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General Kenneth Nichols and the Manhattan Project
Nichols
The Oak Ridger has published the latest in a series of articles about General Kenneth D. Nichols, the Manhattan Project, and the 1954 Atomic Energy Act. The series has been produced by Nichols’ grandniece Barbara Rogers Scollin and Oak Ridge (Tenn.) city historian David Ray Smith. Gen. Nichols (1907–2000) was the district engineer for the Manhattan Engineer District during the Manhattan Project.
As Smith and Scollin explain, Nichols “had supervision of the research and development connected with, and the design, construction, and operation of, all plants required to produce plutonium-239 and uranium-235, including the construction of the towns of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and Richland, Washington. The responsibility of his position was massive as he oversaw a workforce of both military and civilian personnel of approximately 125,000; his Oak Ridge office became the center of the wartime atomic energy’s activities.”
R. W. Moir, N. N. Martovetsky, A. W. Molvik, D. D. Ryutov, T. C. Simonen
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 61 | Number 1 | January 2012 | Pages 206-215
Fusion-Fission Hybrids and Transmutation | Proceedings of the Fifteenth International Conference on Emerging Nuclear Energy Systems | doi.org/10.13182/FST12-A13421
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Early application of the simple axisymmetric mirror, requiring intermediate performance between a neutron source for materials testing Q=Pfusion/Pinput ~0.05 and pure fusion Q>10, are the hybrid applications. The Axisymmetric Mirror has attractive features as a driver for a fusion-fission hybrid system: geometrical simplicity, as well as the typical mirror features of inherently steady-state operation, and natural divertors in the form of end tanks. This level of physics performance has the virtue of being low risk with only modest R&D needed; and its simplicity promises economy advantages. Operation at Q~1 allows for relatively low electron temperatures, in the range of 3 keV, for the DT injection energy ~ 80 keV from existing positive ion neutral beams designed for steady state. A simple mirror with the plasma diameter of 1 m and mirror-to-mirror length of 40 m is discussed. Simple circular steady state superconducting coils are based on 15 T technology development of the ITER central solenoid. Three groups of physics issues are presented: axial heat loss, MHD stability, and microstability of sloshing ions.Burning fission reactor wastes by fissioning transuranics in the hybrid will multiply fusion's neutron energy by a factor of ~10 or more and diminish the Q needed to overcome the cost of recirculating power for good economics to less than 2 and for minor actinides with multiplication over 50 to Q~0.2. Hybrids that obtain revenues from sale of both electricity and production of fissile fuel with fissioning blankets might need Q<2 while suppressing fissioning might be the most economical application of fusion but will require Q>4.