Department of Energy FY 2012 Congressional ... - The FIRE Place

• Rapid Design Commercial, off-the-shelf (COTS) deployed vendor patch to production to address
longstanding issue related to workflows that allows for quick response to future National Security
missions through rapid design and manufacturing of electrical systems.
Tritium Readiness
• Consolidated 368 Tritium-Producing Burnable Absorber Rods (TPBARs) from Cycle 9 of the Watts
Bar Nuclear reactor Unit 1 (WBN1).
• Shipped 364 TPBARs in two batches to the Tritium Extraction Facility (TEF) for extraction.
• Shipped four TPBARs from to Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) for Post Irradiation
Examinations (PIE).
• Commenced irradiation of 240 MK 9.2 TPBARs in Cycle 10 at WBN1.
• Extracted the first batch of 284 Cycle 9 TPBARs at the TEF.
• Commenced fabrication of 544 TPBARs plus spares for WBN1 Cycle 11.
• Commenced PIE for Cycle 9 TPBARs and recent Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) samples.
• Conducted conceptual design review for planned ATR tests on pellet performance.
• Completed award of WesDyne Phase 2 second 5-year period.
• Completed award of Bare Cladding contract to procure stainless steel tube stock.
• Developed a prototype for a reactor cooling system water management process model.
Advanced Design and Production Technologies
• Advanced Initiation Systems advanced the technology for the delivery of a preliminary plan for a
solventless process for polyimide slappers.
• Collaborative Authorization for the Safety-Basis Total Lifecycle Environment (CASTLE) deployed
version 2.0 to Pantex which assisted in the W84 Hazard Analysis Report (HAR) Submission and
approval and completion of the B83 Hazard Analysis Task Team (HATT) documentation.
Major Outyear Priorities and Assumptions
The outyear funding for the Tritium Readiness Subprogram totals $270,533,000 for FY 2013 through
FY 2016. The priority for the Tritium Readiness subprogram will be to maintain the tritium production
infrastructure at a minimum sustaining rate to ensure a capability is available in the event that future
resources are allocated to ramp up production to support the requirements of the post-Nuclear Posture
Review stockpile. The minimum sustaining rate will include fabrication and irradiation of not more than
240 TPBARs per cycle; the design agent, PNNL, will curtail development and test activities but
continue to support irradiation of TPBARs at Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to satisfy Nuclear
Regulatory Commission requirements for technical oversight; and the TEF will continue in Responsive
Operations mode and conduct one extraction per year.
The outyear funding for Nonnuclear Readiness totals $260,000,000 for FY 2013 through FY 2016. The
priority for this subprogram is to deploy manufacturing technologies required to meet scheduled first
production units and sustained production for the near-term (FY 2014 through FY 2022) Life Extension
Programs and Limited Life Component Exchange Programs. This scope of work corresponds to
Performance Measure 1 (Long-term Output) in the Annual Performance Measures and Results Table
above. Actions to restore funding in the outyears for projects in the Stockpile Readiness, High
Explosive and Weapon Operations and Advanced Design and Production Technology are being assessed
against overall stockpile requirements and the potential for supporting the work in other areas of the
Weapon Activities budget.
Weapons Activities/
Readiness Campaign Page 136
FY 2012 Congressional Budget