fINSIDE

2 Tritium Monitoring

4 Texas at Fermilab

8 DZero Magnet

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by Donald Sena, Office of Public AffairsIt’s a Fermilab program that carries on an

ancient tradition—with a 21st century twist. The Technical Division’s Machine Shop

apprenticeship, revitalized after nearly a decade,recently produced two talented new machinistsfrom the challenging five–year program. Alongwith mathematics study and training ontraditional machines, Scott Walters and ThomasNurczyk received formal instruction onsophisticated computer–aided machinery, thefirst apprentices to do so. Those machines,along with computer–aided design, representthe future of an enduring industry.

The concept of experienced craftsmentraining young people in a skill or trade hasbeen around since the earliest times; laws from18th century BC in Babylon required artisansto pass on their skills. Formal apprenticesemerged in the Middle Ages with the craftguilds of western Europe, where young menwith talent or desire learned a valuable skill byworking with and learning from a master. Thetradition continued through the ages, and,whether plate–making in William Blake’sEngland or blacksmithing in the colonies,apprenticeships were necessary for perfecting atrade and making a living.

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Volume 20 Friday, June 6, 1997 Number 11

JourneymenGraduate fromRevitalizedApprenticeProgramThe Technical Division plans to continuethe successful Machine Shop program

Right: Scott Walters, a new journeyman, at work in Fermilab’sMachine Shop.

Below: Thomas Nurczyk,recent graduate of theapprentice program,works on a newcomputer–aidedmachine.

surface water at 2,000 pCi/ml.Fermilab produces low levels of tritium and

other radionuclides as part of its high–energyphysics research, according to Rod Walton,associate head for environmental protection.

“Fermilab is a fairly clean operationbecause of what we do and what we don’t do,”said Walton, referring to the fact that Fermilabdoes not have a nuclear reactor and does notbuild weapons nor perform biological research.

The Laboratory produces tritium whenprotons, accelerated to high energies by particleaccelerators, strike beam targets, absorbers, andother devices in the beampipe.

The highest concentrations of tritiatedwater on site are contained in a small numberof the Laboratory’s closed-loop water systems.The water in these few systems is kept separatefrom all the other water on the Fermilab site.Once the tritiated water in these closed–loopsystems reaches certain levels, it is drained fromthe system, solidified and disposed of at adesignated low-level radioactive waste facility.

by Donald Sena, Office of Public AffairsIn the wake of Energy Secretary Federico

Peña’s removal of Brookhaven NationalLaboratory’s contractor, environmentalmanagers at many of the agency’s nationallaboratories are intensifying efforts to evaluatetritium monitoring in the broader context ofreassessing their labs’ interactions with theenvironment.

At a recent environmental monitoringworkshop hosted by Fermi NationalAccelerator Laboratory, representatives from 10national laboratories summarized theirmonitoring programs, discussed vulnerabilitieson their sites and shared experience andexpertise on numerous issues. During theworkshop, Fermilab’s environmental managersreviewed the Lab’s tritium history andmonitoring efforts, while presenting somepuzzling data on one area of the Batavia, Ill.campus.

What is tritium?Hydrogen is a chemical element that

occurs widely in nature and, with oxygen,makes water (H2O); an ordinary hydrogenatom nucleus contains one proton and zeroneutrons. Tritium, with a half–life of 12.3 years,is an isotope of hydrogen that contains twoneutrons and one proton in its nucleus. Innature, tritium readily becomes part of watermolecules, giving it high mobility. The IllinoisEnvironmental Protection Agency sets a limitof 20 picoCuries per milliliter (pCi/ml) fortritium in drinking water, which is found in theaquifer—a large source of water available fordomestic use that flows horizontally throughthe upper layer of the bedrock underlying theFermilab site. Above the aquifer, ranging from40 to 70 feet in depth, sits the glacial till, whichis mostly saturated with water known as groundwater. That ground water moves from thesurface to the aquifer at a rate that varies withthe soil permeability. The I-EPA does not placetritium limits on the ground water in the tilldue in part to the fact that the volume of wateravailable is considered insufficient for domesticuse. Nor does the I-EPA limit the amount ofpermissible tritium in surface water; however,the U.S. Department of Energy puts aguideline limit on discharges of tritium to

TritiumMonitoring at Fermilab

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Members of the ES&HSection sample water for tritium at anexperimental area.

The amount of tritium found in the soiloutside of target and absorber vaults isminimized by concrete and steel shielding thatsurrounds the beamline; however, it is notpossible to completely avoid tritium productionin soil. Because of its mobility in theenvironment, tritium has been the focus ofmuch of the environmental monitoring activityat Fermilab through the years.

Monitoring effortsFermilab’s Beams Division personnel

consistently check the closed–loop systems forleaks, while the ES&H Section monitors therest of the site for tritium in the surface water,ground water and aquifer. The extensivemonitoring program comprises many strategies,including the study of the geology of the6,800–acre site. Walton states that Fermilab isbuilt upon glacial till that has an extremely lowlevel of permeability, which keeps water flow toa minimum. How low is the permeability?

“Actually, the Fermilab soil is soimpermeable that it would meet the standards

for capping a hazardous waste landfill,” saidWalton. Thus any tritium in the ground waterwould move through the till at a very slowpace, allowing time for it to decay into harmlessbyproducts. Brookhaven, conversely, is builtupon sandy soil, allowing tritiated water tomove much faster.

The environmental team also evaluatesconstruction of monitoring wells at theLaboratory, studying when and if to installwells at certain sites. Bill Griffing, head of theES&H section, said the benefits of monitoringwells must be balanced against the risk ofinstalling them.

“Drilling wells can inadvertently createconduits for transporting contaminants to thevery sources of water we are trying to protect,”Griffing said.

Presently, Fermilab has 38 wells at varioussites and depths to monitor tritium levels. Manyof the wells extend to the aquifer, where theLab has never detected tritium.

Aquifer

Bedrock EPA limits tritium to 20 pCi/ml.in aquifer.

Surface water450 well

beampipe

Earthen Berm

Ground waterflows in

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Glacial Till: At Fermilab, the till has extremely lowpermeability. The tillcontains ground water,for which the EPA does not set tritium limits.

Any tritiated waterfound here ispumped out, testedand released to surface water if tritium is belowDOE guidelinelevels.

Underdrains (water also pumpedout, tested and released to surface water.)

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Fermilab produces only low levels of tritium onthe site due to the nature of Lab activities. This schematic shows the geology of Fermilaband the NZero1 area of the neutrino beamline.

Fermilab’s Geology and Monitoring

continued on page 10

by Katherine Arnold, Office of Public AffairsTo ranchers, the vast Texas landscape is

reminiscent of the Old West. To oilmen, theland is as good as gold. To college football fans,the Lone Star State is home to deep-rootedrivalry steeped in tradition. And to particlephysicists, a 52-mile ring in the Texas soil oncerepresented the future frontier for high-energyphysics experimentation and discovery.

Although the SuperconductingSupercollider (SSC) termination dealt a blow tothe field of particle physics, scientists fromuniversities across Texas continue forefrontresearch at the present frontier of high-energyphysics — Fermi National AcceleratorLaboratory in Illinois.

“Continuing basic research, such as thatperformed by Texas A&M physicists atFermilab, is vital to America’s strength as atechnological leader, to our country’s economicgrowth and to our academic institutions’success,” said U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas),whose district includes Texas A&M University.

The Lone Star State researchers have adiverse presence at Fermilab. Nearly 40scientists and about 25 graduate students fromeight different Texas universities conductresearch at the Laboratory, attacking projects

From Texas to Fermilab and beyond

such as magnet development, softwareimplementation, and studying the existence ofmatter in the universe.

Texas A&M UniversityJames White, associate professor of physics

at Texas A&M University, has been working onthe DZero collider detector at Fermilab since1990. His research into new phenomenafocuses on searches for supersymmetry, a theorythat assigns every elementary particle a superpartner, or sparticle, which doubles the particlespectrum. The idea of supersymmetry wasinvented on a purely theoretical basis, but thereare strong reasons that suggest it may exist.

“Fermilab has an excellent chance to viewsupersymmetry in the next few years,” Whitesaid. “This will totally revolutionize ourknowledge of the existing universe.”

The theory would solve a number oftheoretical problems in the Standard Model,and would provide an ideal candidate to explainthe mysterious dark matter, which is believed toconstitute 90 percent of the matter in theuniverse, White said. Specifically, the TexasA&M team at DZero is focused on finding thesupersymmetric partners of the W and Zbosons, two force-carrying particles.

Physicists andstudents fromeight Texasuniversities conductforefront particlephysics research atFermilab.

Abilene Christian University

Texas Tech University

University of Texas, Austin

University of Texas, Arlington

Texas A&M University

Prairie View A&M University

University of Houston

Rice University

★

Institutions withphysicists andstudents conductingexperiments oranalyzing data atFermilab.

Dallas

Similarly, a separate team of three physicistsfrom Texas A&M, including Robert Webb, isworking on a supersymmetry project at CDF,Fermilab’s other collider experiment. He andPeter McIntyre from Texas A&M have beenpart of the CDF collaboration since itsinception in 1984. Both scientists and theirstudents are looking forward to the increaseddata to be provided by the Main Injector,Fermilab’s newest accelerator now underconstruction.

“We’re looking at standard models as wellas looking for weird new things,” said Webb,who has been conducting experiments atFermilab since 1976.

Rice UniversityMarjorie Corcoran is no stranger to

Fermilab; she began her research at the Lab asa graduate student from Indiana in 1975. Sincethen, she has joined the faculty at RiceUniversity and is now working on KTeV, oneof nine fixed-target experiments now runningat the Lab.

KTeV comprises two experiments; E799studies a wide range of rare decay modes, andE832 is studying the neutral kaon system. Bothexperiments are exploring a phenomenonknown as CP-violation. The particleinteractions that lead to the predominance ofmatter over antimatter in the universe may bethe key to understanding why it is possible forparticles to outnumber antiparticles.

Corcoran is studying one of the manytypes of rare decay modes; specifically, a kaon’sdecay into a neutral pion, a muon and anelectron.

“This is something that has never beenseen, and would be forbidden by the StandardModel,” Corcoran said.

Also working on KTeV, undergraduatestudents from the Houston campus helpedrebuild the drift chambers and are involved indata analysis.

But Rice’s presence at Fermilab does notend with KTeV. Paul Padley, faculty fellow atRice and member of the DZero collaboration,is currently focused on upgrading the dataacquisition system for the 5,000-ton detector.

“There are 100,000 channels [of visiblelight photon counters] to be tested before theygo into the detector,” Padley said.

Padley and his students who are workingon the new data acquisition system must ensurethat the upgraded components can keep upwith the increased luminosity, or number ofparticle collisions. The Main Injector will allowfor many more particle collisions per second atboth CDF and DZero. The present detector

Doug Benjamin (left) and Alan Sill from Texas Tech University analyzeequipment at the Silicon Detector Facility.

Marjorie Corcoran, a physics professor from Rice University, takes a shift in theKTeV control room.

continued on page 6

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The new design uses a scintillator layer thatfits in the gap between two calorimeters. Thescintillator will give off a signal of light for eachinteraction with a particle from a collision, saidAndrew White, a physics professor at UTArlington. The photomultiplier tube will thenconvert the light signal into an electrical signal.The ICD ultimately measures the energy of jetsemerging from proton–antiproton collisions.

“If you measure the energy in the directionof these jets it allows us to work backwards tounderstand the details of what goes on in thesecollisions,” White said.

Abilene Christian UniversityACU maintains its presence at Fermilab on

E866, or NuSea, another of the fixed-targetexperiments. E866 will measure thedistribution of anti-up and anti-down quarks inthe proton.

The ACU group, which includes twofaculty members and several undergraduatestudents, is responsible for rebuilding andmaintaining the hodoscopes, which are plasticscintillators in the detector. The hodoscopesprovide a fast signal to indicate that an event ofinterest has taken place in the detector.

As an undergraduate, Rusty Towell, now agraduate student from the University of Texasat Austin, worked on the hodoscopes for E789,E866’s predecessor. He took the opportunityto return to Fermilab and work with the ACUteam for his graduate work.

ACU gives many undergraduates theopportunity to work at Fermilab.

“Involving undergraduates (at Fermilab) iswhat sets ACU apart from other universities,”said Don Isenhower, associate professor atAbilene Christian University. “There is nothingon the detector the undergrads can’t or haven’tfixed,” he said. Five undergraduates will workwith Isenhower this summer programmingsoftware, analyzing data and running shifts atthe experiment.

“Working on the experiment gives a goodtaste of what research is really like and howthings are done,” Isenhower said. “It’s also notjust benefiting physicists. We get a lot ofelectrical engineering and mechanicalengineering majors out here too.”

Josh Bush, an undergraduate physicsstudent, plans on being a high-school physicsteacher, and is using his experience at Fermilabto enhance what he can teach in the classroom.

“This gives me a chance to see thecomponents of physics put together,” he said.“This is the stuff you can’t learn from atextbook.”

Texascontinued from page 5

data acquisition systems would be floodedwithout the critical upgrades.

Padley, a former research scientist for theSSC, now divides his time between Rice andFermilab, while also collaborating on the LargeHadron Collider (LHC) project at CERN.

“With the upgrade coming online, we’regoing to be very busy,” he said.

University of Texas at ArlingtonScientists from the University of Texas at

Arlington are building a new intercryostatdetector (ICD) for Run II at DZero. UTArlington has sole responsibility for thesedetectors, and its 10 researchers at Fermilab arecurrently working on prototype design.

“All the technology has already beenestablished,” said Elizabeth Gallas, a post-doctorate student and co-manager of the ICD,“but something like this has never been builtbefore. It’s now a matter of bringing it alltogether.”

The inner components used in Run Isurrounded the beamline in a circular array of64 detectors. However, scientists mustreconfigure DZero for Run II, because they areinstalling a solenoid magnet that will improvethe detector’s tracking of charged particles. Thephotomultiplier tubes, which are responsible forcollecting and converting signals from theplastic scintillator, will not function in themagnetic field; thus the UT Arlington teammust redesign the detector.

Physicist VaiaPapadimitriou from Texas Tech Universitychecks electronics at CDF.

Don Isenhower,associate professor atAbilene ChristianUniversity, Josh Bush, an undergraduatephysics student at ACU,and Rusty Towell, agraduate student fromthe University of Texasat Austin, checkconnections for thehodoscopes in thedetector.

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Texas Tech UniversityInternal reviews are one of the important

facets of detector maintenance, and Alan Sill, anassociate professor from Texas Tech University,is in the midst of an evaluation of CDF. Sillrecently completed one stage of the internalreview, which he said is as extensive as anexternal audit.

Although the reviews are important, thecornerstone of Sill’s work at Fermilab is hisinvolvement in silicon vertex detector upgrades.

“The next generation of the silicon vertexdetectors will be quite ambitious,” Sill said. Theupgrades will move the detectors from about46,000 to almost 600,000 channels ofelectronics, he said. This will give precisevertexing and tracking of collisions in threedimensions.

One of the biggest challenges of all theupgrades occurring at CDF is compensating for the change in rate of particle interactions,Sill said.

“Everything is going to be happening fasterin Run II, and the machine will be deliveringcollisions and interactions faster,” he said.

The challenge will be to implementcalorimetry and electronics that can keep upwith the speed. To do this, the Texas Techteam will be using a new microchip originallydeveloped for the SSC.

Sill started working with CDF in 1991 as apost-doctoral student. When he joined thefaculty at Texas Tech, Tech did not have ahigh-energy physics program, but started onebecause of the now-defunct SSC. Now, therelatively new program has three facultymembers, three postdocs, and a handful ofgraduate students working on CDF.

A New FrontierGroups from other Texas universities have

also used Fermilab for their research, and theschools mentioned have many other scientistsand students at the Lab conducting cutting-edge research. These physicists may work at thecurrent frontier for high-energy physics, but theLarge Hadron Collider under construction atCERN represents the next frontier for particlephysics. But until that happens, Fermilabremains the place to come for the highestenergy particle collisions.

“You at Fermilab, along with SLAC, arethe premier laboratories in the world for thisresearch,” said U.S. Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas).

Alan Sill points out that the LHC will notcome online for years, and, until it does, theprimary research in high-energy physics will beat Fermilab.

“The way to have a successful LHCprogram is to have a successful Tevatronprogram,” Sill said. ■

Jill Perkins (seated) fromUT Arlington, DougNorman from Texas A&M,Elizabeth Gallas from UTArlington, and DjokoWirjawan from TexasA&M look at data fromprototype detectors.

Kiki Hosea (left), a post-doctoral student, JamesWhite, associate professorof physics, and DavidBrookes, a graduatestudent, work at TexasA&M University on adetector for cold darkmatter searches.

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Elizabeth Gallas, a post-doctorate studentfrom UT Arlington, reads data from thedetector prototype.

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By Judy Jackson, Office of Public AffairsThey did it with time to spare.

A “director’s milestone” for the DZeroupgrade project called for delivery toFermilab of the detector’s long-awaitedsuperconducting solenoid magnet byMay 15, 1997. Three days early, onMonday morning, May 12, the magnetarrived on a flatbed truck, completingthe last stage of its two-week journeyfrom Yokohama, where the ToshibaCompany had built and tested it under a$1.9M contract signed in January 1995.

“They are jumping out of their skinsover there,” said Project Manager GeneFisk of his jubilant collaborators at thedetector site, shortly after the truckpulled up. Fisk had come to Wilson Hallto announce the magnet’s arrival andbuy a morning cup of tea. “The magnetis ushering in a new era for DZero.”

The new magnet uses current-carrying coils of superconducting wire tocreate a magnetic field for tracking themomentum of charged particles thatemerge from high-energy proton-antiproton collisions within the DZerodetector. The two-ton magnet, built to aFermilab design, is 2.8 meters long, 1.4meters in diameter, and “looks like a tincan,” Fisk said. The magnet is the first“thin” solenoid for a particle detector tooperate at a magnetic field strength of2.0 Tesla.

Collaborators said the magnet willhelp in the identification of electrons andopen up new opportunities at DZero forthe study of charm and b particles. Theinvestigation in the b quark system of thematter-antimatter asymmetry called CP-violation is a priority of frontier particlephysics research worldwide.

“With this magnet, we can do someexciting b physics,” Fisk said.

The magnet will also improveidentification of top quark candidatesand will be especially useful for precisionmeasurement of the momentum ofmuons, an important aspect of thephysics of W and Z bosons and thesearch for the Higgs boson.

Fermilab engineers Kurt Kremptezand Russ Rucinski, and physicists RichSmith, Ryuji Yamada and Fisk, amongothers, worked closely with Toshibascientists during the design, fabricationand testing of the magnet. The teamtested the magnet to full 2 Tesla field onMarch 5 in Japan.

“The superb performance of themagnet was toasted with both saki andchampagne at the close of the day,”reported Smith, who was on hand forthe tests.

“This is clearly a milestone,” saidDZero Cospokesman HughMontgomery, who was finishingbreakfast in the Fermilab cafeteria whenthe magnet arrived. “It is literally thecore of the DZero upgrade.”

Some at the breakfast table evinced acertain skepticism. “Wait a minute,”cracked KTeV Project Manager GregBock. “Isn’t this the magnet that they’vebeen bragging for years about nothaving?”

“One builds the best detectorpossible within the funding constraints of the time,” DZero’s Montgomeryreplied. “The magnet technology andcosts of 1984, when they conceived theoriginal detector, led DZero toconcentrate resources on calorimetry and muon detection rather than central

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DZero Gets a Magnet

tracking, a choice that gave all thephysics promised and more—CERN wassupposed to discover the top quark.Physics evolves, and by 1990 when webegan planning the upgrade,technology—and in particular highprecision silicon detectors—had advancedto the point where it made sense toincorporate a solenoidal magnet.”

Installing the magnet and associatedstructures will take about a year, andhooking up the requisite electronics andcomputing will be a major undertaking.

“Using this magnet for physicsdepends on DZero’s successfulconstruction of a million-channeltracking system in the next two years,”Montgomery said.

With not a moment to lose, thecollaborators put away their breakfasttrays and headed back to their outposton the energy frontier. ■

A new superconducting solenoidalmagnet for the DZero collider detectorarrived by truck on May 12.

The new magnet, in its packing case.

The nature of industry, business andeducation in the U.S. has changed, butthe idea of apprentices has remained.During the first 15 years of Fermilab’sexistence, a vigorous apprenticeshipprogram trained new machinists to buildexotic and precise parts and componentsfor high–energy physics experiments. Inthe mid–1980s, the program languisheddue to budget constraints, among otherproblems. However, about six years agoPaul Mantsch, then head of theTechnical Services Section, along withCharles Matthews, head of Fermilab’sMachine Shop, revived theapprenticeship program. The originalLab apprenticeships lasted four years, butMatthews said he decided to add a fifthyear for CAD/CAM training, becausemost of the machine work in the 21stcentury will be done on the computer-aided machines. It is a strategy that setsFermilab’s apprenticeship apart frommany others, as most current programskeep CAD/CAM separate from trainingon traditional machines. Matthews saidmaking CAD/CAM a formal part of theprogram trains versatile machinists withconfidence in all areas of any machineshop.

The programWalters and Nurczyk, both

nine–year veterans of Fermilab, said theyenjoyed the program, finding itchallenging if a bit tiring. The two newjourneymen went through a rigorousselection process that included passing anIllinois Department of Labor test,interviewing with the apprenticeshipcommittee at Fermilab and meeting one-on-one with Matthews. The MachineShop veteran said both Walters andNurczyk emerged at the top ofeveryone’s list and were given the firsttwo slots of the new program. (Theprogram will continue this year; theTechnical Division is in the process ofselecting the new class of apprentices).

Walters, formerly an electricaltechnician at DZero, and Nurczyk,formerly a technician in the MesonAssembly Building, said theapprenticeship has given them invaluableskills they will have for the rest of theirlives. The men spent five hours per week

in classroom study and 35 hours perweek at the machines learning andpracticing with instructors. Both spentmany hours of their own time withhomework in mathematics, includingtrigonometry and geometry. Walters andNurczyk also studied shop theory,welding, heat treatment, metallurgy,drafting, CAD/CAM and machinerepair, where the apprentices had todisassemble and rebuild a machine aspart of their training. During the earlyyears of the program, the men workedwith mentors, seeking guidance andbuilding confidence. The newjourneymen will use their skills tosupport Fermilab’s experimentalprogram by building sensitive andcomplicated parts for all areas of theLaboratory and many experiments,including the Large Hadron Collider,the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and theupgrades at DZero and CDF, Fermilab’stwo collider detectors. The parts, alongwith the experience of building them, areoften unique to high–energy physicslaboratories.

“For the most part, what comes inhere needs to be highly accurate, and weneed fast turnaround, so the [machinists]need to be adaptable,” said Matthews.“We try to build that into the program.

Apprenticeshipcontinued from page 1

We teach [the apprentices] to thinkcritically, to have confidence and goabout a job in an organized manner.”

Walters and Nurczyk said they enjoythe challenges of the work, especially theparts they build on the newer machines,known as Computer Numerical Controlmachines or CNC’s.

When asked to name a particularpart they enjoyed building, Nurczyk saidwith a laugh, “You usually justremember your mistakes.” Waltersagreed, but said he especially enjoyedbuilding a “noise box” for the Linac.The large, multi-segmented aluminumstructure limits the noise of theelectronics for a solenoid’s transformer.

Walters and Nurczyk look forwardto more challenging projects for theexperimental program. Both said theywished that they heard more about theirparts’ performance, adding once theybuild a part they seldom hear about howit worked or how it fits in with the largerpicture. Nonetheless, the newjourneymen said they understood thatalthough their work in the trenches maynot bring the glory, it is still appreciated.

“That’s all right,” said Nurczyk.“We’re the linemen and [the physicists]are the halfbacks.” ■

At a recent awards ceremony, Scott Walters and Thomas Nurczyk each received anofficial membership card from the International Association of Machinists andAerospace Workers, commonly known as “the card,” which certifies them as officialjourneymen instrument machinists. Left to right, Nurczyk, Charles Matthews, head ofthe Machine Shop, Peter Limon, head of the Technical Division, and Walters.

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Also, Fermilab personnel from the BeamsDivision and the ES&H Section have workedtogether to identify areas of the Laboratory withthe greatest potential for soil activation basedprimarily on beam history, as well as a host ofother pertinent parameters. The team hasidentified five of these sites at Fermilab: theAntiproton Source, the CZero beam absorber,the Proton East target/absorber area, theSwitchyard and the NZero1/NZero2 area inthe neutrino beamline. For each of these areas,Fermilab Director John Peoples will appoint acommittee to study the data needed to confirmor make a revised estimate of how much tritiummay be in the soil. To date, the AntiprotonSource committee, which will serve as a modelfor the other committees, is gathering data.There are two more nascent committees,including one for the CZero area and one forthe neutrino beamline. The Proton East andSwitchyard committees will be formed later this year.

“We are putting people on thesecommittees who were involved in either thedesign or operation of experiments in each ofthese areas,” Griffing said. “We have beenfortunate to bring back some former employeesout of retirement to assist us with thisinitiative.”

In most of the areas where soil activationwas expected to occur, Fermilab developersinstalled a series of underdrains to intercept themigration of tritiated water as it movesdownward through the soil with rain water.These underdrains lead to sumps that ES&Hroutinely analyzes for tritium. Fermilabenvironmental managers said they believe thesesumps are fairly effective at capturing most ofthe tritium that leaches from the zones of soilactivation surrounding the various beamlines’targets and absorbers. Griffing said it isimpossible to know just how effective theseunderdrains are in intercepting the tritium; as aresult, he said it is necessary to use othermethods to evaluate movement of tritium in theglacial till. To accomplish this goal, his teamuses computer modeling to calculate theexpected tritium in the soil outside of thesebeam interaction areas. The environmentalmanagers then plug these estimates into acomputer model that considers the soilpermeability, the decay rate of tritium and a hostof other variables to conservatively estimate theconcentration of tritium. All computermodeling conducted to date suggests that there

is little reason to worry about introducing tritiumto the aquifer beneath Fermilab. However,Griffing said relying on computer modeling is notenough.

“One of the lessons of the recent Brookhaventritium problem is that you need to challenge allof your environmental monitoring assumptions,”said Griffing. “The environmental monitoringfolks at Brookhaven thought they understoodtheir sampling results. Actually, they didn’t.Worse yet, they dismissed some elevated levels oftritium that were reported nearly a decade ago andmissed an opportunity to identify the problemmuch earlier. I don’t want that to happen here.We need to be completely honest with ourselves;confirm what we think we know and admit whatwe don’t.”

Case study: neutrino beamlineFor instance, Griffing detailed an example of

monitoring results that has continued to defy theunderstanding of the environmental monitoringteam at Fermilab. Two years ago, the Fermilabenvironmental team saw an unexpected increase intritium levels collected from one of four shallowglacial till ground water monitoring wells installedbeneath one of the oldest experimental areas ofthe Lab, NZero1/NZero2—one of the five sitesthat a committee will study. Fermilab personnelinstalled the four 45-degree wells in 1988 as ameans to confirm the absence of tritium below animpermeable liner, called a “bathtub,” which waslaid beneath the target stations during their

Tritium Monitoringcontinued from page 3

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Fermilab regularlymonitors water on the site.

Lunch served from11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

$8/personDinner served at 7 p.m.

$20/person

For reservations call x4512Cakes for Special Occasions

Dietary RestrictionsContact Tita, x3524

-Lunch

WednesdayJune 11

Danish Open Sandwicheswith Cucumber and Dill Salad

Scandinavian Apple-Almond Cake

DinnerThursdayJune 12

Grilled Onion Salad with Mixed Greens and Goat Cheese

Grilled Sea BassVegetable of the Season

Chocolate Pecan Layer Cake

LunchWednesday

June 18Pita Stuffed with

Tita’s Dominican ChickenTropical Fruit

DinnerThursdayJune 19Salad Nicoise

Grilled SalmonLemon Risotto

Grilled VegetablesAlmond Torte

with Chocolate Sauce

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JUNE 11Health Fair, Wilson Hall Atrium from 11 a.m. - 2p.m. Must have supervisor’s permission to attend.Demos: Home Exercise Equipment by NordicTrack, Massage Therapy, and Bio-Feedback for stressreduction. Screening/Assessments: Blood Pressure& Stress, Glaucoma/Vision, Back & Posture, BodyFat, Pulmonary Function, Blood Sugar. Consultationwith an exercise physiologist, consultation with anutrition consultant, treatment assessment fornearsightedness. Prize drawings, give aways, games& information.

JUNE 13International Film Society Presents: Matewan - dir. John Sayles, USA (1987) 8 p.m. inRamsey Auditorium, Admission $4.

ONGOINGEnglish lessons, Thursdays 10–noon in the Users Center, call Janet Antonio, (630) 769-6518.NALWO coffee mornings, Thursdays 10 a.m. in theUsers’ Center, call Selitha Raja, (630) 305-7769. In the Village Barn, international folk dancing,Thursdays 7:30–10 p.m., call Mady, (630) 584-0825; Scottish country dancing Tuesdays 7–9:30 p.m., call Doug, x8194.

CALENDAR

M I L E S T O N E SBORNAmanda Michelle Jackson, to Gerry (BD/MainInjector) and Lauren Jackson on May 28 atLaGrange Community Hospital.

HONOREDMike Turner, of the Theoretical Astrophysics Group,named a member of the National Academy ofSciences.

RETIRING■ Jack Pfister, I.D. 4530, on August 15 from theDirectorate.■ Robert Shovan, I.D. 851, on June 30 from theParticle Physics Division/Engineering and Tech.Teams.

HEPICThe High Energy Physics Information Center

(HEPIC) is a web-based information server thatcontains much HEP-related information, searchcapabilities, and links to various HEP Resourcesthroughout the world. HEPIC exists to aid the HEPresearcher in locating information quickly andefficiently. It is intended to be the “server of servers”for the HEP community.

A few services are: (1) the HEP VirtualPhonebook, the most nearly complete physicsphonebook in existence; (2) many newsletters; (3)global HEP search, providing fast unified searchingof HEP information across multiple experiments andlocations; and (4) comprehensive information onexperiments, conferences and more. Please take alook at http://www.hep.net.

LAB NOTES

construction in the 1970’s (see diagram,pg. 3). Fermilab also installed the wellsto serve as an early warning device,designed to alert Laboratory officials tothe presence of tritium in the till’sground water before it reached theunderlying aquifer.

“For many years, the tritium levelsmeasured in these four shallow wellsranged from below detection limits up toabout 10 pCi/ml,” said Griffing.

In 1995, however, the tritium levelbegan to rise in one of the four wells,hitting a high of 80 pCi/ml in Decemberof that year.

Quarterly testing turned intomonthly testing at the site, as theenvironmental team attempted tounderstand the unexpected rise. Aftermore analysis and tests, theenvironmental team began to suspect thewell itself might be causing the problemdue to its construction. Walton said thecontractor who installed the 45–degreewell used concrete as grout, a material nolonger used for filler because it candeteriorate and open passageways forwater to flow more rapidly down theoutside of the well casing rather thanthrough the undisturbed till. Walton andcrew offer this as one possible explanationfor the sudden rise in tritium.

“What we don’t understand iswhether the tritium we are seeing in thisone well is really the front edge of atritium source created 20 years ago whenwe were regularly targeting in thislocation and which is slowly migratingdownward through the till, or whether itwas artificially introduced throughcontamination or some sort of short-circuiting mechanism as Walton hasproposed,” said Griffing.

The ES&H leader said his team willcontinue to study the problem at theneutrino beamline to understand theanomalous tritium readings.Furthermore, analysis of samples frommonitoring wells drilled into the bedrockaquifer near the neutrino beamline hasnot shown detectable tritium.

“We take these data seriously,” saidGriffing. “We obviously have our workahead of us in the Neutrino area to morefully understand the nature and extent ofsoil activation that has occurred throughmany years of use.” ■

FOR SALE■ ’90 Red Probe GL, 5-speed manual trans, 95k miles, Air Cond. $3,300. Call Giulia Santoro,x3589.■ ’89 Chrysler LeBaron Coupe 2.5L w/turbo.Power doors, windows, etc. Reliable, beautifulcondition inside & out. $2700 obo. Contact (630) 393–6345.■ ’80 Pontiac Phoenix 5dr Hatchback. Wellmaintained. Reasonable condition, 95k miles, AC,PS, PB, AM/FM radio. New Batt, radiator, plugs,anti-freeze, air filter. $400. Call Tom, x5768 or(630) 879–5650.■ ’86 Nissan Sentra, 108k miles, good condition.$1000. 2dr, blue color, A. Morelos, x3600; x3956or morelos@fnal.■ 3 Loveseats, Italian-made, leather, excellentcondition, $800 each. Call Farhad, x5016 or (630) 778–7878.■ Computer Desk 29" x 46" w/hutch $15.Matching teakwood set: Desk 54"W x 23"D $60,Credenza 48"W x 15.5"D x 25” H, Bookcase 48"W x 47"H x 11.5"D, Desk organizer $20. Call Roy, x8364 or (630) 665–8246.■ Hedstrom metal swing set with 2 swings, lawnswing, glider, & metal slide - $40. Wood sand boxwith 2 seats - $5. Big Wheel tricycle with adjustableseat - $5. Call Jerry @ x4571 or (630) 801-9408 oremail JerryZ@fnal.gov■ Johnson Outboard Motor 9 1/2 HP rebuilt in’95, $500 obo; 16 ft. Fiberglass DuoMarine Boatneeds work, hardware already removed and roughsanding completed $100 obo; GE Gas Stove ProfileSeries, Stainless Steel, Natural and LP Gas Jets. SelfCleaning Oven, Sealed Burners. Paid $1,350 inOctober asking $1,100. Will deliver withinreasonable distance to the lab. Compaq Tech PC286 with built in monochrome display $50 obo;Ski’s - Atomic Arc 195 Salomon 547 SportBindings, size 12 US or 13 EU Trappeur 2000boots also have ski and boot bag $200. Trailer frameand axle $50 obo. Call Terry x4572 or emailskweres@fnal.gov.■ Single family home, 2 story, 4 bedrooms, 2.5baths, 2 car garage. Cul-De-Sac location w/woodedsurrounding, beautiful decorated/maintained in niceneighborhood. Hot tub in splendid 3-seasons room.

Published by the Fermilab Office of Public AffairsMS 206 P.O. Box 500 Batavia, IL 60510630-840-3351ferminews@ fnal.gov

Fermilab is operated by Universities Research Association, Inc.under contract with the U.S. Department of Energy.

✩ U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE:1997--545-057/60017

50% TOTAL RECOVERED FIBER

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The deadline for theFriday, June 20, 1997 issue of FermiNews is Tuesday, June 10.

Please send your articlesubmissions, classifiedadvertisements and ideasto the Public AffairsOffice, MS 206 or E-mail: ferminews@fnal.gov

FermiNews welcomes letters from readers. Please include yourname and daytimephone number.

C L A S S I F I E D SNaperville School District 204, close to Fermilab,low utility bills, $151,990. Call Yan & Weiming Yao,(630) 820–9269.■ Beautifully updated home in Warrenville/Summerlakes. Four spacious bedrooms, large closets,MB walk-in and 1.5 baths. All new light oak kitchencabinets & new vinyl flooring. Freshly painted andairy. You will love the space & private yard withstorage shed. Close to I-88, schools (District 200),& shopping. Clubhouse w/pool, tennis, and gym.Call Barbara at (630) 393–2885.

FOR RENT■ Spending a year at SLAC or Stanford?Immaculate 3 bedroom townhouse in downtownPalo Alto beginning July 1. Fully furnished.Basement study wired w/ISDN and multiple phonelines. Two underground parking spaces. Onebedroom occupied by caretaker, relative of owner.Two friendly cats in residence so no more pets.Perfect for nonsmoking professional couple orfriends @ $2000/month for one year lease. CallJohn, x2529 or (630) 377–9252.■ Townhouse to share in Butterfield Subdivision. 4 bedrooms, close to I-88. Full house privileges.$450/month plus 1/2 utilities. Call (630)978–0789.■ 1 bedroom apartment($570/month) is availablein Batavia. Approximately 15 minutes from the Lab,near downtown of Batavia, Randall mall. Free watergas. I will offer TV and video. Move in after middleof June. If interested contact Satoshi Hidaka, emailhidaka@fnal.gov, or (630) 761-0917 or x2176.

WANTED■ New and used voices for Fermilab Choir. Every Tuesday, Noon, Ramsey Auditorium. ■ August rental house - Professional Europeanfamily seeks furnished rental house inAurora/Naperville area for month of August. Call Sam, x4567 or (630) 231–1791.■ Highly interactive, experienced childcare sought.Long-term position from July 1997 caring for apleasant, musical 2 1/2 year old girl five days/week,9–5. Cognitive development training desirable;English fluency and car necessary. Salary verycompetitive. References please. Nicole Jordan,Warrenville, 393-3970.

Fermilab Arts Series tohost bluegrass bands

The Fermilab Arts Series will host two topbluegrass bands Saturday, June 14, 1997, at 8 p.m. in Fermilab’s Ramsey Auditorium.

The Nashville Bluegrass Band is the mostawarded band working today, earning threeGrammy Awards and Grammy nominations foreach of its albums released since 1988.

The Lonesome River Band is one of thefastest rising bands on the bluegrass circuit, withtheir latest album, One Step Forward, topping thebluegrass radio album and singles charts for fivesolid months.

Tickets are $17 and are available through the box office at (630) 840-ARTS.Ph

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