2015 NSF NRI PI meeting presentation

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U.S. Manhattan Project Legacy:
Opportunities for Advanced Robotics in
Nuclear Cleanup
National Robotics Initiative
Principal Investigators Meeting
November 5, 2015

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Rapid Fire Overview
EM’s Nuclear Cleanup Mission

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EM “Lineage”
19
46
Atomic Energy
Commission
Atomic Energy Act of 1946.
Now under civilian control.
1977
Department of
Energy
Formerly ERDA
1989
Environmental
Management
Nuclear weapons legacy
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission
Regulate civilian uses of
nuclear materials
Energy Research and
Development
Administration
Nuclear weapons program
1974
Energy Reorganization Act of 1974
1945
Trinity Test Shot
First detonation of a nuclear
weapon. ≈ 20 kilotons of TNT.
1938
Nuclear Fission
First observed by German
Physicist Otto Hahn and his
assistant Fritz Strassmann
Manhattan Project
Manhattan District of the
US Army Corp of Engineers
19
42
Atoms for Peace
Atomic Energy Act of 1954.
Allowed for a civilian
(peaceful, non-defense)
nuclear industry.
19
54

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Legacy Scope: Manhattan Project
Codename: Development of Substitute Materials

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Legacy Scope: Cold War Expansion
Nationwide Industrial Complex for the
Cold War Nuclear Arms Race

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Legacy Scope: Early Nuclear S&T
Early Years of Government-Sponsored
Nuclear Science and Technology

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Nuclear Weapons Production

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Uranium Mining and Milling
Monument Valley, AZ, Processing Site
Tuba City, AZ, Disposal Site
Durango, CO, Disposal Site
Durango, CO, Processing Site
Grand Junction, CO, Disposal Site
Grand Junction, CO, Processing Site
Gunnison, CO, Disposal Site
Gunnison, CO, Processing Site
Maybell, CO, Disposal Site
Naturita, CO, Disposal Site
Naturita, CO, Processing Site
Slick Rock, CO, Disposal Site
Slick Rock, CO, Processing Sites
Rifle, CO, Disposal Site
Rifle, CO, New Processing Site
Rifle, CO, Old Processing Site
Lowman, ID, Disposal Site
Ambrosia Lake, NM, Disposal Site
Shiprock, NM, Disposal Site
Lakeview, OR, Disposal Site
Lakeview, OR, Processing Site
Burrell, PA, Disposal Site
Canonsburg, PA, Disposal Site
Falls City, TX, Disposal Site
Green River, UT, Disposal Site
Mexican Hat, UT, Disposal Site
Salt Lake City, UT, Disposal Site
Salt Lake City, UT, Processing Site
Riverton, WY, Processing Site
Spook, WY, Disposal Site

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Uranium Refining
Fernald Feed Materials
Production Center
Weldon Spring Uranium Feed
Mill Plant

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Uranium Enrichment
Portsmouth
Gaseous
Diffusion
Plant
Paducah
Gaseous
Diffusion
Plant
K-25
Building of
the Oak
Ridge
Gaseous
Diffusion
Plant

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Uranium Foundry
Fernald Feed Materials
Production Center
Weldon Spring Uranium Feed
Mill Plant

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Fuel and Target Fabrication

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Plutonium Production Reactors
Hanford B Reactor
Hanford C Reactor
Interim Safe Storage
SRS P Reactor
SRS R Reactor
In Situ Decommissioning
9
Reactors
5
Reactors

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Reprocessing to Extract Plutonium
Hanford
T Plant
Hanford
PUREX Plant
SRS H Canyon
SRS
F Canyon
6
Radiochemical
Processing Plants
2
Radiochemical
Processing Plants

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Fabricating Nuclear Components
Oak Ridge
Reservation
Rocky
Flats
Plant
Hanford Site

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Conducting Weapons Research and Design
Separations Process
Research Unit
Knolls Atomic Power
Laboratory
Lawrence
Livermore
National
Laboratory
Los Alamos National
Laboratory
Sandia National
Laboratories

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Fabricating Non-Nuclear Components
Mound Plant
Kansas City Plant
Bannister
Federal complex
Pinellas Plant
Pantex Plant

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Nuclear Device Testing
 1,054 detonations/tests of
thermo-nuclear devices
 838 underground
 216 atmospheric,
underwater and space
 1945 to 1992

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Assembling the Nuclear Warheads
Pantex Plant
Burlington Assembly Plant
Iowa Army Ammunition
Plant Production Lines

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Former Manhattan Project Sites
Berkeley, CA, Site
Burris Park, CA, Site
Seymour, CT, Site
Chicago North, IL, Site
Chicago South, IL, Site
Granite City, IL, Site
Madison, IL, Site
Beverly, MA, Site
Indian Orchard, MA, Site
Adrian, MI, Site
Jersey City, NJ, Site
New Brunswick, NJ, Site
Wayne, NJ, Site
Acid/Pueblo Canyon, NM, Site
Bayo Canyon, NM, Site
Chupadera Mesa, NM, Site
Buffalo, NY, Site
New York, NY, Site
Niagara Falls Vicinity Properties,
NY, Site
Tonawanda North Sites, NY, Unit
1 and Unit 2
Columbus East, OH, Site
Fairfield, OH, Site
Hamilton, OH, Site
Oxford, OH, Site
Toledo, OH, Site
Albany, OR, Site
Aliquippa, PA, Site
Springdale, PA, Site
Oak Ridge, TN, Warehouses
Site
Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program

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The Veil of Secrecy

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Original Scope of EM’s Mission

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Remaining Scope of EM’s Mission
 Since 1989, EM has completed its
cleanup mission at 91 of the 107
major nuclear weapons and
nuclear research sites
 $152 billion spent
 Current Lifecycle Baseline Estimate
of Remaining Mission
 $235 billion
 2065 completion

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Current Budgets
FY 2015 Enacted: $5,861M
$2,030M
35%
$1,110M
19%
$890M
15%
$910M
15%
$520M
9%
$400M
7%
Tank Waste D&D Solid Rad Waste
SNM & SNF Soil & Water Mission Support
$2,297M
40%
$835M
14%
$779M
13%
$967M
17%
$527M
9%
$413M
7%
FY 2016 Request: $5,818M

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Rapid Fire Interests in Robotics
EM’s Nuclear Cleanup Mission

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Interests: Remote Access
Motion, Mobility and Maneuverability
 Systems that provide remote entry into areas and spaces that are
otherwise inaccessible or prohibit direct access by workers due to
 Unsafe, unstable, or unknown physical or structural conditions
 Configurations that are hard to reach or beyond reach without taking
extraordinary mechanical measures
 The presence or potential presence of radiological, chemical, biological, or
physical hazards that will or may result in unacceptable occupational
exposure or increased health or safety risk
 Other conditions that preclude safe entry or are otherwise uninhabitable
such as areas or spaces that have or potentially have
 Oxygen-deprived environments or other conditions of poor air quality;
 Explosive gases, materials or devices
 Extreme temperatures
 Extreme pressures
 Poor or no visibility or no direct line of sight
 Submerged or substantially liquid-covered surfaces

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Interests: Data, Data, Data
Monitoring, Measuring and Mapping
 Non-Destructive Evaluation/Examination and In Situ Characterization
 Acoustic, optical, radiographic, thermographic, electromagnetic,
climatic, and other tooling and methods for non-destructive sensing,
detecting, monitoring, measuring, characterizing, and assaying a
wide variety of radiological, chemical, environmental, and physical
parameters
 Surveillance and Monitoring
 Photography, videography
 Change detection
 Imaging, Surveying, Mapping, and 3D Rendering
 Graphical depictions and representations
 Computer-generated replications, simulations and models

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Interests: Doing Work
Manipulation and Man-Power
 Manipulation and End-Effectors
 Systems for remotely performing tasks in harsh environments or
work conditions to keep occupational exposure to hazards as low as
reasonably achievable (ALARA)
 Heavy Operations
 Systems for performing tasks that are beyond worker capability and
require substantially greater strength, dexterity, reach and access, or
capacity
 Task Automation
 Systems for more efficiently performing routine or repetitive tasks
and operations such that worker interface is needed only for
performance monitoring and quality control

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Interests:
Man-hancements
 Wearable and prosthetic-like robotic devices (a.k.a., co-robots) that
 Improve worker health and safety or
 Enhance worker performance and endurance, or compensate for
physical limitations of extremities by relieving physical stresses on
the body and avoiding occupational injuries such as those caused by
 Repetitive and forceful exertions and motions
 Frequent, heavy, or overhead lifts or tasks
 Ergonomically incorrect work positions
 Use of vibrating (shock-inducing) equipment
 Muscle fatigue

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Interest: CBRNE
 Handling of high-hazard, high-consequence materials and waste
 Chemical
 Biological
 Radiological
 Nuclear
 Explosives

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Interest: 3D Tasks
 Performing worker/operator tasks that are
 Dirty (contaminated, toxic, nuisance)
 Dull (routine, labor-intensive, repetitive, mundane)
 Dangerous (pose significant occupational hazards)

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Interests: Worker Safety → ALARA

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Interests: Worker Performance
 Easing the performance of worker/operator
tasks that are
 Physically demanding on or stressful to
human body or
 Otherwise ergonomically challenging
 Performing tasks that are beyond human
abilities

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Interests: 911
 Remote access for emergency response, initial re-entry, trouble-shooting,
and recovery, particularly when conditions are unknown.

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Interests: Operations
 Improving the safety, quality, efficiency, and productivity of facility
operations
 Process Intensification

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Rapid Fire Operating Domains
EM’s Nuclear Cleanup Mission

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Operating Domain: Glovebox and Hot Cell
 Typical hazards
 Radiation
 Chemicals
 Sharps and heavies
 Degraded Worker Performance
 Lack of flexibility and dexterity
 Challenged visibility
 Over-work and over-stress injuries
 Repetitive motion injuries

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Operating Domain: Glovebox and Hot Cell

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Operating Domain: Glovebox and Hot Cell

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Operating Domain: Facilities
Facility operations and maintenance

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Operating Domain: Facilities
Decontamination,
demolition and
dismantlement
operations

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Operating Domain: Facilities
Facility operations and
maintenance

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Remote access
is needed for
initial entry into
the tunnels for
surveying and
characterization
Tunnel #2
Operating Domain: Underground

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Operating Domain: Underground
Typical Access Drifts:
40 ft. wide and 14 ft. high
Typical Panel Dimensions:
400 ft. wide and 1,115 ft. long
Typical Placement
Configurations for
Contact-Handled TRU
Waste Containers
Typical Room Dimensions:
33 ft. wide, 300 ft. long, 14 ft. high

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Operating Domain: “Underground”
Surveying, characterization and
inspection in underground
storage tanks

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Operating Domain: “Underground”
Investigation and
trouble-shooting
in underground
storage tanks

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Operating Domain: Underwater
Underwater inspections,
surveying and
characterization of storage
pools and basins

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Operating Domain: Aerial
Remote access for aerial
inspections, surveillances and
mapping

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Rapid Fire Closing
 EM mission success over last 25 years
 Significant cleanup challenges ahead
 50 years, $235 billion (likely to be longer, more costly)
 Technology → smarter and safer mission execution
 Robotics is a key mission enabler → rad-hardened, rad-tolerant
 EM mission and problem-set cross-cut many robotics applications
 Commercial nuclear industry (power, medicine, consumer products)
 Nuclear-capable countries
 Collaborate with the broader robotics community
 Leverage federal expertise and assets
 Collaborate with universities and colleges
 Attract future workforce generations
 Let’s not wait until a nuclear disaster

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1000 Independence Ave SW
Washington, DC 20585
Rodrigo (Rod) V. Rimando, Jr.
rodrigo.rimando@em.doe.gov
+1 (240) 676-6470 (mobile)