Upcoming Events
Thrust Area 1 Meeting
Conact jkuminka@ufl.edu for Zoom info
Even numbered months are for subtasks; Odd numbered months for whole group meeting
CNF Seminar-David Meier
Abstract: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) has established plutonium processing capabilities to study nuclear forensic R&D. The processing capabilities emulate historical efforts used by the United States since the 1940’s. This capability is a modular system that can process various flow sheets associated with the plutonium nitrate precipitation methods including Pu (III) and Pu (IV) oxalate and peroxide. Principal operations for this capability include dissolution, ion exchange, precipitation, filtration, and calcination. A comprehensive suite of analytical capabilities including inorganic, radiochemical, and physical analysis, as well as state-of-the art microscopy systems are used to characterize the feed, process, and product materials. Additionally, machine learning algorithms are being employed to further understand the correlation between morphologies and the various processes. Data associated with the current R&D efforts will be presented.
Bio: Dr. David Meier began work at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in 2008 as a research scientist in the National Security Directorate (NSD). David has a Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Missouri-Columbia. His thesis work focused on the nuclear production and separation of 35S and 147Pm from irradiated materials and their subsequent incorporation into betavoltaic power conversion technologies. Currently, he is the technical group manager of the Nuclear Materials Processing group in the Radiochemical Processing Laboratory (RPL) facility and supports 35 staff members. Dr. Meier leads the NNSA’s Multi-laboratory Plutonium Processing Signatures Project. This project is supported by technical staff at Los Alamos, Lawrence Livermore, Sandia, Oak Ridge, and Savannah River National Laboratories and the Atomic Weapons Establishment in the UK. This project enhances our understanding of the processing, analytical, and modeling capabilities, expanding our knowledge of nuclear forensics and morphological signatures associated with plutonium processing chemistries. He also engages with the training and mentoring of the next generation of radiochemists and nuclear scientists and collaborates with staff from other National Laboratories in both the U.S. and the U.K
Contact jkuminka@ufl.edu for Zoom info
CNF Seminar-James Blankenship Nuclear Forensics and the FBI Laboratory
Abstract: Nuclear forensics is the application of analytical measurement techniques on radioactive and/or nuclear (RN) materials for the purpose supporting law enforcement. While scientists have been detecting and analyzing RN materials for over a century, it was with the fall of the former Soviet Union and several high profile RN smuggling attempts that brought attention to the challenges of using such results in courts of law. This presentation will give a brief history of the development of nuclear forensics in the U.S. as well as the FBI Laboratory's current nuclear forensic capabilities.
Bio: James Blankenship is a qualified forensic examiner with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) at the FBI Laboratory, Quantico, Virginia, where he leads the examination/analysis of items of evidence containing or contaminated with radioactive/nuclear materials. Dr. Blankenship has received numerous awards to include the 2008 FBI Director’s Award for Science and Technology, and the US Air Force Academy’s Outstanding Academy Educator Award. Dr. Blankenship received a BS in Chemistry from Virginia Military Institute, a MS in Materials Engineering from University of Dayton, and a PhD in Analytical Chemistry from Texas A&M University.
Please email jkuminka@ufl.edu for Zoom link info
CNF Seminars:
Upcoming Seminars and Conferences
UF (additional details to come, check back for updates):
TBD