Preparation Of Specimens And Samples For The U.S. National Nuclear Materials Archive

Physical specimens of U.S. Department of Energy-origin nuclear materials obtained from key points in the fuel cycle are being retained by the National Nuclear Materials Archive and are being sampled, stabilized and packaged for archival storage. Samples acquired from each specimen are being analyzed for baseline characterizations at two or more analytical laboratories qualified to perform forensic analyses for the archive. This research used glove box laboratories and other resources of the Radiochemical Engineering Development Center, a U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science research facility operated by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The National Nuclear Material Archive is led and managed by the Office of Nuclear Forensics, located in the Counterterrorism and Counterproliferation Office of the National Nuclear Security Administration.