Transfer-Ready Technologies for Homeland Defense

Argonne National Laboratory has developed a broad cross section of technologies that are applicable to homeland defense, including radiation and nuclear detection. Many of these can be ready for technology transfer with modest additional development.

• "Supergel" System for Cleaning Radioactively Contaminated Structures

Argonne National Laboratory's system to safely capture and dispose of radioactive elements in porous structures outdoors moved a step closer to deployment with the outdoor demonstration of the gel's application and cleanup, using commercially available equipment. The system can decontaminate structures such as buildings and monuments using a spray-on, super-absorbent gel and engineered nanoparticles. Such a system would help the nation be more prepared in the event of a terrorist attack with a"dirty bomb" or other radioactive dispersal device.

• Gamma Ray Compton Camera for Search, Imaging, and Characterization of Radioactive Materials

  Portable gamma-ray imaging device (Compton camera) able to locate, detect, image and characterize nuclear materials based on the high purity germanium double-sided strips detector (HpGeDSSD) modules that have superior energy resolution and three dimensional position sensitivity. It will utilize novel gamma-ray tracking technology.

• High-sensitive Diamond thin film detector for Area Search with Radioisotope Identification

  Thin Diamond film detector combined with a thick Si detector is a promising isotope detector and identifier capable of providing simultaneous, fast and reliable detection and identification of at least three types of radiation: a, b, g. exceeding the ANSI N42.34, 42.35, with high angular resolution at a range of at least 2 meters. Sensitivity could significantly be improved by defect treatment and cooling for reducing the leakage current. An easy to read and user-friendly interface monitor is capable of immediate response and controlling acquisition by sending data to a remote place by radio.

• Ultra sensitive Multivariate Decision System for Networked Passive Primary Portals

  MSET (Multivariate State Estimation Technique) is an advanced pattern recognition system developed at Argonne, which employs a nonlinear estimation method and a sensitive detection method called the Sequential Probability Ratio Test (SPRT).

• High-Resolution, High-Sensitivity, Combined X-ray, Gamma-Ray and Neutron Detector made from Glass

  Argonne has developed proprietary sensor glass technologies, read out technology, and experience in production of sensor materials. The detector will conform to ANSI N42.35 and have spatial resolution better than 1 mm with high sensitivity to ionizing radiation and neutrons.

• Actinide and Heavy Element Radiochemistry and Deposition of Actinide and Heavy Element Radioisotopes

  The Chemical Engineering Division offers the supporting services of actinide and heavy element radiochemistry and deposition of actinide and heavy element radioisotopes on planchets and other suitable media, in amounts as allowed by the licenses for SNM and radioisotopes and available staff and facilities. These services also include the measurement of radioactivity as required at various processing steps, application of protective coatings and atmospheres to depositions, determination of equipment, staff, and facilitates necessary for required operations, a safety review (including radiation dose and contamination issues), and issuance of a radiation work permit order to allow the work to proceed.

• Microwave and Millimeter Wave Test Facility

  The Energy Technology division offers a microwave/millimeter-wave radar facility for standoff detection of radiation from nuclear and radiological materials. The sensitivity of conventional radiation detectors decreases with the detection range and the speed of material movement because of a decrease in radiation strength with square of the distance and a shorter exposure time with the speed of movement. In comparison to direct radiation detection methods, the radar method interrogates the radiation effect close to the source using electromagnetic waves from a distance. Feasibility has been established by detecting radioactive plumes from several kilometers.

• The PROTECT System (Program for Response Options and Technology Enhancements for Chemical/Biological Terrorism)

  PROTECT is a hardware and software systems approach to improving the response to complex terrorist incidents involving chemical or biological weapons. It is particularly applicable to high population density infrastructures such as building and transportation systems. It provides an automated early detection, alarm and response capability for both the infrastructure operators and first responders. It has been successfully demonstrated at a major U.S. metropolitan transit system and is being applied elsewhere. Because each application is unique, the PROTECT system encompasses a) scenario analysis, b) air-flow analysis, c) a detection and warning system, d) a responder information system, e) population & system flow control management features, f) crisis management strategies and tools, g) decontamination procedures, and h) exercises and training.

• Synchronization Matrix (SM)

  The number of participants and jurisdictions that respond to an emergency, and the degree of coordination between them, has a major impact on survival rates and crisis response times. The SM is an established protocol and management system that provides the foundation for developing, maintaining and executing intra- and inter-jurisdictional coordinated emergency response plans. A software-based tool, SM provides a common structure and protocol for the plans used by multiple jurisdictions. It can simultaneously organize and display multiple plans by jurisdiction, function and time for review and analysis to provide a picture of the total response. This enables responding jurisdictions to know the status of the response and how they fit into the response as it progresses. The tool provides a platform for exercises and after-action evaluation, what-if "wargaming" scenarios, hazard analysis, resource allocation evaluation and capability assessment.

• Grid Security Infrastructure

The Grid Security Infrastructure (GSI) mechanisms provided by the open source Globus Toolkit provide widely used authentication, authorization, policy management, and protection mechanisms designed for use in distributed "virtual organization" settings. With modest engineering effort GSI software can be extended to address a range of access control and resource sharing modalities and to interface with a variety of security infrastructures. For additional information, contact Paul Betten, Office of Technology Transfer, 630-252-4962, betten@anl.gov .

• Versatile Chemical Agent Detection and Identification System Allows Users to Customize Their Sensor Applications

  An "electronic nose" developed by Argonne is a unique, self-contained, intelligent chemical sensing system with an extensive array of detection and identification applications. This versatile sensor is available as a developer kit consisting of a dime sized sensing element and the measurement/analysis software than can be used together to create a sensor that detects the chemical of choice, or as individual components in existing analytical devices.

• Biochips: An Analytical Laboratory on a Slide

  The Biochip technology developed at Argonne provides a universal platform for the detection and identification of many different types of biological agents. Biochips can be designed for a variety of applications, from detection through forensics, and can be tailored to specific user needs. Both proteins and nucleic acids can be examined and on-chip PCR can be performed. Together with a novel, robust detector system the Argonne biochip provides a user friendly, highly sensitive, rapid identification system for agent identification.

• Real-Time Measurement of Airborne Chemicals

Argonne has developed and tested a millimeter-wave (mmW) radar detection system that can measure a suite of airborne chemicals at 1-100 ppm in real time with minimal interference from common atmospheric chemicals. The mmW sensors can be mounted in a wide variety of places, from buildings to vehicles and aircraft for all-around, real time detection capability. In addition, the sensors can be networked, enabling an airborne chemical surveillance system to be created for specific uses.

• Detection of Concealed Nuclear Material Using a Novel Neutron Detector

The detection of concealed nuclear weapons and materials is important for global security. Together with Kansas State University, Argonne has developed a novel neutron detector that is more portable, compact and less expensive that those currently available. The detector also provides additional important information about the nuclear material such as the radiation hardness, gamma discrimination and spectral tailoring. It is based on a gallium arsenide wafer and can be fabricated using conventional micro-processing techniques.

For More Information

For more information, contact Argonne's Office of Technology Transfer (800-627-2596, partners@anl.gov).