomi Marks is a researcher in nuclear forensics at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) with expertise in thermal ionization mass spectrometry and electron probe microanalysis, including applications to nuclear forensics; as well as expertise in U mining and milling; isotopic and chemical evolution of early solar system materials; and international nuclear forensics engagements. She is serves as developer and designer for the NNSA and IAEA Nuclear Forensics training courses and has traveled to more than a dozen countries in support of nuclear forensics cooperation engagements. Naomi’s current research focuses on identifying geochemical signatures in materials from the early part of the uranium fuel cycle and on developing nuclear forensics libraries.

October 22, 2018January 10, 2019

Quantitative molecular imaging using ionizing radiation

SPEAKER:

DR. YOUNGHO SEO

UC BERKELEY - UCSF

DATE/TIME:

MON, 10/22/2018 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Fall 2018 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

Molecular imaging modalities such as SPECT and PET can provide quantitative information about diseases or other conditions for which they were designed for. By studying challenging applications of these imaging modalities, particularly in the form of dual-modality SPECT/CT, PET/CT, and PET/MRI, critical areas of unmet need could be unveiled. In this presentation, I will describe applications-driven technology development in SPECT, PET, and x-ray imaging using several examples to which our laboratory has made significant contributions.

About the Speaker:

Youngho Seo, PhD, is a Professor and Director of Nuclear Imaging Physics in the Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, Professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology, Faculty Affiliate at the Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, Program Member of Pediatric Malignancies and Prostate Cancer programs at the Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center at UCSF, Faculty of the UC Berkeley - UCSF Bioengineering Graduate Program, and Physicist Faculty Scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Dr. Seo leads a group of physicists and engineers working in the field of radionuclide and x-ray imaging instrumentation and physics, and directs the UCSF Physics Research Laboratory. His primary research focus is to use quantitative SPECT/CT, PET/CT, and PET/MR molecular imaging tools for a broad range of research areas from small animal imaging using dedicated animal imaging systems and basic instrumentation development to physics analysis of clinical research data.

October 15, 2018January 10, 2019

Evolution of the US-India Civilian Nuclear Agreement: Interplay among Science, Policy, Politics and Diplomacy

SPEAKER:

SATISH V. KULKARNI, PH.D.

VIRGINIA TECH

DATE/TIME:

MON, 10/15/2018 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Fall 2018 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

Today, the US – India relationship is rooted in shared values and is broad in nature and scope, with the two countries working together on the Indo-Pacific strategic partnership encompassing global and energy security, life sciences and public health, economic prosperity and trade, and education. A key outcome of this partnership has been the signing of the historic Indo-US Civilian Nuclear Agreement. While these steps take the engagement between the two democracies to new heights, acting as a damper especially during the cold war days and even today, the relationship has been plagued by sanctions and the resulting tensions and mistrust. In this context, the Civilian Nuclear Agreement and several other bilateral agreements will be discussed.

About the Speaker:

After spending 26 years at LLNL, his most recent assignment being Division Leader of New Technologies (formerly Nuclear Test) Engineering Division, Dr. Kulkarni was deputed from LLNL in 2004 as Executive Director, Laboratory Management in the University of California Office of the President. Subsequently, in 2006 he was selected to serve as the Counselor for Science, Technology, Environment and Health Affairs at the Embassy of the United States of America in New Delhi, India with the Department of State as a Limited-Term Foreign Service Officer. In 2009, he joined Georgetown University as Associate VP for New Initiatives and Partnerships, and later in 2011 he was appointed Director of Energy Initiatives at Virginia Tech and concurrently, Research Professor of Engineering Science and Mechanics and Affiliate Professor of Nuclear Engineering Program. At Virginia Tech, he developed and taught two graduate courses: “S&T and Policy, Their Interplay” and “Sustainable Innovation”, and organized and chaired the Forum on “Nuclear Regimes: Future Outlook” in 2012. He retired in 2014 and returned home to San Ramon CA.

In 2009 he was inducted into the Academy of Engineering Excellence at Virginia Tech for ‘meritorious lifetime achievements and contributions to the engineering profession’ and appointed to serve as member of its College of Engineering Advisory Board. In 2012, he received the Graduate Alumni Achievement Award during the Commencement at Virginia Tech for ‘establishing an exemplary record of innovative scientific, educational, and policy leadership in national and international arenas’.

October 12, 2018January 10, 2019

Nuclear energy challenges in Europe and the transmutation promise

SPEAKER:

DR. CONCETTA FAZIO

DEPUTY HEAD OF THE NUCLEAR FUEL SAFETY UNIT OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION JOINT RESEARCH CENTRE (JRC)

DATE/TIME:

FRI, 10/12/2018 - 11:00AM TO 12:00PM

LOCATION:

3111 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Fall 2018 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

The European Commission plays an important role in shaping European energy policies and providing science-based results as generated by the Joint Research Centre (JRC). At JRC nuclear research is performed in all relevant key areas including nuclear waste transmutation. In this seminar current research programs and preliminary results of minor Actinides bearing fuels and their
claddings will be addressed in terms of design requirements, basic properties assessment and validation. The importance, status and future perspectives of irradiation facilities to investigate appropriate boundary conditions as defined by the requirements are also included. Finally, societal impacts on nuclear energy research, an aspect that is becoming more and more important in the European will be discussed as an outcome of a specific study performed.

About the Speaker:

Concetta Fazio is deputy Head of the Nuclear Fuel Safety Unit of the European Commission JRC. After getting her PhD in Metallurgical Engineering at the Politecnico of Turin, she has started her research work at the Italian Research Centre ENEA on materials studies for fusion devices, accelerator driven systems and concentrated solar power. Successively, she moved to the German Research Institution KIT, where she was in charge both of the “Partitioning and Transmutation” and “Safety of New Nuclear Systems” programs. At JRC after a first period spent on defining Nuclear Education and Training programs for MSc and PhD students and professional development, she became scientific assistant to the director of the JRC directorate on nuclear safety and security.

October 1, 2018January 10, 2019

Creating, Diagnosing, and Controlling High Energy Density Matter with the National Ignition Facility

SPEAKER:

MARK HERRMANN

LAWRENCE LIVERMORE NATIONAL LABORATORY

DATE/TIME:

MON, 10/01/2018 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Fall 2018 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

The National Ignition Facility (NIF), at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, is the world’s largest laser. NIF houses 192 beams that can deliver over 1.8 MJ of ultraviolet energy and peak powers of 500 TW to a small target (<< cm³). The deposition of this energy in a small volume creates extreme radiation environments and large pressures in materials. These very large pressures have been used to create unique conditions for studying the behavior of matter at high energy densities (high energy density matter can be defined as having pressures greater than 1,000,000 times atmospheric pressure). Understanding the behavior of matter at high energy densities is important for our national security, many astrophysical questions, and obtaining inertial confinement fusion ignition. In this talk, I will provide an overview of the National Ignition Facility and some of the technology that enables it, discuss recent progress in high energy density science and inertial confinement fusion, and talk about the challenges and opportunities for future research.

This work is performed under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under Contract DE-AC52-07NA27344.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Mark Herrmann is the director of the National Ignition Facility (NIF), the world’s most energetic laser, at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). NIF is a key experimental facility for the science based Stockpile Stewardship Program. Previously, Dr. Herrmann spent 9 years at Sandia National Laboratories, where he studied the use of large magnetic fields generated by the Z facility to create and control high energy density matter. While at Sandia, he held a number of positions, including Director of the Pulsed Power Sciences Center. He began his career as a physicist at LLNL, where his research focused on inertial confinement fusion and high energy density science. He has been awarded a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, the American Physical Society Award for Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation in Plasma Physics, and the Fusion Power Associates Excellence in Fusion Engineering Award. Mark is a fellow of the American Physical Society. He received his undergraduate degrees from Washington University in St. Louis, and his Ph.D. from the Program in Plasma Physics at Princeton University.

September 24, 2018January 10, 2019

ENDF/B-VIII.0

SPEAKER:

DR. DAVID BROWN

SCIENTIST (S4)

DATE/TIME:

MON, 09/24/2018 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Fall 2018 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

The Cross Section Evaluation Working Group (CSEWG) released the ENDF/B-VIII.0 evaluated nuclear reaction data library on February 2, 2018. ENDF/B-VIII.0 incorporates many improvements including a nearly completely new thermal neutron scattering sublibrary, the new IAEA standards, and the CIELO project evaluations for neutron reactions on 16O, 56Fe, 235U, 238U and 239Pu. These evaluations are a direct result of improvements in theory and simulation and benefit from recent experimental data obtained in the U.S. and Europe. In this talk, I will highlight the most important changes in ENDF/B-VIII.0 that impact reactor and shielding applications.

About the Speaker:

Dr. David Brown is a senior scientist at the National Nuclear Data Center at Brookhaven National Laboratory. Dr. Brown is the ENDF Library Manager, coordinated the release of the ENDF/B-VIII.0 library in Feb. 2018 and developed the ADVANCE continuous integration system for nuclear data quality assurance. Dr. Brown’s current research focuses on elastic and inelastic scattering at the interfaces between the resolved resonance, unresolved resonance and fast energy regions in structural materials. He is active in several NEA Working Parties on Evaluation Cooperation (WPEC) including EG-GNDS which coordinates the GNDS format (the format to succeed the ENDF-6 format). Before moving to BNL, Dr. Brown was a staff scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory where he led the ENDL nuclear data library effort and began his work as a co-developer of the FUDGE nuclear data processing system. Dr. Brown is a trained high energy nuclear physicist who has dabbled in non-equilibrium quantum field theory and the use of entangled hadron pairs to image nuclear reaction zones at the RHIC and LHC.

September 17, 2018January 10, 2019

The Swelling Equation is a Four Dimensional Animal

SPEAKER:

MICHAEL FLUSS

VISITING SCIENTIST UCB-NE

DATE/TIME:

MON, 09/17/2018 - 4:00PM TO 5:00PM

LOCATION:

3105 ETCHEVERRY HALL

Fall 2018 Colloquium Series

Abstract:

Nuclear Energy Material Scientists have been searching for the bias driven swelling equation for over 50 years. While the theoretical basis for the swelling equation was described 45 years ago utilizing mean-field (rate) theory, the animal itself has managed to hide from experimentalists. Foster and Flinn attempted to trap the animal but were only able to capture an empirical version of the beast. About 10 years ago Kalchenko and co-workers set out to track the beast by following its swelling curve as a function of dpa-rate—and they found it—an experimental method fully consistent with rate theory that allows for a swelling equation valid from 10**-2 to 10**-8 dpa/s. Full domestication of the beast remains a challenge.

About the Speaker:

Michael Fluss holds a B.S. from Rutgers University and a PhD in Nuclear Chemistry from Columbia University. His career spans experimental research in nuclear reaction physics, dosimetry, radiation damage in semiconductors and metals, and solid-state physics. Currently he is a visiting scientist in the Nuclear Energy Department at Berkeley with a focus on accelerated testing of nuclear materials and the fundamental aspects of non-equilibrium radiation environments.