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The Nuclear Weapons Complex

The Nuclear Weapons Complex

Management for Health, Safety, and the Environment

  • Publisher: National Academies Press
  • ISBN: 9780309041799
  • eISBN Pdf: 9780309571883
  • Place of publication:  United States
  • Year of digital publication: 1989
  • Month: January
  • Pages: 157
  • DDC: 600
  • Language: English

In this volume, the National Research Council examines problems arising throughout government-owned, contractor-operated facilities in the United States engaged in activities to build nuclear weapons. The book draws conclusions about and makes recommendations for the health and safety of the nuclear weapons complex and addresses pressing environmental concerns. In addition, the book examines the future of the complex and offers suggestions for its modernization. Several explanatory appendixes provide useful background information on the functioning of the complex, criticality safety, plutonium chemistry, and weapons physics.

  • The Nuclear Weapons Complex
  • Copyright
  • Preface
  • Contents
  • Executive Summary
    • MANAGEMENT
    • ENVIRONMENT
    • SAFETY
    • HEALTH
    • MODERNIZATION
  • 1 Introduction
    • THE NUCLEAR WEAPONS COMPLEX
    • THE CURRENT SITUATION
    • THE CHALLENGES
      • Setting Production Goals
      • Setting Priorities
      • Using Technical Strengths
      • Developing and Maintaining Competence
      • Changing the DOE Culture
  • 2 Management
    • THE MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE
      • Contractors
        • Award Fees
        • Contractor Turnover
      • External Oversight
    • CHANGES
    • AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT
      • Simple Lines of Authority
      • Decisionmaking Processes
      • Internal Oversight Structure
      • Communication
        • Directives from Headquarters
        • Exchange of Information within the Complex
      • Independent Technical Advice
      • Availability of Qualified Personnel
        • Recruitment
        • Training
  • 3 Environment
    • INTRODUCTION
      • Background
      • Recent Initiatives
    • ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINATION
    • SETTING STANDARDS AND PRIORITIES ACROSS THE COMPLEX
      • Risk-Based Cleanup Standards
      • National Priority System
      • Characterization of Contaminated Sites
    • WASTE MANAGEMENT
      • Waste Minimization
      • Process Development
    • ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH
      • Types of Research Needed
      • The Role of DOE Measurement Laboratories
    • DOE'S ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY
      • Participation by the Public and by Local and State Officials in Environmental Programs
      • Ecological Value of DOE Lands
  • 4 Safety
    • INTRODUCTION
    • INDUSTRIAL SAFETY
      • Inhalation of Radioactive Materials
      • Contamination in Ductwork
      • Conventional Industrial Safety Practices
      • Sitewide Emergency Control Centers and Local Monitoring of Safety Systems
    • FIRE SAFETY
      • Variations in Operational Approach
      • Fire Protection Audits
      • Personnel and Equipment
    • CRITICALITY SAFETY
    • SEISMIC SAFETY
      • DOE Practice
      • Earthquake Criteria
      • Upgrading Old Facilities
  • 5 Health
    • OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH
      • The Role of Medical Expertise
      • Chemical Hazards
    • ASSESSING RISKS TO HEALTH
      • Monitoring in the Workplace
      • Research on Effects of Exposure to Low Levels of Radiation
        • Epidemiology on Exposure of Workers
        • Epidemiology on Exposure of the Nonworker Population
  • 6 Modernization of the Complex
    • THE DOE MODERNIZATION REPORT
      • Capacity for Processing Plutonium
      • Renovation and Modernization
    • OPPORTUNITIES FOR ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY
      • Upgrading the Chemical Processing of Plutonium
      • Computing and Communications Technology
      • Robotics
  • Appendixes
  • Appendix A Biographical Sketches of Committee Members
  • Appendix B The DOE Nuclear Weapons Complex: A Descriptive Overview
    • WEAPONS LABORATORIES
    • MATERIALS PRODUCTION FACILITIES
      • Heavy Metal Production
        • Fernald/Ashtabula/Hanford
        • ICPP/Y-12/Savannah River
      • Light Element Production: Y-12 and Savannah River
        • D2O Production at SRS
        • Li6 and Li6D Production at Y-12
        • Tritium Production at SRS
    • WEAPONS PRODUCTION FACILITIES
      • Production of Weapons Components
      • Assembly and Disassembly of Weapons
  • Appendix C Nuclear Criticality
    • DEFINITIONS
    • AN ILLUSTRATION
    • FACTORS AFFECTING CRITICALITY
      • Density
      • Moderation
      • Reflection
      • Geometrical Shape
      • Neutron Absorbers
    • ASSESSING CRITICALITY SAFETY
    • CRITICALITY ACCIDENTS IN MATERIALS PROCESSING
  • Appendix D Plutonium
  • Appendix E Physics of Nuclear Weapons Design
    • FISSION WEAPONS
      • Neutron Sources
      • Assembly Methods
      • Predetonation
    • BOOSTED WEAPONS
    • THERMONUCLEAR WEAPONS
  • Appendix F Charge to the Committee
  • References

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