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1939
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Nuclear fission
discovered |
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1942
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Oak Ridge
selected as site for
World War II Manhattan Project |
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First
sustained and controlled
nuclear chain reaction in Chicago;
Eugene Wigner present |
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1943
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The
$12-million Graphite Reactor, the world's first continuously operated
reactor, goes critical after 9 months of construction |
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1944
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Plutonium
produced at Graphite Reactor, setting stage for Hanford reactors'
production of plutonium for war-ending atomic bomb
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1945
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Discovery
at Graphite Reactor
of element 61 (promethium) |
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First
neutron scattering studies at a reactor (by Ernie Wollan and Cliff
Shull; Shull won 1994 Nobel Prize for physics for his pioneering
work at the Graphite Reactor) |
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1946
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First
shipment to a cancer hospital of a radioisotope from a reactor |
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Pressurized-water
reactor conceived (later used for nuclear power and submarine propulsion) |
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Radiation
detectors and dosimeters devised |
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1947
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Mice
used to study radiation's genetic effects on mammals |
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Atomic Energy Commission
established |
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1948
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Union Carbide named
government contractor in Oak Ridge |
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Fuel
elements designed
for use in research reactors |
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Materials
Testing Reactor
designed at ORNL
and built in Idaho |
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1949
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Purex
process developed at ORNL; became worldwide method of recovering
uranium and plutonium from spent reactor fuels |
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1950
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Oak Ridge School of
Reactor Technology established |
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Low
Intensity Test Reactor first operated |
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1951
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Startup
of
Bulk Shielding Reactor |
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Neutron's half-life
measured |
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5-MW
Van de Graaff
accelerator installed |
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1952
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ORNL's
first heavy-ion cyclotron built |
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Based on studies of
irradiated mouse embryos, ORNL advises against
x-raying possibly pregnant women |
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Homogeneous
Reactor Experiment first run |
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1953
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ORACLE,
world's then
most powerful computer,
installed at ORNL |
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Transportable reactor
designed by ORNL for Army's use at remote sites |
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1954
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ORNL ecology program
started |
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ORNL's
experimental aircraft reactor tested |
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Tower
Shielding Facility
first operated, to provide
data for ill-fated nuclear
airplane project |
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First
detailed study of chemical reaction using colliding molecular beams
of
two different reactants |
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1955
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ORNL's
small "swimming-pool" reactor shown to President Eisenhower
at UN Conference on Peaceful Uses of the Atom |
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Alvin
Weinberg named
ORNL director, a position
he held for 18 years |
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1956
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Messenger
RNA discovered; first bone marrow transplant demonstrated |
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Projections by National
Academy of Sciences committee of genetic effects of radiation on
humans, based on ORNL mouse data
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1957
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Determination
of permissible levels of radiation for medical uses and of radionuclides
in the workplace influenced by ORNL leadership |
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ORNL's first fusion
research device (Direct-Current Experiment) built |
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1958
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Startup
of Oak Ridge Research Reactor |
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Project
Salt Vault, the first national effort to site a high-level nuclear
waste repository, started by ORNL |
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1959
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Maleness
in mouse found to depend on presence of Y chromosome |
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Reactor
shielding for the first U.S. nuclear-powered civilian ship evaluated
by ORNL researchers |
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1960
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Pocket
screamer devised for use as personnel radiation monitor |
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Program started to
measure genetic effects of chemicals on mice |
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ORTEC
and Tennelec founded by ORNL employees |
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1961
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Development
begun on
radioisotope heat sources
to power space satellites |
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Neutron
transmutation doping method developed at ORNL reactor; later used
for making electronic components |
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1962
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Health
Physics
Research Reactor completed |
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Ion channeling discovered
with aid of computer modeling |
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Civil
defense research program started |
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Forest stand tagged
with cesium-137; analyses showed hazards of fallout from nuclear
weapons testing |
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1963
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Radiation
Shielding Information
Center established at ORNL |
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Oak
Ridge Isochronous
Cyclotron first operated |
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1964
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ORNL becomes first
national lab to hire social scientists (initially for civil defense
research) |
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ORNL
concept of nuclear desalination
featured at UN conference |
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1965
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Startup
of
High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) and Molten Salt Reactor (MSR) |
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Heavy-Section
Steel Technology program for reactor safety studies begun |
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ORNL-UT
graduate program in biomedical science established |
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1966
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Graphite Reactor named
a
National Historic Landmark |
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KENO
Monte Carlo code developed
for assessments of nuclear criticality safety |
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1967
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Walker
Branch Watershed
research facility opens
for ecosystem studies |
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ORNL selected to lead
U.S. ecosystem research under International Biological Program |
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Viruses
separated in high-speed ORNL centrifuges |
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Simulation code developed
for assessments of protective ability of radiation shields |
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1968
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Second
MSR operated using uranium-233 (first reactor to use this fuel) |
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Centrifugal
fast analyzer invented
for medical diagnoses |
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Ultrapure vaccines
produced using
ORNL-developed zonal centrifuges |
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Stainless-steel
alloy designed to
better resist neutron-induced swelling |
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1969
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Neutron
cross-section
measurements first made
using new Oak Ridge
Electron Linear Accelerator |
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ORNL becomes leader
in geographic information systems combined with remote sensing |
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Apollo
11 moon rock scoop designed |
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1970
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SCALE
code developed to help ensure safe storage and transportation of
spent nuclear fuel |
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ORMAK—the
Lab's first doughnut-shaped (tokamak) fusion research machine—operated
for plasma physics experiments |
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1971
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Aquatic
Ecology Laboratory built; data on fishes' water temperature preferences
obtained for environmental impact statements |
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The likely shape of
a deformed uranium-234 nucleus determined in accelerator studies |
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1972
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Energy
conservation research program launched |
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Mouse
embryos frozen, thawed, and implanted in surrogate mothers that
gave birth to healthy mouse pups |
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Garden
soil bacteria in bioreactors
found to remove nitrates and trace
metals from industrial waste effluents |
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Discovery of giant
quadrupole resonance; wide study of these giant vibrational modes
of nuclei resulted |
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1973
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Composition
of moon rocks
analyzed |
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Ultrasonic fish tag
devised to measure and transmit fish's water temperature preferences |
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1974
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Herman
Postma
appointed ORNL director,
a position he held for 14 years |
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Chrome-moly
steel developed; used in electric utility boilers and oil refinery
furnaces worldwide |
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1975
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AEC abolished; replaced
with Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA) and Nuclear
Regulatory Commission (NRC) |
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Computer
models of ecosystems developed, making ORNL leader in systems ecology |
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Tough
iridium alloy developed to encapsulate nuclear fuel in space probes |
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1976
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Pilot ANFLOW bioreactor
installed at Oak Ridge municipal sewage treatment plant |
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Program
started to improve production of liquid and gaseous fuels from coal
and determine their biological effects |
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1977
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Department
of Energy created |
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1978
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President
Jimmy Carter
visits ORNL |
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Pellet
injection method for refueling fusion energy research devices developed
and adopted worldwide |
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1979
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ORNL's
neutral-beam injectors help Princeton Plasma Physics Lab reach record
fusion plasma temperatures |
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ORNL
assists NRC in identifying causes and consequences of Three Mile
Island nuclear power plant accident |
|
Ethylnitrosourea
(ENU) found to be the most effective chemical for inducing mutations
in mice |
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In rat study, nitrites
in food preservatives found to react with food and drug amines,
forming cancer-causing nitrosamines |
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1980
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Holifield
Heavy Ion Research Facility (HHIRF) opens as nuclear physics user
facility |
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HFIR
becomes user facility when National Center for Small-Angle Scattering
Research opens |
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|
National Environmental
Research Park (12,400 acres) opens |
|
New
ion-implantation accelerator techniques found to improve materials'
surface properties |
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|
Longer-lasting
artificial joints made after ORNL implants titanium alloy with nitrogen
ions |
|
Computer
models built to predict power plant impacts on Hudson River fish
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ORNL researchers start
REMOTEC, world leader in making robots for hazardous duties |
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1981
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Whisker-toughened,
fracture-resistant ceramic developed; used in commercial cutting
tools |
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1982
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Standards
and designs developed to increase efficiency of refrigerators and
heat pumps |
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Insulation
standards developed; later adopted by federal agencies |
|
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Modified nickel aluminide
alloys developed; used in commercial production of steel and automotive
parts |
|
Superconducting
electromagnets successfully tested by fusion energy researchers
at Large Coil Test Facility |
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Carbon Dioxide Information
Analysis Center established; world-renowned repository of global-change
data |
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1983
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Martin
Marietta becomes ORNL managing contractor, succeeding Union Carbide |
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1984
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Experiments
started to produce energy-rich hydrogen from water using photosynthesis
in spinach and algae |
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1985
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Fatty
acid labeled with iodine-123 developed for medical scanning diagnosis
of heart disease |
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UT-ORNL establishes
Science Alliance |
|
Gelcasting
developed; now used commercially to form ceramic parts for microturbines |
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1986
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ORNL determines when
Chernobyl nuclear plant accident occurred, and why it released so
much radioactivity |
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1987
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High
Temperature Materials Laboratory opens as user facility for industrial
researchers seeking to build energy-efficient engines |
|
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|
Lasers
used to make
high-temperature
superconducting materials |
|
All
ORNL reactors shut down in response to DOE's concerns about Lab's
reactor safety management |
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1988
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Advanced
Toroidal Facility
starts up for fusion energy
research using a stellarator |
|
Alvin
Trivelpiece named
director of ORNL, a position
he held for 12 years |
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1989
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|
First
draft of "generic environmental impact statement" for
NRC to renew nuclear power plant operating licenses |
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1990
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|
ORNL's
acid rain research leads to curbs on industrial sulfur and nitrogen
oxide emissions |
|
Z-contrast
electron microscope images columns of atoms |
|
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|
Computer
code helps military better deploy personnel and equipment to war
zones |
|
Existence
of quarks inside neutron confirmed |
|
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1991
|
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|
Neutron
activation analysis at HFIR refutes theory that a U.S. president
died of arsenic poisoning |
|
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|
Software written to solve
problems by linking widely dispersed PCs
|
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1992
|
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|
President
George Bush
visits ORNL |
|
Rhenium-188
isotope generator invented; used worldwide to treat cancer and heart
patients |
|
|
|
Thin-film lithium
microbattery invented |
|
Mouse
agouti gene identified and cloned; mutated gene found to cause obesity,
diabetes, cancer |
|
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|
GRAIL developed for
recognizing genes in DNA sequences on computer |
|
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1993
|
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|
Optical
biopsy technique devised to find cancerous tumors in esophagus without
surgery |
|
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|
UT-ORNL ranks top
500 supercomputers |
|
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1994
|
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|
"Lab
on a chip" invented; now used commercially for protein analyses
and drug discovery experiments |
|
|
|
Mass
spectrometry techniques devised for detecting pollutants, explosives,
proteins |
|
ALLIANCE
software developed to make team of robots work cooperatively |
|
|
|
Codes prepared to
run models of future climate on new parallel supercomputers |
|
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1995
|
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|
Startup
of Intel Paragon XP/S 150, then the world's fastest supercomputer |
|
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|
RABiTSTM
method devised for making high-temperature superconducting wires |
|
Ultrafast
system for storing and retrieving supercomputer data developed |
|
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|
ORNL's DNA-protein
crystals grown in space aboard Columbia space shuttle |
|
Signal
analysis system developed for Navy to detect passing submarines |
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1996
|
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|
Popular refrigerator
model altered to cut its energy use in half |
|
Discovery
of graphite foam that transfers heat unusually well |
|
|
|
Heartbeat detector
devised to spot terrorists, prisoners hiding in vehicles |
|
Searchable
electronic notebook helps collaborators run experiments remotely
over Internet |
|
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|
1997
|
|
|
|
Device
developed to verify conversion of Russian weapons-grade uranium
to reactor-grade fuel |
|
|
|
Initial
design of mass spectrometer to help Army detect chem-bio threats |
|
First
approved release of genetically engineered microbe |
|
|
|
VITALE devised to
enhance signals from damaged videotapes, helping police solve crimes |
|
World's
largest watershed experiment shows effects of drought and heavy
rainfall on forests |
|
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1998
|
|
|
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|
MicroCAT
scanner invented; maps internal changes in mutated mice |
|
Outdoor
FACE experiment shows sweetgum trees grow faster in enriched CO2
atmosphere |
|
|
|
ORNL techniques help
semiconductor firms find problems causing defects in computer chips |
|
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1999
|
|
|
|
Vice
President Al Gore
speaks at Spallation Neutron
Source groundbreaking |
|
|
|
Multifunctional
biochip devised to rapidly detect diseases in humans |
|
Alloy
studies lead to retrofitted or new boilers in paper industry, making
it safer |
|
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|
2000
|
|
|
|
|
|
UT-Battelle
is new ORNL managing contractor; Bill Madia named ORNL director |
|
Two
new supercomputers brought online |
|
|
|
ORNL places in top
4% in international protein structure prediction competition |
|
UT-ORNL
opens National Transportation Research Center |
|
|
|
Energy-saving heat
pump water heater developed |
|
ORNL
helps sequence 3 human chromosomes |
|
|
|
Fusion
energy theorists begin design of Quasi-Poloidal Stellarator |
|
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|
2001
|
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|
HFIR
resumes operation after beryllium reflector replaced, research building
added |
|
|
|
Direct-to-digital
holography for 3D defect inspection devised for semiconductor firms |
|
GRAIL
used in Science and Nature's landmark papers on sequencing human
genome |
|
|
|
Secretary
of Energy Spencer Abraham visits, transfers DOE land to ORNL for
new construction |
|
Superconducting
transformer and high-temperature superconducting cable developed
with industrial partners |
|
|
|
Groundbreaking for long-awaited
new Mouse House |
|
|
|
2002
|
|
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|
|
IBM
Power4 supercomputer starts up; fastest supercomputer aim of ORNL-Cray
partnership |
|
Groundbreaking
for
UT-ORNL Joint Institute for Computational Sciences |
|
|
|
Construction begins
for $300-million modernization program |
|
DOE
approves Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences at ORNL |
|
|
|
Habitat
for Humanity
home showcases ORNL
energy technologies |
|
Actinium-225
shipped from ORNL to treat leukemia patients |
|
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|
2003
|
|
|
|
Privately
funded facilities: Constructed on land deeded from the Department
of Energy, the 300,000 square-foot facility will house state-of-the-art
labs for energy and computational science. |
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