AIKEN, S.C. - The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has named Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) a member of its worldwide Network of Analytical Laboratories (NWAL) for nuclear material measurements.
The lab performed strongly on proficiency exercises in 2015 and 2016, and received a favorable assessment during a visit by IAEA in August 2016. SRNL, at the Savannah River Site, is the national laboratory for EM and its sites across the DOE Complex.
SRNL will make collaborative measurements on test samples and reference materials supplied by the IAEA Nuclear Material Laboratory. SRNL can also receive official IAEA inspection and evaluation samples in the event of an outage at the Nuclear Material Laboratory or during peak periods when sample submissions exceed the throughput capabilities of that laboratory.
“Acceptance into the highly selective IAEA NWAL further demonstrates that the staff members at SRNL’s laboratory in F Area are committed to quality. We have positioned the laboratory as a provider of analytical services capable of meeting stringent international standards," SRNL Analytical Laboratories Director Curtis Gardner said. “Not only will this be a benefit to the U. S. Department of State’s Mission Office in supporting the functions of the IAEA, it is also a benefit to our other customers since it demonstrates quality in services. It puts SRNL in a strong position to attract additional external business."
IAEA evaluators supplied test materials for proficiency exercises to assess SRNL’s capabilities for measuring the isotopes of uranium and plutonium using mass spectrometry and alpha spectroscopy. The head of IAEA’s Nuclear Materials Laboratory in Seibersdorf, Austria, came to SRNL to assess the lab’s quality assurance and measurement control programs.
SRNL measurements consistently exceeded stringent performance standards published by IAEA in its 2010 report on international target values. These values are endorsed by DOE, IAEA, and the European Safeguards Research and Development Association as indicators that a nuclear material laboratory’s performance meets the quality expectation for international safeguards measurements.
The IAEA assessment determined that SRNL implemented an effective quality assurance program, and that measurement control practices met IAEA standards for performing safeguards measurements in support of the agency’s programs.
SRNL has supported SRS operations for more than 60 years, providing high-quality analytical and radiometric measurement results. Since the mid-1950s, the laboratory has provided an array of scientific and technical services and expertise to support site missions. SRNL performs a range of analyses on radiological and non-radiological samples for process control, product quality, nuclear material accountability and nuclear criticality safety. It maintains certifications and qualifications through a variety of governing bodies.
Source: U.S. Dept. of Energy, Office of Environmental Management
