Tuesday, June 23, 1998
Settlement of personal injury lawsuit announced
Laboratory Director John Browne today announced an "agreement in principle" on settlement terms in a personal injury lawsuit. The lawsuit was filed by the family of a Laboratory contract worker who remains in a coma from a 1996 electrical accident.
The University of California Board of Regents approved the general terms for the proposed settlement. The detailed language of the settlement will be finalized in the near future.
The settlement will include a payment of $13 million to the family of Efren Martinez, a contract employee who was operating a jackhammer that struck a buried 13,200-volt electrical power cable. The incident occurred Jan. 17, 1996.
"No amount of money can make up for the loss of a husband and a father to the Martinez family," Browne said.
Martinez's accident and other incidents in recent years were a call for the Laboratory "to further strengthen our commitment to safety," Browne said. "This was a tragic accident. We have taken steps to help make sure that no other serious accidents happen here in the future."
The Laboratory has expanded its previous safety program into an "integrated safety management system" that builds considerations of safety into every aspect of Laboratory activities, from the worker level on up to top management. Various other activities under way also try to maintain a continual emphasis on safety.
The proposed settlement of the Martinez lawsuit does not indicate any wrongdoing on the part of the Laboratory.
JCNNM to close Main Hill Road today, Wednesday for
water-main repairs
The Utilities Department of Johnson Controls Northern New Mexico will close Main Hill Road from 9 a.m. today through 6 p.m. Wednesday to repair a leaking 14-inch water main, a JCNNM press release stated. It is possible, though, that Main Hill Road could be reopened by Wednesday morning if JCNNM crews can expedite the repairs, which require that both lanes of Main Hill Road be closed for worker safety and equipment placement.
Gary Page, a zone team leader for JCNNM Utilities, said the repairs are needed immediately to prevent a serious water shortage for the Laboratory and Los Alamos County. "Johnson Controls has had to shut down the water well in the area to prevent the water-main leak from damaging Main Hill Road, and water is being supplied to the Lab and the county through alternate wells. However, water supplies are dropping with heavy use due to the warm weather, and water from the well is needed as soon as possible to prevent a shortage," Page said.
Incoming and outgoing traffic will be detoured through State Road 4 (the truck bypass) to accommodate the repair work on the section of State Road 502 just west of the State Road 4 junction. For more information, call Clarence Lujan at 7-0305.
Lab engineers solve chip makers dilemma
A new method for processing semiconductor wafers using a nonflammable, nontoxic, environmentally friendly solvent could greatly reduce water use and cut the volume of hazardous waste produced by computer chip manufacturers.
The Laboratory worked with the Hewlett-Packard Co. to develop the use of a supercritical carbon dioxide fluid formulation and treatment system to remove coatings called photoresists from semiconductor wafers without the use of toxic chemicals.
"The semiconductor industry is eager to reduce chemical use, and our new system cuts out the toxic chemicals and millions of gallons of water used in the industry's main production process," said project leader Craig Taylor of Organic Chemistry (CST-12). "Our pulsed-flow system answers the technical problems the industry has had with alternate cleaning methods."
Integrated circuit manufacturers rely heavily on photolithography to create the desired features in each layer of chip circuitry. The process requires the selective removal of hardened coatings, or resists, from a wafer, leaving the intricate circuitry intact. Current wet-stripping technologies apply either corrosive combinations of sulfuric acid and hydrogen peroxide or organic solvents. Both systems produce large liquid waste streams.
In contrast, the Supercritical Carbon diOxide Resist Remover, or SCORR, system uses carbon dioxide under pressure to efficiently remove positive or negative photoresists. It is the only nonhazardous process fully compatible with existing integrated circuit manufacture.
Under increasing pressure and temperature, carbon dioxide gas first reaches a liquid phase, then enters a region called "supercritical" in which it has useful properties of both gas and liquid. Supercritical carbon dioxide expands to fill its container and diffuses into the tiniest pores like a gas. On the other hand, because supercritical carbon dioxide has a high density like a liquid, it can dissolve substances and carry them. These properties make supercritical carbon dioxide an excellent solvent.
The Laboratory's SCORR system delivers supercritical carbon dioxide mixed with a few percent of the nontoxic, nonhazardous organic co-solvent propylene carbonate onto the wafer surface through a novel, pulsed-flow system. SCORR thoroughly strips photoresist from wafers in less than half the time required for wet-stripping or alternative chilled ozone systems.
The mixture costs a fraction of the solvents used in the traditional systems. And both carbon dioxide and propylene carbonate are readily available, nontoxic and recyclable.
"Supercritical carbon dioxide is cheap, fast, very effective and environmentally benign," said Taylor. "This is an important new application for a safe, familiar technology."
Current wet-stripping methods use acid mixtures that are hazardous to workers and are highly corrosive and flammable. The only hazard of the SCORR system is the use of a pressurized vessel for the stripping treatment; however, large-scale commercial use of supercritical carbon dioxide is well known and has been used safely in the food, pharmaceutical and petrochemical industries for many years.
If adopted by the semiconductor industry, the SCORR system will reduce solvent disposal and water treatment costs and cut expenses for acquiring water use licenses and discharge permits. It will help the industry comply with federal and state environmental regulations, because the process greatly reduces hazardous wastes and emissions. And because the system uses pure carbon dioxide for its final rinse step, it eliminates the need for high volumes of water pulled from reservoirs where fabrication plants are located, including the arid Southwest.
The SCORR system can be used to clean most organic contaminants from other inorganic substrates without altering the substrate surface, and is therefore ideal for many precision-cleaning applications.
--Gary Kliewer
Acting deputy director for business administration and outreach
on KRSN today
How the Laboratory's economic development initiatives will affect Northern New Mexico is the subject of a talk by Tom Garcia, the Laboratory's acting deputy director for business administration and outreach at 8 a.m. today on radio station KRSN.
Garcia will be interviewed by KRSN's Mark Bentley. KRSN-AM is at 1490 frequency.
Garcia will touch on the Lab's economic development initiatives, which aim to create new jobs in Northern New Mexico, diversify the region's economic base and create significant investment in the region. Another component, Garcia said, involves philanthropic participation by the Lab, hence the creation last year of the Lab's not-for-profit Laboratory Foundation.
Colloquium today to provide a glimpse of the fascinating world of modern physics
Lawrence Krauss of Case Western Reserve University, department of physics, is scheduled to present a Director's Colloquium today in the Administration Building Auditorium. The Colloquium, "The Physics of Star Trek," begins at 1:10 p.m. and is open to the public. Click here for more information.
Astronomy Days activities scheduled at the museum
The Laboratory's Bradbury Science Museum is sponsoring a number of activities in June as part of its Astronomy Days program. Included are a poster presentation by students taking part in the Earthwatch Institute program this summer at the Lab, evening lectures and presentations on the Lab's Starlab portable planetarium.
The activities are free and open to the public. Early attendance for the evening lectures is suggested because seating is limited, said Pat Berger of the museum, which is part of the Lab's Community Involvement and Outreach (CIO) Office.
The Lab's Science and Technology Base (STB) Programs Office operates Starlab, said Berger. From 2 to 5 p.m. Wednesday and Friday, the public can learn about constellations and stars and walk through the portable planetarium. The presentation Wednesday is from a Native American perspective and will be presented by Donna Powell, a teacher from Grants.
The presentation on Friday is by Dave Hollowell of Thermonuclear Applications (X-TA), vice president of Pajarito Astronomers, and Tom Pickett, also of Pajarito Astronomers.
Museum-goers should sign up for a presentation in Starlab at the Guides' Desk in the lobby of the museum. Each presentation lasts about 20 minutes. Members of the public also are encouraged to come to the museum dressed to crawl through the entrance into the portable planetarium.
Beginning about 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 27, the museum and Pajarito Astronomers will set up telescopes on Spirio Soccer Field at Overlook Park in White Rock to view stars, constellations, galaxies, gaseous nebuli, open star clusters and globular star clusters. June 27 is a "dark night" and Los Alamos County is turning off electric lights for members of the public to enjoy better viewing, said Berger.
For more information about this event, call Hollowell at 662-3041.
And from 2 to 5 p.m. Monday, June 29, students participating in the Lab's Earthwatch program will have a poster on display in the museum lobby. The poster exhibit summarizes their work at the Lab's Fenton Hill Observatory (see the June 15 Daily Newsbulletin).
Bradbury Science Museum is located at 15th Street and Central Avenue.
Regular museum hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
For more information, call Berger at 5-0896.
--Steve Sandoval
Laboratory scientist Geoff Reeves will talk about satellites, space storms and the Northern Lights at a talk Thursday in the Bradbury Science Museum. The talk begins at 6:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public. It is part of the museum's evening lecture series, said Pat Berger of the museum, which is part of the Lab's Community Involvement and Outreach (CIO) Office. Reeves of Space and Remote Sensing Sciences (NIS-2) will talk about what Northern Lights look like, where they come from and how they affect us, said Berger. The Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, has long fascinated mankind. Scientists have said they are caused by blasts of energy from the sun that produce magnetic "storms" in space. Many myths, legends, and scientific theories surround their appearance and behavior. According to Reeves, the storms also can pose a danger to satellites orbiting in space. In the next few years, as the sun becomes more active, the number and strength of these storms will increase, he said. Bradbury Science Museum is located at 15th Street and Central Avenue downtown. Regular museum hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and Monday. For more information, call Berger at 5-0896. --Steve Sandoval |
Student picnic scheduled for Wednesday
The Laboratory's Science and Technology Base (STB) Program Office and the Human Resources (HR) Division are sponsoring a student/mentor picnic from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday in Urban Park.
The picnic is being catered by Allied Foods in Los Alamos and is for undergraduate and graduate students, according to Hallie Vigil of University Programs (STB/UP).
Students should contact Vigil at 5-8277 or Melissa Velarde in Staffing (HR-5) at 7-3212 to obtain a ticket for the picnic.
The Lab's Student Programs Advisory Committee is providing recreational equipment from the Wellness Center.
Vigil said STB is using morale funds to pay for the picnic. About 400 students and mentors are expected to attend the picnic.
For more information, call Vigil at 5-8277.
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Recycle those old phone books The Lab recently received the new US West phone books for 1998-99, and the old phone books are recyclable. Just send them to Mail Stop A1000 through July 11. For more information on other recycling programs at the Laboratory, go to. |
Wanted: Employee questions for the director's next town-hall meeting
During the town-hall meeting, the director will take and answer questions from those present, as he has done at past meetings. But because some employees may be hesitant to ask a question publicly or wish to remain anonymous, the director is soliciting questions in advance of the meeting. Questions should be clear and to the point -- please keep them short. Send questions for the director to AsktheDirector@lanl.gov through electronic mail, to 5-5552 by fax or to Newsbulletin/Ask the Director at Mail Stop C318 through interoffice mail. Questions will come directly to the Newsbulletin, where they will be collected, sorted and, if deemed necessary, condensed or combined for the director. Only questions from active employees will be accepted, and questioners are asked to include their name and z number to confirm this. The identity of those submitting questions will be known only to two members of the Newsbulletin staff who will be collecting the questions submitted in advance. Questioners' identity will not be revealed to the director or his staff. The deadline for submitting questions is July 6. Don't miss this chance to "Ask the Director." |
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Aurora Borealis focus of talk Thursday
Got a question you want the director to answer, but you've been reluctant
to ask? Here's your chance. Laboratory Director John Browne will hold an
employee town-hall meeting at 8:10 a.m. July 14 in the Administration Building
Auditorium, and he wants to know what's on employees' minds.
Lost: ATM card