The University of Florida (U of F) will head a new twenty five million dollars, sixteen university team of thirty one scientists and engineers. This team will work to develop new techniques and the training of future specialists in nuclear forensics. This discipline identifies and tracks of nuclear materials to support global safety.
This project is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). It aims to prepare one hundred and thirty five undergraduate, master’s and doctoral students to help federal laboratories across the U.S. address current and future needs of nuclear forensics. In addition, they will work to help replace an aging workforce.
Professor Jim Baciak is the project leader and a professor in the Nuclear Engineering Program in U of F’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering. He said, “I am honored that our team was entrusted by the NNSA to develop the next generation of leaders for the Department of Energy national laboratories. Our team represents a diverse array of technical areas that are required for robust nuclear forensics, including analytical chemistry, radiochemistry, environmental sciences, geochemistry, nuclear engineering, physics, statistical analyses, machine learning and optical sciences.”
University of Florida materials science and engineering department will contribute Assel Aitkaliyeva, Kyle Hartig, Juan Nino and Nathalie Wall to Baciak’s new team. Ryan Houim from the U of F mechanical and aerospace engineering will also join the team.
Forrest Masters is the interim dean of UF’s Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering. “The consortium is a great recognition for our nuclear engineering program, our college and the university. This award represents a valuable opportunity to demonstrate our strong commitment to supporting research and workforce development oriented toward advancing national security.”
The researchers and the students in the new team will focus on five technical areas.
Professor Brian Powell of Clemson University will lead Rapid Turnaround Forensics to shorten chemical analysis techniques to twenty-four hours or less.
Associate Professor Assel Aitkaliyeva of U of F will lead Advanced Analytical Methods to develop improved materials characterization and microscopy techniques.
Associate Professor Nicole Martinez of Clemson will lead Ultrasensitive Measurements which will investigate methods in environmental sampling and instrumentation to look at low-level signals.
Assistant Professor Amanda Johnsen of Penn State University will lead Signature Discovery to determine if new signals and measurements can lead to improved accuracy in determining material quantities.
Assistant Professor Kyle Hartig of U of F will lead Prompt Effects and Measurements to understand signals given off following a nuclear detonation.
Deputy Director and Associate Professor Camille Palmer of Oregon State University will assist in leadership of the consortium. The consortium will collaborate on research with staff scientists and engineers from seven DoE national laboratories. Each will bring their own unique expertise. The national laboratories included in the project are Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratory and Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL).
Other universities in the consortium will include University of California – Berkeley, University of Central Florida, City University of New York, Clemson, George Washington University, Iowa State University, University of Michigan, University of Nevada – Las Vegas, North Carolina State University, University of Notre Dame, Oregon State University, Penn State, South Carolina State University, University of Tennessee, and Texas A&M University.