THE MANHATTAN PROJECT

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THE MANHATTAN PROJECT 1942 - 1945
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Possible Routes to Fissionable MaterialsConsidere
d by U. S. in 1942

• Gaseous Diffusion
• Electromagnetic Separation
• Centrifugation
• Liquid Thermal Diffusion

U-235
Natural Uranium (99.3 U-238, 0.7 U-235)

• Uranium-graphite reactor
• Uranium-heavy water reactor

Pu-239
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Uranium Metallurgy
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Methods Used to Separate U-235 from U-238
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Gaseous Diffusion K-25 Plant Oak Ridge
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Calutrons at the Y-12 Plant Oak Ridge
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Y-12 Electromagnetic Separation Plant Oak Ridge
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Production of weapons grade U-235Oak Ridge, TN -
1944-45
Natural uranium U-235 (0.7 ) UF6 (g)
Product U-235 (90) UF4 (s)
S-50 Thermal Diffusion
Y-12 Beta Calutrons
U-235 (0.86) UF6 (g)
U-235 (15) UF4 (s)
K-25 Gaseous Diffusion
Y-12 Alpha Calutrons
U-235 (7) UF4 (s)
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Production of Plutonium From Uranium in a
Nuclear Reactor
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Fuel Fabrication

• Prepare fissile material to fuel nuclear reactors.

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Naturally Occurring Uranium
U-238 (99.3)
U-235 (0.7)
Hanford Irradiated Fuel
U-238 (gt98)
other radioactive isotopes including Pu-239 (lt1)
U-235 (lt1)
4000 grams of irradiated uranium produce
approximately 1 gram Pu-239
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Pu Recovery by Bismuth Phosphate Process

• Pu is found in low concentrations (lt250 ppm) in
  reactor products.
• Weapons grade Pu must be chemically pure (lt 1
  part in 107 parts Pu).
• The Pu recovery for total process was 95 with
  lt 1 part impurity in 107.

HNO3
Pu(s) X(s)
Pu4(aq) Xy(aq)
H2SO4
H3PO4
Pu4(aq) Xy(aq) Bi3(aq)
Pu3(PO)4(s)
Xy(aq) BiPO4(s)
HNO3
Pu3(PO)4(s)
BiPO4(s)
Pu6(aq)
Bi3(aq)
oxid. agent
H3PO4
Pu6(aq)
Bi3(aq)
Pu6(aq) BiPO4(s)
H2O2
reducing agent
Pu6(aq)
PuO22(aq)
Pu(s)
Plutonium was redissolved and further purified
using LaF2 in place of BiPO4(s)
X(s) fission products or uranium y
oxidation state
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Inside Hanford T Plant
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Little Boy - Hiroshima - 0815, August 6, 1945
Size 10 ft long Weight 8.900 lbs. (132 lbs
gt90 U-235) ( 2lbs underwent fission) Height
of blast 1900 ft. Yield 15 - 16 Kt
TNT Casualties 100,000 immediate deaths
200,000 total deaths
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Fat Man - Nagasaki - 1102, August 9, 1945
Size 10.5 ft long, 5ft. Diameter Weight 10,3
00 lbs.. (12 lbs.. Pu-239 of which 2 lbs.
underwent fission) Height of blast 1650
ft. Yield 22 Kt of TNT Casualties 70,000
immediate deaths 140,000 total deaths
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THE LEGACY OF HIROSHIMA 1945 - 2004
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Fuel rod fabrication plant in Yongbyon, North
Korea
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Map of DPRK Nuclear Sites
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http//alsos.wlu.edu
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http//www.chemcases.com/2003version/nuclear/index
2.htm