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Fusion Science and Technology
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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.”
A.A. Ivanov, G.F. Abdrashitov, A.V. Anikeev, P.A. Bagryansky, P.P. Deichuli, A.N. Karpushov, S.A. Korepanov, A.A. Lizunov, V.V. Maximov, S.V. Murakhtin, A. Yu. Smirnov, A.A. Zouev, K. Noack, G. Otto
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 43 | Number 1 | January 2003 | Pages 51-57
Overview | doi.org/10.13182/FST03-A11963562
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
GDT experiments of significance to a GDT-based neutron source development are reported in the areas of generation of axially peaked neutron flux profile, stable confinement with on-axis plasma beta ~ 40%, and radial electric field control. Skew injection of 4MW 15-17keV deuterium neutral beams into central cell resulted in generation of strongly peaked axial profile of neutron flux density. This can be described by a model of fast ion relaxation, which involves only classical mechanisms of electron drag and binary ion-ion collisions. Experiments with the radial limiter biasing show that the plasma density profile and radial losses respond to the electric filed profile. An increase of plasma energy was achieved with increased magnetic field in the central cell and optimized radial profile of electric field in the plasma. In these regimes of improved target plasma confinement, the on-axis plasma beta near the turning points of fast deuterons exceeded, as above mentioned, ~40%. The plans for future upgrade of the GDT device are discussed. It suggests considerable increase of NB injected power (up to 10MW) and extension of the pulse duration from 1ms to 3-5ms. After the upgrade, a significant increase of the electron temperature to 250-300eV could be obtained. Properties of the plasma with the parameters approaching those in the full-scale neutron source are planned to study in experiments with NB injection into additional cell near the end mirror.