PNNL scientists today unveiled an updated tool designed to help stakeholders assess the nation's preparedness for biological-based dangers, also known as biothreats.
Researchers used novel methods to safely create and analyze plutonium samples. The approaches could prove influential in future studies of the radioactive material, benefitting research in legacy, national security and nuclear fuels.
Scientists are exploring the use of deep neural network to interpret highly technical data related to national security, the environment and the cosmos.
Like detectives looking for clues, researchers at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have been working for nearly a decade on ways to identify the "fingerprints" of potential chemical threats.
Pointing the finger at chemical criminals: Several scientists from PNNL and other institutions will discuss new methods and approaches at the American Chemical Society's national meeting in San Francisco April 2-6.
In fast-neutron reactors, fuel is sealed in ~7 millimeter diameter steel tubes called cladding. When a high-energy "fast" neutron strikes an atom in the steel, it can knock the atom out of place, like a cue ball striking another billiard ball. This leaves two types of damage in the metal: an empty spot where the atom was, and the displaced atom wedged between other atoms. Over time, these defects typically drive undesirable rearrangement of the microstructure, potentially reducing the life of the cladding.
Nuisance alarm rates in radiation detectors at seaports and ports of entry are down significantly due to PNNL data analysis efforts that are saving time and money at the ports.