2003 Conference Highlights

Spanning the gamut of key topics in plutonium and actinide science, the stated goal of Sunday afternoon’s opening tutorial was “to prepare students, non-specialists, and other interested parties.” And although the four presentations delved into details that required at least a basic aptitude in physical science, they did indeed set a broadly landscaped stage for the detailed stories that would be elaborated later in the conference. Seaborg Institute Director David Clark’s opening overview painted the broadest panorama—from actinide chemistry to plutonium metallurgy to stockpile stewardship, nuclear fuel cycles, and environmental behavior. Although somewhat more narrowly focused, the three subsequent talks quite capably sustained the tutorial’s “increased awareness” theme. The first presented an overview of International Atomic Energy Commission activities in nonproliferation and security. The second focused—through an international lens—on the diversity of issues in new fuel cycle initiatives. Combining aspects of geology, chemistry, and hydrology, the closing presentation portrayed a spectrum of initiatives in understanding colloid-facilitated transport of plutonium through the environment. In the end, the approximately one hundred attendees left with a distinct sense of enhanced awareness of these important issues.

Kicked off by the typically colorful, pertinent, and timely remarks of former Los Alamos National Laboratory director Sig Hecker, the conference’s opening day focused on basic actinide physics and chemistry. Against the backdrop of LANL’s 60th anniversary and the European Institute for Transuranium Elements’ 40th, Hecker surveyed the progress—or lack thereof—of international collaboration since the Eisenhower “Atoms for Peace” Initiative. Gerry Lander’s plenary talk played off Hecker’s remarks by highlighting the broad spectrum of European actinide research, much of it done collaboratively with LANL and other U.S. scientists. Other morning-session talks directly or indirectly broached the perennial puzzle of the nature of plutonium’s 5f electrons. A plenary presentation by LANL’s Wolfgang Runde set the stage for Monday afternoon’s talks, which spotlighted novel techniques for studying the chemistry of plutonium and its compounds. The day’s events were capped off by a lively and captivating panel discussion, which despite the late hour and long day, drew a sizable audience of participants.

The last day of the conference began with a plenary session on “Actinides in the Environment and Life Sciences.” Helen Caldicott, founder of Physicians for Social Responsibility, was the first speaker. Caldicott, a pediatrician, is the author of a new book titled, “The New Nuclear Danger: George Bush’s Military Industrial Complex.” The next presenter, Teresa Fryberger, a physical chemist with the United States Department of Energy, spoke on actinides in the environment and recent advances in cleanup. It is important, she said, that scientists come to understand the mobility of contaminants—under what conditions they move, at what rates they move, and the factors that affect their movement. During the afternoon session on “Detection and Analysis,” T.J. Piper of the Atomic Weapons Establishment at Aldermaston in the United Kingdom spoke on “The Application of Vibrational Spectroscopy to Actinide Analysis.” Gerd M. Rosenblatt of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory—who was involved in the development of the plutonium conferences and has participated in all three—gave the wrap-up at the end of the 2003 meeting, highlighting themes that he believes will be important in future years. Rosenblatt commented that through the three conferences so far, “The scientific quality of the papers (presentations and posters) has just gone up and up and up.” He also noted with pleasure that the average age of those attending has gone down—perhaps by as much as 10 years. He said he attended all of the presentations and viewed all the posters during the Albuquerque conference, and he was “delighted by the number of participants of all ages and all fields.”

If you have questions or wish to be added to the conference mailing list, you may send e-mail or regular mail to:

Susan M. Ramsay, Conference Technical Coordinator
Plutonium Futures-The Science 2003
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Nuclear Materials Technology Division
P.O. Box 1663
MS E500
Los Alamos, NM, USA 87545

Telephone: (505) 665-7214
Fax: (505) 665-7895
E-mail: ramsay@lanl.gov