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MINE BLAST ORNUCLEAR EXPLOSION?

U.S. SCIENTISTS CONDUCT EXPERIMENTS

AT FORMER SOVIET TEST SITE

IN SUPPORT OF TEST BAN TREATY

T he U.S. Senate has not yet ratified the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, which

prohibits all nuclear testing. But for the past twoyears, Los Alamos researchers have beenparticipating in a unique program in support of theCTBT by conducting tests designed to moreaccurately locate underground events anddistinguish underground nuclear explosions fromother types of man-made and natural phenomena.

The tests are taking place at a former Soviet undergroundnuclear test site in Kazakhstan. They are a multiagencycollaborative effort among the Defense Special WeaponsAgency (now part of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency),Department of Defense, Department of Energy and theNational Nuclear Center of the Republic of Kazakhstan underDoD’s Cooperative Threat Reduction Program.

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EDITORMeredith Coonley

(505) 665-3982 • E-Mail: suki@lanl.gov

CONTRIBUTING EDITORJohn A. Webster

CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATOREdwin Vigil

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERSJoey Donahue • Todd Hanson

CONTRIBUTING WRITERSJohn R. Gustafson * Todd Hanson

Ternel E. Martinez

PRINTING COORDINATORG.D. Archuleta

LOS ALAMOS NATIONAL LABORATORY

PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE, MS C177

LOS ALAMOS, NM 87545

“DSWA was tasked with helping the Republic of Kazakhstan close thetesting infrastructure at one of the former Soviet weapons test sites nearSemipalitinsk, located in the southern part of Siberia in Kazakhstan,”said Los Alamos researcher Craig Pearson, leader of the project. “Weproposed to the DOE’s Nonproliferation and National Security Researchand Development Office in charge of CTBT research and developmentthat we concurrently conduct a series of experiments to better under-stand explosion phenomena.”

Large mine blasts can produce ground motions similar to those ofunderground nuclear tests, therefore scientists must be able to differen-tiate between the two. In addition, seismic waves travel throughmountain ranges, faults, basins and other natural environments, whichmodify the signals and make it more difficult to characterize them andlocate their origins, Pearson explained.

“This is a very complicated situation. We have to be able to separatenuclear explosions from mining explosions and explosion signals fromnatural signals such as earthquakes,” Pearson said.

To study the problem, Laboratory researchers have conducted twoseparate series of experiments, the first series involving depth-of-burialdetonations using vertical boreholes at a site called Balapan at theSemipalitinsk test site. The site has 108 such boreholes that originally

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were drilled for placing nuclear weapons underground for testing, butsome were never used. Four boreholes were used for the experiments.

Laboratory researchers filled the boreholes with 25 tons of high explosivesat depths of 50, 300 and 550 meters. The theory was that at greaterdepths, explosions of equal strength would produce smaller seismicimpulses. The 50-meter test was conducted in shale, with the other testsconducted in granite. Three tests were conducted in 1997, with anadditional 50-meter test in granite conducted last year. The testssubstantiated the researchers’ theory.

Los Alamos researchers recorded signals generated from the explosionsusing eight portable seismic stations situated at ranges up to 20 kilo-meters from the shots. This helped the researchers better understandwhat the explosions look like up close from a physics standpoint.Scientists from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory recordedsignals at ranges of 100 to 1,100 kilometers from the test site.

The second series of experiments began last year. These involvedconducting large contained chemical explosions inside tunnels located atDegelen Mountain, a tunnel complex at the Semipalitinsk test site. Thefirst explosion was conducted at Tunnel 214 which, like the boreholes,was intended for underground nuclear testing but was never used.

For this experiment, DSWA and Kazakhstan researchers placed 100 tonsof high explosives at the end of the approximately 1.2 kilometer-long

ÓA ser ies offrames from af i lm of theSeptember 1997550-meter-deepblast at theSemipal it insktest s ite. Theexplosion wasfol lowed by a ser ies ofgushes of waterand eject ion ofthe boreholecasing (seenfal l ing to the left at thebottom of thewater geyser inframe 5). Thetops of thenearby towers are25 meters high.

tunnel and sealed the explosives in place with concrete plugs. For thetest, DSWA placed shock gauges within 5 meters of the explosives. Thegauges measure the acceleration of the rock mass as the explosiondisplaces it; by knowing the speed at which it was displaced, researchersare able to deduce the amount of stress imposed on the rock mass. Thefirst test occurred in August; Pearson said he hopes similar tests willoccur sometime this year and in 2000.

The depth-of-burial and tunnel tests will allow DSWA and Kazakhstanresearchers to account for the geology along seismic wave paths fromknown source points to regional seismic stations.

Using what are called ground truth calibration events, in which theexact location, time and depth of the event are known, scientists can usethe information to improve velocity and structure models for specificregions of the world. Then when a seismic event takes place in thatregion and the exact time and location aren’t known, the models can beused to deduce these parameters with greater accuracy.

The calibration information will aid in characterizing suspicious seismicdisturbances once the International Monitoring System is operational,and any data obtained from IMS stations will be made available to all thecountries that have signed the CTBT.

There are 50 primary and 150 auxiliary seismic stations, which are onecomponent of the IMS, a global system of sensors defined within theCTBT that will be used to verify that all signatory countries are abiding bythe terms of the treaty. Of the 10 regional stations located in Kazakhstan,two are primary and three are auxiliary seismic stations in the IMS. Thereare thousands of non-IMS seismic stations worldwide as well.

To help determine whether an underground blast is a nuclear blast orsome other type of explosion, researchers from Los Alamos and LawrenceLivermore national laboratories have developed — and continue toimprove on — special computer algorithms that can help distinguishbetween different types of explosions. They also can look at historical dataof nuclear shots as a guide. Researchers note, however, that determiningthe location of an unknown signal — particularly its depth — goes a longway toward helping researchers determine the nature of a particular blast.

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CHEMIN:A PATH TO UNDERSTANDING

OUR SOLAR SYSTEMSODA-CAN SIZED INSTRUMENT DETERMINES

CHEMISTRY AND MINERALOGY OF SAMPLES

I t’s a bit more than simple coincidence that David Bish and his team chose the name CHEMIN for their prototype

analytical instrument. In French, the word “chemin” meanspath and by all indications the CHEMIN instrument mayvery well be the path to a greater understanding of oursolar system.The miniaturized X-ray diffraction/X-ray fluorescence instrument isnamed CHEMIN to reflect its abilityto determine both the CHEmistry andMINeralogy of a sample. It wasdesigned to remotely analyze both theelemental composition and constit-uent mineralogy of fine-grainedsoils, rock and even ice samples.Given the opportunity, the CHEMINinstrument will find its way to otherplanets and beyond.

There are roughly 100 naturallyoccurring elements in our universe.These elements can combine to formmore than 3,800 known minerals.

The genesis and histories of the planets, asteroids and comets arereflected in their constituent minerals. Origins of intense pressure andextreme temperatures are intertwined with histories of sedimentation,metamorphism, collisions and weathering. All this is part of thecomplex structure of our solar system. CHEMIN is designed to helpunravel that complex structure.

According to David Vaniman, a geologist at the Laboratory, “Scientistshave been sending instruments to planets and other bodies in our solarsystem for many years, but none of that instrumentation could do both

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ÕA compar isonof the t iny X-ray tube thatwi l l be usedin the next-generat ionCHEMINinstrument andan X-ray tubefrom acommercia ld i ffractometer .

chemical and mineralogical analysis. Using the CHEMIN instrument,not only can we now determine what elements are present in a mineral,rock or ice sample, but we can also analyze the sample’s crystallinestructure or mineralogy. That’s helpful because knowing the sample’scrystalline structure can tell us how the sample’s elements first cametogether and if they have been changed. It gives the sample’s life history,if you will.”

CHEMIN provides chemical information similar to that provided duringthe recent Martian rover mission, but it also provides information on thetypes of minerals present in a powder sample using a technique knownas X-ray diffraction.

Each mineral has a characteristic X-ray diffraction pattern, much like afingerprint. CHEMIN uses a single CCD (a charge-coupled devicesimilar to those used in modern video cameras) as a detector to deter-mine both chemistry and mineralogy at the same time.

Geologists use information on the particular types of minerals presentto determine how rocks formed and what processes have shaped plane-tary surfaces. Bish explains why having both chemical and mineralogicalinformation is so important. “If a sample containing only silicon andoxygen were chemically analyzed, we might know, for example, that thematerial’s chemical composition is SiO2.

“However, a number of different minerals have this same composition.One of them is quartz, which is quite common on Earth’s surface;another is opal, which is comparatively rare. With chemical informationalone it would be almost impossible to determine which form of SiO2

the sample represents,” explained Bish.

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A v iew of theMart ian surface

taken onNASA’s recentmiss ion to thered p lanet. On

such a miss ion,CHEMIN not

only couldprovide

chemica lana lys is , i t a lso

could ana lyzethe types of

minera lspresent in the

Mart ian so i l ,

Ô

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Geologist Steve Chipera echoes the thought. “In some cases this (theCHEMIN data) will be the best information you can collect because anyplanetary, asteroidal or cometary body with mineral constituents thatcontain water (including ices), sulfur or halogens requires X-ray diffrac-tion in addition to chemical analysis for adequate understanding oforigin and evolution.”

What makes the CHEMIN instrument so unique, however, is not just itsability to analyze the elemental composition and mineralogy of a partic-ular sample, but rather the fact that it does so in a very small size.Necessitated by the fact that it is designed to fit into a spacecraft payloador onto some kind of planetary rover, a flight-ready CHEMIN wouldweigh less than a kilogram, be about the size of a soda can and consumeonly 2 watts of power.

Overall, flight-instrument data-collection times of 1-2 hours areexpected, with sample collection systems that could hold more than 25samples. In other words, this small instrument could gather a great dealof important data in a relatively short period.

Near the beginning of the project there had been some concern aboutthe quality of the data collected by a CHEMIN device, but extensivetesting has shown that the instrument is capable of gathering data on a

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ÓThis schemat icshows thethreecomponentsthat are cr i t ica lto theoperat ion ofCHEMIN: the X-ray tubesource, asamplemanipulat ionsystem and aCCD detectorthatdiscr iminatesboth energyand pos it ion ofX-rays .

quality level near that of laboratory diffractometers 50 times CHEMIN’ssize. This ability to gather high-quality data with such a compact andlightweight instrument is finding many uses.

In fact, not only can it be used to answer questions about extraterres-trial mineralogy, but it could be used here on Earth in field applicationsrequiring a small, low-power instrument, such as geological sampling atremote or dangerous sites or where soil has been contaminated.

CHEMIN is the product of years of collaborative work by scientists atLos Alamos, NASA’s Ames Research Center in Mountain View, Calif., andthe Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.

Vaniman, Bish and Chipera recently received an award for a poster onthe CHEMIN technology presented during an international conferencein Colorado Springs, Colo. (See

Dateline: Los Alamos, January 1999.)

More information on CHEMIN is available at the following address onthe World Wide Web: http://www-geo.lanl.gov/chemin/chemin.html.

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WORLD RECORD SHATTEREDFOR PROTON BEAM OUTPUT

TECHNOLOGICAL BREAKTHROUGH OPENS NEW

WINDOWS OF RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES

Los Alamos recently shattered the world record for peak proton beam output by delivering pulses of 31 trillion

800-megavolt protons to a target for neutron production.Twenty pulses per second were delivered, for an averagecurrent of 100 microamperes.

The increased beam output capability at the Los AlamosNeutron Science Center opens new windows of researchopportunities in the fields of physics, chemistry, biology,geology, engineering and material sciences.

The technological breakthrough is the result of majornew additions and modifications to the center’s protonstorage ring, target and moderator assembly, and manyother components made over more than four years aspart of the Department of Defense-funded LANSCEReliability Improvement Project, or LRIP.

The achievement marks the completion of along-standing promise to provide 100-microampereaverage beam currents to the target at the ManuelLujan Jr. Neutron Scattering Center.

It also demonstrates success for the many upgradeprojects that were implemented during the past year.LANSCE is now ready to demonstrate the scientificpotential that it holds for neutron science and tomake productive contributions to both defense andcivilian research.

Neutrons are uncharged elementary particles slightly more massive thanprotons and present in all known atomic nuclei except the hydrogennucleus. To free neutrons, the proton storage ring ejects high-intensityproton beam pulses toward a heavy-metal object such as tungsten. Asthe pulses strike the target, they drive neutrons from the nuclei of the

ÈDennis R.

Mart inez ofLANSCE works

on the target/moderator/

ref lectorsystem insert . A

new approachto the

construct ion,insta l lat ion andreplacement of

the TMRS hasreduced thereplacement

t ime from 10months to

approximate lyf ive weeks. The

TMRS is now as ingle module

that can beinstal led or

removed in asingle

operat ion.

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target atoms — called spallation neutrons — at the rate of about 20neutrons per proton. The more intense the proton beam, the moreneutrons released. These neutrons then are used in neutron scatteringand nuclear physics experiments.

Neutron scattering is a primary tool for studying the structure ofmaterials. By increasing the number of neutrons, studies can be mademore sensitive to small changes in structure that can significantly affectmaterial properties, such as strength or electrical conductivity.

Increasing beam intensity allows scientists to do more and differentkinds of experiments. For instance, the center’s new beam outputcapability means researchers now can perform such things asmeasuring the magnetism of thin films and analyzing the structuraltransformation of steel in real-time experiments. These experimentswere not possible before because the beam’s earlier output could notproduce enough neutrons.

Until recently, the top proton beam output for the facility was70 microamperes; so peak intensity has been increased by 43 percent.The new beam capability should please researchers in the materialsscience community who had been dissatisfied with the reliability ofaccelerator-driven neutron spallation sources. Their availability andpredictability, compared to neutron scattering done at nuclear reactors,were not as good.

LANSCE also hopes to attract more biologists, chemists and others withthe increased beam output. LANSCE already attracts about 400 researchersfrom industry, universities and other federal laboratories annually.

Los Alamos currently is working on ways to increase beam output evenfurther, to 200 microamperes, by 2001. Some technical issues still needto be resolved to achieve this goal.

Additional information about the Lujan center and the LRIP is availableat http://lansce.lanl.gov/facilities/upgrades.htm#lrip.

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BONE-SHAPED FIBERSINCREASE STRENGTH

AND TOUGHNESSOF COMPOSITE MATERIALS

RESEARCH COULD IMPACT AEROSPACE,

AUTOMOTIVE, CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRIES

Researchers have shown that enlarging the ends of short fibers used in composite materials simultaneously

increases the overall toughness and strength of the material.Composite materials are usedwidely in the automotive,aerospace, civil engineering andother industries requiringlightweight but structurallysturdy parts.The Los Alamos finding impacts aproblem material scientists have beentrying to solve for decades: how to geteffective load transfer between fibersand the surrounding matrix withoutmaking the composite more brittle, ashappens when the fibers are tightlybonded to the matrix.

The special fibers, shaped like acartoon dog bone, anchor into thematrix at each end because of theirshape but bond only weakly with thematrix along their length. This allowsthe fibers to help carry the load.

The experimenters designed theshape and size of the enlarged fiber

ends so they don’t experience the stresses that usually snap fibers andlimit a short-fiber composite’s performance.

“People have been trying to solve this problem for the last couple ofdecades,” said Los Alamos’ Yuntian Zhu, who leads the research effort.

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“We’ve shown that this fairly simple mechanical approach can providea solution.”

Zhu and his colleagues in Los Alamos’ Material Sciences and TechnologyDivision developed the bone-shaped fibers from commercially availablepolyethylene stock and mixed them in a polyester matrix. They madeanother composite from the same materials, but without enlarging theends of the fibers.

Standard, straight fibers can pull free of the matrix material if the fibersbond weakly with the surrounding matrix. If, on the other hand, thefibers bond strongly with the matrix, they can snap under the highstresses generated by a crack in the matrix.

The bone-shaped fibers connect mechanically with the matrixpredominantly at their ends. They have a weak interface, and so don’texperience extreme stress, but remain anchored at their ends and so stillhelp carry the load felt by the composite.

The composites developed for the experiment were subjected to forcesto the point of failure and examined microscopically.

The composite with the bone-shaped fibers significantly outperformedthe straight-fiber composite for both toughness and strength (toughnessmeasures the amount of energy required to damage the composite;strength measures the composite’s resistance to pressure, or force spreadover a given area).

The bone-shaped fiber composite was much more resistant to thepropagation of cracks; the fibers would actually bridge the crack, refusingto let go. Inspection showed that even though a crack in the matrix hadsnaked through the sample, the sample remained intact overall.

The researchers are conducting additional experiments to adjust theshape of the fibers for optimal composite performance. One member of

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ÈHighly

magnifiedimages of

fracturesurfaces of abone-shaped

short fibercomposite ( left)

and aconventional

short straightfiber composite.

the team, Irene Beyerlein, is using computer modeling to better understandthe experimental results and predict the outcome when the researchersuse different materials or change the fiber design.

Composite makers have successfully used long, continuous fibers toincrease strength and toughness, but these materials require special,more expensive manufacturing techniques. Short-fiber composites havebeen long preferred because they are compatible with standard manufac-turing processes.

The Los Alamos team expects its bone-shaped fiber approach also couldbe used in reinforced concrete structures, such as roads, bridgesand buildings.

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ÕTens i le testsshow bettercrack br idgingby bone-shapedshort f ibercomposites (A, B and C) . D shows a crackformed in aconvent ionalshort stra ightf iber compositein which thetest mater ia lhas fracturedcomplete lyacross thesample.

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AIRPORT MONITORS MAYTHWART NUCLEAR THIEVES

DOE LABORATORIES PROVIDE EXPERTISE

FOR RUSSIAN ANTI-SMUGGLING EFFORT

Preventing the spread of uranium and plutonium materials that could be used in a nuclear weapon is a principal

component of U.S. nonproliferation policy. The first line ofdefense is securing the materials at the facilities where theyreside. Detection equipment at major travel hubs and bordercrossings are part of a so-called “second line of defense.”

Incidents in the last few years have heightenedconcerns about nuclear materials being pirated out ofRussia, although to date it does not appear that anysignificant quantities of material have left the country,U.S. and Russian officials agree.

To thwart would-be nuclear smugglers, the Russiancustoms agency has installed a set of monitors in amajor Moscow airport. Los Alamos was the leadDepartment of Energy laboratory to work with Russia

on this project and provided significant technical assistance to this effortto increase global security.

The Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow, where the monitors are installed,supports flights to other parts of Russia and to other countries, makingthe airport a potential route for nuclear smugglers. Last September aribbon-cutting ceremony was held to inaugurate the Second Line ofDefense Program. Department of Energy Secretary Bill Richardson,Sen. Pete Domenici (R-N.M.) and Russian Federation State CustomsCommittee Chairman Valeriy Draganov attended the ceremony.

“We concentrated our efforts on a major choke point for people andluggage,” said Sara Scott, who initiated Los Alamos’ involvement. Theeffort is governed by a formal protocol between Russia’s customs agencyand DOE’s Nonproliferation and National Security Office.

Scott and others from Los Alamos assisted the Russian Federation StateCustoms Commission in identifying a system of portal monitors andvideo surveillance equipment that can detect nuclear smuggling activity.The nuclear monitoring and video surveillance system installed at the

ÓA col laborat iveeffort betweenDOE nat ionallaboratories andthe Russ iancustoms agencyto thwartnuclearsmugglers wasunvei led lastfa l l . EnergySecretary B i l lR ichardson,left ; Sen. PeteDomenic i (R-N.M. ) ,center ; andValer iyDraganov,cha irman of theRuss ianFederat ionState Customscommittee,were on handto cut theproverbia lr ibbon on theporta l monitorsat theSheremetyevoairport inMoscow.

Sheremetyevo Airport was evaluated during a technical demonstrationof the equipment last October.

A Russian company called Aspect built the portal monitors; Los Alamospreviously worked with Aspect to test and evaluate the equipment forportal monitoring and other applications. Los Alamos has long been aleader in developing nuclear monitoring equipment for internationalinspections and other uses.

In addition, the presence of the detection system alone could be a deterrentto would-be smugglers.

“This collaboration started in March, but we’ve had a concentrated technicaleffort going only since June,” Scott said. “We focused on the airport installa-tion as a first step because we wanted something that would give us animmediate and very visible result,” and thereby demonstrate that the collabo-ration between the DOE and the Russian customs agency is a productive one.

The overall collaborative program between the DOE and the Russiancustoms agency includes participation from Lawrence Livermore, PacificNorthwest and Oak Ridge national laboratories. Livermore, for example,is overseeing an effort to install nuclear monitors in customs areas of aprincipal Russian seaport on the Caspian Sea.

Russia plans to purchase 500 vehicle radiation monitors in all to covervarious points of entry and egress from the country.

Phil Hemberger, project leader at Los Alamos, and his colleagues arelooking at future and more extensive efforts even while they are activelycompleting the effort in the Sheremetyevo airport.

For example, they want to make sure a process is in place to ensure aneffective response in case the portal monitors detect nuclear materials.They also are working with Russia’s customs personnel to developsensible export guidelines, train border guards and customs officials inthe guidelines and educate them on any “triggers” to be alert for.

Los Alamos staff members also are looking at a variety of technologyimprovements to increase the sensitivity of portal monitors and otherdetection systems. Los Alamos currently receives about $1.5 million inannual funding from the DOE for the second line of defense project.

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Permit No.532

IN THIS ISSUE:

MINE BLAST OR

NUCLEAR EXPLOSION?P A G E 1

CHEMINP A G E 5

WORLD RECORD

SHATTEREDP A G E 9

BONE-SHAPED FIBERSP A G E 1 1

THWARTING

NUCLEAR THIEVESP A G E 1 4

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BRIEFLY …

ROBERT KARL, A LOS ALAMOS RESEARCHER IN ADVANCED CHEMICAL DIAGNOSTICS ANDINSTRUMENTATION, RECENTLY RECEIVED A U.S. ARMY DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD forhis efforts in developing a laser system for remotely detecting and characterizing clouds of biologicalagents. Karl has been working since the early 1990s on a light detection and ranging, or LIDAR, systemthat mounts in a helicopter and provides rapid detection of airborne biological agents at distances up to18 miles. In all, Los Alamos has built three deployed production units and delivered them to the Army’s310th Chemical Detachment in Fort McClellan, Ala. Called Biological Standoff Detection Systems, theunits are maintained in a high state of readiness for deployment anywhere in the world. The units aremounted on skids for easy insertion and removal from Army UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters; they cansearch about a million acres per hour.

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LALP-99-1-2Dateline: Los Alamos is available

on the World Wide Web:http://lib-www.lanl.gov/pubs/dateline.htm