Date Established: 1943

Present Mission:
Primary - Nuclear weapons research, development, and testing to ensure the nation's nuclear deterrent. As a multi-program laboratory, LANL provides technical assistance to the Department of Energy (DOE) weapons complex, performs basic research for DOE programs, and supports energy and environmental technologies.
Secondary - LANL performs work for other Federal agencies, including defense and intelligence, and also works in conjunction with U.S. industry in the areas of energy and environmental technologies.

Size: 27,000 acres (43 square miles).

Employees: 9,400 DOE, contractor, and Los Alamos County personnel (as of September 1996).

Annual Budget: $1.1 billion for fiscal year 1997.

Cognizant Secretarial Officer (CSO): The Assistant Secretary for Defense Programs (DP) is the lead CSO and landlord; the Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management, and the Directors for Nuclear Energy, Energy Research, and Nonproliferation and National Security also have programmatic interests and responsibilities on site. Principal DP offices include DP-2, DP-13, DP-15, DP-20, DP-22, DP- 23, and DP-24.

Responsible Operations/Area Office: Albuquerque Operations Office (AL) and Los Alamos Area Office (LAAO).

Management and Operations Contractor: University of California.

Subcontractors: Protection Technologies Los Alamos; Johnson Controls, Inc.

Fissile Material: 2.7 metric tons of plutonium and 61.0 kg of plutonium waste (February 6, 1996).

Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) occupies approximately 43 square miles of DOE land situated on the Pajarito plateau in the Jemez mountains of northern New Mexico. The closest population centers are the cities of Los Alamos, population 12,000, and White Rock, population 8,000. The closest large metropolitan center is Santa Fe, population 50,000, 35 miles away.

LANL's mission is to apply science and engineering capabilities to problems of national security. This mission has expanded from the primary task of designing nuclear weapons to include non-nuclear defense programs and a broad array of non-defense programs. LANL conducts extensive research in energy, nuclear safeguards and security, biomedical science, computational science, environmental protection and cleanup, materials science, and other basic research. In staff and technical capabilities, LANL is one of the largest multidisciplinary, multiprogram laboratories in the world. LANL is also continuing to direct its capabilities toward helping the U.S. industry become more competitive internationally.

Past missions of LANL included development of nuclear test devices and other research projects. LANL is now focusing on nuclear weapon stockpile stewardship and nonproliferation.

LANL currently consists of Technical Areas (TAs), of which 42 are actively in use. Facilities within these areas include a reactor (which is shut down); criticality experiment areas; particle, neutron and ion accelerators; sealed source and x-ray radiography facilities; research laboratories; depleted uranium and explosive test facilities; a plutonium recovery, metal production, and metal fabrication; and radiologically contaminated environmental areas in various stages of remediation; and decontamination and decommissioning projects.

The Los Alamos Area Office (LAAO), a part of the Albuquerque Operations Office (AL) oversees contractor operations and administers site contracts. LANL is managed by the University of California under a management and operations contract for research and technology development for DOE. LANL was originally founded and established as Project Y of the Manhattan Project. The University of California has managed the laboratory since its inception. The current contract expires in 1996; an extension is being negotiated, which is including an examination of and enhancement to performance measures used in Appendix F of the contract.

LANL receives most of its annual budget from the Department of Energy. The balance of the budget is comprised of Department of Defense, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and private sector research and development.

LANL has a total of 9,200 full-time equivalent personnel, of whom 800 are ES&H personnel (470 University of California, 140 technical contractors, 20 consultants, and other individuals such as graduate research assistants). There are 80 LAAO personnel.

A number of cognizant secretarial offices (CSOs) have programmatic interests at LANL. The Offices of Defense Programs (DP), Non-Proliferation and National Security (NN), and Environmental Management (EM) have interests in national security and environmental programs. The Office of Nuclear Energy (NE) has interests in LANL's science and technology programs.

Major Federal and contractor support subcontractors at LANL include Protection Technologies Los Alamos (PTLA), which operates the security force; Johnson Controls, Inc., (JCI), which provides maintenance services; and an administrative support contractor, which provides secretarial services. Eighteen different labor unions are represented at LANL.

As a DOE prime contractor, the County of Los Alamos provides 24-hour fire protection service to LANL through a five-year provision protected contract (effective December 1, 1992). The Los Alamos Fire Department (LAFD) operates five strategically located county fire stations and one training facility, and staffs each fire station with three operating shifts. Fire protection services include: firefighting, emergency preparedness support, emergency medical service, light rescue, and hazardous materials response. The LAFD employs 127 personnel, 111 which are uniformed shift personnel. The current staff hold specialized and professional fire protection/safety certificates and licenses.

On May 15, 1996, the Secretary of Energy announced plans to seek a five-year extension of the contract with the University of California to maintain and operate LANL. As a condition of the extension, the contract must embody the objectives of the contract reform initiative, including greater use of results-oriented performance and results-based payment.

The site operating budget is approximately $1.1 billion for fiscal year 1997, which is essentially the same as fiscal year 1996. The fiscal year 1998 budget was projected as $1.1 billion.

KEY FACILITIES

Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) at TA-53

LANSCE is categorized as a non-nuclear accelerator facility. It provides a high-intensity, multiple-use accelerator to serve a large community of scientists in medium-energy nuclear and particle physics, applied research, condensed matter studies, medical isotopes, and nuclear technology development. The LANSCE complex includes an 800 MeV proton linear accelerator, several beam lines and experimental areas, meson and proton spectrometers, and other equipment used in medium-energy particle physics research. Responsibility for its operation has been transferred from ER to DP.

Plutonium Facility 4 (PF-4) at TA-55

PF-4 became operational in April 1978 for state-of-the-art plutonium processing. Facility activities include fabricating, testing, and disassembling solid components, and various aqueous processes involving uranium and plutonium. The principal facility capabilities and functions are plutonium recovery, plutonium metal production, plutonium metal fabrication, Pu-238 heat source production, and advanced fuels fabrication. The TA-55 complex also consists of the Administration Building (PF-1), the Support Office Building (PF-2), the Support Building (PF-3), Warehouse (PF-5) and various support buildings.

Los Alamos Critical Experiments Facility (LACEF) at TA-18

The principal mission of LACEF is the design, construction, research, development, and application of critical experiments. In addition to construction of new critical assemblies, the facility provides teaching and training in criticality safety and applications of radiation detection and instrumentation. LACEF consists of three remote laboratory facilities, known as KIVA I, KIVA II, and KIVA III.

The Solution High-Energy Burst Assembly (SHEBA) facility's principal use has been to calibrate criticality accident dosimeters for a uranium enrichment plant. It has also served as a source for skyshine measurements. The Accelerator Development Laboratory (ADL) is also within the LACEF complex.

Building 127 was originally constructed to house a Cockcroft-Walton accelerator to produce neutrons from reactions of deuterium and tritium. The building features a false floor and light walls to provide a low room return, allowing the facility to be used for those measurements that require a "clean" radiation environment.

Chemistry and Metallurgy Research (CMR) AT TA-3

The analytical chemistry laboratories support many LANL programs and are essential to all activities associated with plutonium processing research and development. The analytical chemistry group also provides this support for all uranium related activities, including a capability for uranium scrap recovery operations, and supports the conversion of various recoverable scrap inventories to an oxide form. These capabilities were established at the CMR building in the early 1980s to permit processing of some enriched uranium waste streams. The building also contains a waste assay facility and a Category I special nuclear material vault.

Health Research Laboratory (HRL) at TA-43

HRL was designed for the conduct of health studies and biological research for investigating health risks associated with exposure to radiation and other occupational hazards. HRL houses one of the two National Centers for Human Genome Studies. Health and biological research studies are conducted, with emphasis in molecular biology research, cellular structural studies, biochemical research, animal research studies, and genetics studies. The LANL shielded lung counting facility is located in the HRL basement.

Dual Axis Radiographic Hydrodynamic Test Facility (DARHT) at TA-15

The DARHT facility, being constructed at TA- 15, Area III, has been designed as a dual-axis enhanced-radiography hydrodynamic test facility to facilitate the LANL mission of accurately and effectively assessing the continued safety, performance, and reliability of aging nuclear weapons.

Area III of TA-15 has been dedicated to high explosives testing for over 50 years. The Pulsed High-Energy Radiation Machine Emitting X-Rays (PHERMEX) site (11 acres) and the DARHT site (8 acres) are about 2,000 feet apart by straight line distance and 1.2 miles apart by road. DOE designed DARHT to essentially replace PHERMEX and to provide enhanced diagnostic capability to study the behavior of nuclear weapons. DARHT was specifically designed to provide three- dimensional information and to obtain deeply penetrating, high-resolution radiographic images. DARHT would enable imaging through very thick, dense materials; take multiple, very brief snapshots from two different lines of sight (within millionths of a second); and provide images of very high resolution. Once the DARHT facility becomes operational, DOE would phase out operation of PHERMEX in approximately four years.

The DARHT facility will consist of a new accelerator building, with two accelerator halls, firing point and the associated support and diagnostic facilities at the DARHT site. The existing Radiographic Support Laboratory (RSL), which supports all radiographic machines at TA-15, would be used to support the DARHT facility.

Waste Disposal Site at TA-54

TA-54, comprising Area G and Area L, opened for waste operations in 1957. Area G is the Low-Level Radioactive Solid Waste Storage and Disposal Facility. Area L is the primary location for packaging, transporting, storing, treating, and/or disposing of chemical, hazardous, and low-level mixed waste generated at LANL. Other activities are handling of polychlorinated biphenyl waste from laboratory operations, treatment of some chemical wastes, and the handling and staging area for all wastes except from explosives waste streams and gas cylinders. TA-54's activities include drum storage, waste shaft areas, and pit disposal of a variety of radioactive, chemical, hazardous, and low- level mixed waste materials.

Several thousand gas cylinders containing a wide variety of flammable and toxic gases were collected from LANL facilities during 1990-91 and stored as waste at Area L. Of the remaining cylinders at the site, about 30 are uncharacterized. The uncharacterized cylinders are stored separately from those that have been characterized. Many cylinders are old and corroded. Gases contained in the waste cylinders include flammable (e.g., propylene, isobutane, hydrogen, and methane), corrosive gases (e.g., hydrogen fluoride, hydrogen chloride, nitric oxide, and sulfur dioxide), and toxic gases (e.g., arsine, phosgene, cyanogen, and phosphine). By the end of 1994, all but about 100 cylinders were transferred to offsite treatment facilities. The remaining cylinders are radiologically contaminated, are not stored in Department of Transportation approved containers, or cannot be processed in offsite treatment facilities.

Radiochemistry and Hot Cell Facility at TA- 48

The TA-48 Radiochemistry and Hot-Cell Facility is known as the "Radiochemical Laboratory" or "Radiochemistry Site." The facility originally provided radiochemical analysis support to nuclear weapons testing, research and development, evaluation of samples collected from a variety of environmental sources, and nuclear medicine production activities. The current and planned future uses of TA-48 are: (1) continue to analyze nuclear test debris samples; (2) provide radiochemical analysis support to evaluate samples collected from the various candidate repository sites for high-level radioactive waste, and more recently, the Yucca Mountain Site; (3) develop advanced nuclear chemistry technology; and (4) perform nuclear medicine research and production activities.

Building RC-1 (the main facility) provides laboratories, an alpha facility, counting room, hot cells and storage of nuclear test debris samples. Building RC-8 houses the isotope separation operations. Building RC-28 houses the laser laboratory and water sample analysis operations. Building RC-45 houses the Advanced Weapons Radiochemical Diagnostics Facility. Building RC-46 houses the x-ray diffraction unit used in analysis of natural rock samples.

Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility (RLWTF) at TA-50

The RLWTF characterizes, treats, and disposes of radioactive liquid waste by chemical adjustment of pH, neutralization, chemical assisted flocculation and floc removal, collection and dewatering of sludge solids, solidification of sludge solids in concrete, sedimentation and filtration, ion exchange, and addition of water treatment chemicals. Building 1, contains two radioactive liquid waste treatment facilities, decontamination facilities, counting laboratories, analytical laboratories, and office operations. The Transuranic Waste Size Reduction Facility contains uranium and plutonium contaminated material.

DP West at TA-21

The TA-21 DP West facilities were constructed in the mid-1940s to process plutonium and uranium and did so until 1978. From 1978 to 1981, plutonium processing areas were decontaminated; some of these areas are now used as laboratories. The uranium processing operations were later discontinued with partial cleanup. DP West has been a multi-user site with different LANL groups responsible for specific operations. A large portion of DP West is undergoing decontamination and decommissioning (D&D). All remaining operations are being phased out and moved to other locations. General chemical and biochemical laboratory activities are the remaining DP West operations. An estimated 4,000 grams of enriched uranium was removed during D&D.

Tritium Science and Fabrication Facility (TSFF) at TA-21

The TSFF has supported a variety of DOE tritium programs, including lithium deuteride and tritide salt synthesis and part fabrication, new production reactor, boost-gas system development, Complex 21, and inertial confinement. Many of these functions have or will be moved to WETF. For example, the neutron target tube loading is in operation now at TSFF, but the transfer and expansion of the operation to WETF is underway. Planned missions for the facility include neutron target tube loading, metal getter detitration systems, boost-gas development, ICF target development, and sales of He-3.

Tritium Systems Test Assembly (TSTA) at TA-21

The building housing the TSTA was built in 1962 to support the ROVER nuclear rocket program. In 1978, the building was decontaminated and refurbished for TSTA needs. The TSTA is an internationally supported fusion research facility whose mission is to demonstrate the fusion power reactor fuel cycle; develop and test personnel protective and environmental systems; develop, test, and qualify equipment for tritium service in the fusion program; support demonstration and establishment of a database for design of future fusion machines; demonstrate long-term reliability of components; demonstrate long-term safe handling of large quantities of tritium; investigate and evaluate the fuel cycle response and environmental packages to normal, off-normal, and emergency situations; and develop operating procedures and training programs for tritium systems that for use in other tritium fusion facilities.

Weapons Engineering Tritium Facility (WETF) at TA-16

WETF was designed to replace the aging High Pressure Tritium Laboratory at TA-33 and co- locate its operations with its operational group(s). WETF current activities are related to weapons, laser fusion, accelerator research, and services to the materials science and technology, physics, chemistry, medium-energy physics, and energy divisions. These services include repackaging of tritium into smaller quantities than can be ordered from the DOE supplier, tritium gas purification, mixing with other gases, analyzing gaseous tritium, and repackaging tritium and other gases to high pressures. The WETF Tritium Gas Handling Subsystem (TGHS) located in the process room is used for repackaging of tritium into smaller quantities, tritium gas purification, mixing tritium with other gases. WETF will handle gram quantities of tritium.