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Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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The Frisch-Peierls memorandum: A seminal document of nuclear history
The Manhattan Project is usually considered to have been initiated with Albert Einstein’s letter to President Franklin Roosevelt in October 1939. However, a lesser-known document that was just as impactful on wartime nuclear history was the so-called Frisch-Peierls memorandum. Prepared by two refugee physicists at the University of Birmingham in Britain in early 1940, this manuscript was the first technical description of nuclear weapons and their military, strategic, and ethical implications to reach high-level government officials on either side of the Atlantic. The memorandum triggered the initiation of the British wartime nuclear program, which later merged with the Manhattan Engineer District.
Michele Laraia, Giuseppe Brighenti, Bartolomeo Camiscioni, Giovanni Chessa
Nuclear Technology | Volume 86 | Number 2 | August 1989 | Pages 128-135
Technical Paper | Decontamination and Decommissioning / Radioactive Waste Management | doi.org/10.13182/NT89-A34263
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The RB-2 research reactor was operated for 17 yr at power levels of the order of 10 kW (1963–1969) and 100 W (1971–1980). During dismantling, the radiological risk for personnel was recognizably low, but radioactivity levels associated with the waste materials and the site itself needed to be evaluated. Predismantling activities consisted of a preliminary radiological characterization, including direct measurements, spectrometric analyses of samples, and theoretical calculations. Determination of “nonradioactive” limits determined the disposition of the site and the transportation routes for the waste materials. After dismantling, the site was extensively monitored for remaining radioactivity. In general, unrestricted release has been achievable for the site; only a small area is still subject to radiological control.