r Particle Beam Fusion Accelerator II Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM View of electrical discharges over the PBFA-Il's pulse-forming section after its successful first shot DOE/DP-0105P BISON SCI ENGR Ll RARY Defense UNlVERSilY AT BUFFALO OCT 281992 Programs DOCUMENTS DEPOSITORY UBRARY0433 U .S. Department of Energy Office of Defense Programs Washington, DC 20585 Fo rrestal Building, DOE Headquarters in W ashi n gto n , DC View from the Sm ithsoni an Department of Energy facility in Germantown, MD Defe nse Programs (DP) is a major o rga nizatio na l compo nent of the U .S . Depa rtme nt of Energy (OO E). Introduction This brochure provides information on the U.S. Department of Energy's Defense Programs. It discusses our national security responsibilities, our other activities supporting the economic and military security of the United States, and the location of our diverse scientific and technical facilities throughout the United States. The principal authority for Defense Programs activities is the Atomic Energy Act. Our mission is to provide and maintain safe, secure, reliable, and survivable nuclear weapons, as required by the Department of Defense and approved by the President, in a safe, secure, environmentally sound, and cost effective manner. Our vision is to carry out our mission with a commitment to excellence and with the flexibility to respond to rapidly changing circumstances, including a planned significant reduction in the nuclear weapons stockpile. This vision requires sustaining nuclear competence in our laboratories and production complex; achieving a smaller, less diverse and more economical weapons complex; forming new partnerships with industry and academia to enhance U.S. competitiveness through a vigorous technology transfer program; and earning public trust through effective stewardship of natural, human, and fiscal resources and increased public involvement. What Do We Do? We are responsible for the research, design, development, testing, manufacture, surveillance, and disposal of U.S. nuclear weapons. We perform research and development of weapons and other technologies for Department of Defense needs. We continually monitor and test the weapons in the enduring stockpile to ensure safety and reliability of performance. Nuclear weapons safety for both newly developed and older weapons is constantly being addressed. The Department of Energy, through Defense Programs, shares dual agency responsibility with the Department of Defense for the safety, security, and control of nuclear weapons throughout their stockpile life. We conduct nuclear tests to introduce recommended modern safety features in all existing weapon types and to maintain confidence in the performance of the modified weapons. We produce, if necessary and directed by the President, nuclear weapon components and nuclear materials needed not only for those nuclear weapons, but for nuclear propulsion systems for the Navy, and space power applications for the Department of Defense and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. ej " .. /-~ ~ -;ill • ,i ... ·. . ); ~ Shown is a parts breakdown of a modem strategic bomb, the B-83 . This bomb was produced by the nuclear weapons production complex and is currently deployed in the nuclear weapons stockpile. In addition to nuclear weapons-related work, we support programs to exp lore and extend a wide variety of associated technologies in other defense, energy, medical, education, mathematics, and manufacturing technology fields. Much of this non-nuclear weapons work is performed for other agencies on a reimbursable basis. Shown h ere is an image of synthetic plastics and testing devices used to develop artificial blood vessels that would be commercially availab le for human implantation. We also have the responsibility for transferring technology generated in our laboratories and pro duction plants to the private sector. We participate in cost sharing projects which have a benefit to both our national security objectives and the competitiveness of U .S. industry. Our goals are to: (1) increase the participation of U .S.-based industry in research and development, and the speed and amount of commercialization of new technologies, (2) increase the participation of the Federal Government in the technology transfer process, and (3) accelerate the process of transferring federally funded technology to private industry and consumers. Finally, as custodian s of multiple scientific and industri al facilit ies across the country, we must pro tect the en v ironment, and the safety and h ealth of our workers an d the public. Nuclear weapons are produced in seven Government-Owned, Contracto r-Operated (GOCO) plants. In addition to their weapo ns production work, the plants produ ce hardware to support the n ational laboratori es in their weapon development and testing activities. How We Accomplish Our Mission The Defen se Prog rams co mplex con sists of fac ilities in 11 st ates, managed by approximate ly 3 ,000 Federal employees, direc ting operation s of 45 ,000 contracto r employees. Headq uarters operations are prov ided at two faci lities in the W ashington , D.C. metropolitan area. Policy and pl anning direc tio n to the Defen se Prog rams system eman ates h ere. Field office s play a significant ro le in the deve lopment, production , and testing of n uclear weapons. The Field offices supporting our ac tiv ities include: A lbuquerqu e, Nevada, O ak Ridge , San Franc isco, Savannah Ri ve r, a n d Rocky Fla ts. The Fie ld offic e netwo rk p rov ides the d ay -to -d ay operation al ove rsight, man age ment, and contracting functions for the Department at its facilit ies, cons istent with policy direction from H eadq uarters. Defense Programs Complex • Weapons Laboratories e Weapons Production Facilities • Nevada Test Site e Major Nuclear Materia ls Sites 6 Fie ld Offi ces The majority of the scientific, technical, manufacturing, and assembly work is done in governmentowned facilities, but operated on behalf of the Department by private contractors at the GOCO plants. Key Weapon Subassemblies PAL Parachute Coded Pentex Kansas City Control Also: Product Test Equipment Handling Gear PAL Controllers Weapon Documentation System AssemblyJDis8ssembly Plll'lteX Research and development for nuclear weapo ns occurs at three Department of Energy multiprogram laboratories: the Law rence Li ve rmore N ation al Laborat ory in California and the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico , both operated by the University of California; and the Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico and California, operated by AT&T Technologies. These laborato ries design, develop, engineer, and certify the weapons that make up the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile. Their products encompass electrical, chemical, exp losive, mechanical, and nuclear eng ineer ing disc iplines. Nuclear testing is required to introduce recommended modem safety feature s in all existing weapon types and to ma inta in confidence in the performance of the modified weapo ns. In addition, th ere will be a continuing require!Tlent for testing to ensure that the weapons in the stockpile remain safe . These und erground nuclear tests and experiments occur at the Nevada T est Site, o perated by Reyno lds Electric, EG&G, and other subcontractors . Inside the Control Pqint at the NTS. The test contro ller prepares to conduct a nuclear test . Weapons components and nuclear materials are produced, manufactured, and assembled in seven production plants. Those plants are: the Rocky Flats Plant in Golden, Colorado, operated by EG&G; the Kansas City Plant in Kansas City, Missouri, operated by Allied Signal; the Pinellas Plant in Clearwater, Florida, operated by Martin-Marietta Energy Systems; the Y-12 Plant in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, operated by Martin-Marietta Energy Systems; the Pantex Plan t in Amarillo, Texas, operated by the Mason & Hanger/Silas Mason Company; the Mound Plant in Miamisburg, Ohio, operated by EG&G; and the Savannah River Site in Aiken, South Carolina, operated by the Westinghouse Electric Corporation. Each plant is responsible for different weapons products. Weapons components requiring unique manufacturing capabilitie and nuclear materials are produced in the GOCO plants. Most nonnuclear materials and many other weapons components are purchased from commercial suppliers and manufacturers. The Department's Savannah River Site is the sole source of new tritium for defense purposes in the United States. One nuclear reactor is currently being maintained at the Savannah River Site to provide the essential capability to provide tritium for nuclear weapons. Other nuclear materials including highly enriched uranium and plutonium are provided not only for weapons but also for government research and development activities; civilian research; commercial and medical applications; and power sources in space applications. Ground view of 100-K Reactor Area (K-Reactor) at the Savannah River Plant. Weapons Complex Reconfiguration For over 40 years, Defense Programs helped preserve world peace by providing the modern nuclear weapons necessary to ensure the credibility of U.S. nuclear deterrent. T oday, as our nuclear forces are downsized, the challenge is to build a restructured nuclear weapons complex that preserves the capabilities required to respond to the rapidly changing world situation but which is smaller, less diverse, and much more cost effective. In February 1991, the Secretary of Energy released the Nuclear Weapons Complex Reconfiguration Study . That report presented a vision of a reconfigured complex, to be in place in the early 21st century, called Complex-21. Now, with the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the significant reductions in the number and types of nuclear weapons resulting from the President's recent arms control initiatives, we have even more of an opportun ity to reduce the size of the nuclear weapons comp lex. The objectives of the reconfiguration effort will be to: minimize the number of weapons production sites and the size of the individual sites; con so lid ate research, development, and testing into "Centers of Exce llence"; improve techniques to safeguard the h ealth of the public and Complex employees; protect the en vironment; emphasize compliance with Federal, State, and local laws, regulations, and accepted prac tices that maintain industrial and weapons safety ; reduce the use of h azardous materials and improve techniques to remove and disc h arge products; and significantly improve techniques to properly dispose of h azardous and radioactive wastes. Conduct of Operations The DOE has placed increased emphasis on the protection of the environment and the health and safety of the employees and the public. The DOE policy is to conduct all operations in full compliance with applicable Federal and State environmental, safety, and health requirements. To assure that our operations and facilities protect our workers and the health and safety of the public, our managers are responsible for assuring compliance with the Department's policy and program directives as well as Federal and State regulatory requirements. Our program also conducts independent self-assessments of the safety performance at our facilities. Dale Dunsworth and Curt Hurd (former interns) participating in a safety diagnostic evaluation at the Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant (M arch 1991) . Opportunities Many exciting career opportunities exist within Defense Programs, in the Washington area, and across the United States. Opportunities that provide professional and personal challenges. You can exercise your technical and management expertise. Our people work with other Federal agencies, the Congress, and many of the top industrial firms of the Nation in areas addressing our Nation's future economic and military security. This recent class of interns has participated in a 2+ year technical manager development program. This program gives them the skills and background to oversee the varied facilities and responsibilities of Defense Programs. IIII ~~~~~~j~fllli~[l]iiil]ijlml~'il~~~~ill llll 3 9072 01838016 6