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Argonne National Lab is one of 17 research labs in the U.S. operated by the Department of Energy. ISC is partnering with Argonne to offer you a private tour of this unique facility. Attendees will learn from one of its leading nuclear researchers, Dr. Roger Blomquist, about nuclear fuel research. You will also get a tour of the Advanced Photon Source, the world’s most powerful x-ray, and learn how this extraordinary tool advances science research.

Transportation from Chicago to Argonne:

Attendees will board a coach bus at 1 E. Wacker Drive in downtown Chicago at 10:00am for transport to the Lab. There will be a brief science talk en route. All attendees MUST show a government issued ID upon reaching the lab. The tour will begin at 11:00am. Lunch on the campus will be BYO or purchase at the Argonne Grill, and there will be a short presentation over lunch. The coach will return to the Loop by approximately 2:30. Anyone who does not want to ride on the coach is still required to purchase a ticket and complete the registration form. Non US citizens must complete paperwork 2 weeks in advance.

Details on the Argonne Tour:

The Nuclear Energy Exhibition Hall (NEEH) showcases Argonne’s rich heritage in the development of nuclear reactors and its current role in the development of next-generation reactors and fuel cycle technologies. Visitors to NEEH will learn about the development of nuclear power generation, from the Manhattan Project to Argonne’s physics and engineering experiments and analyses that paved the way for naval reactors and today’s commercial nuclear power reactors, and then on to the advanced reactor systems and other nuclear technologies that are the focus of modern-day research and development at Argonne and around the world. An Interactive Apple Tree display uses imagery to present an overview of the history of Argonne’s nuclear reactor programs and encourages visitors to “dig down” into information on specific reactors with just a touch of the screen. There are also numerous displays of artifacts from Fermi’s time to the present, models of several types of reactors, and additional screens that showcase both reactor development history and current Argonne research in advanced reactors, medical isotopes, nuclear fuel cycle technologies, and research reactor conversion.

The Advanced Photon Source provides ultra-bright, high-energy x-ray beams for research in almost all scientific disciplines. These x-rays allow scientists to pursue new knowledge about the structure and function of materials in the center of the Earth, in outer space, and all points in between. The knowledge gained from this research impacts, among other things, the evolution of combustion engines and microcircuits, aiding in the development of new pharmaceuticals, and pioneering nanotechnologies whose scale is measured in billionths of a meter. These studies promise to have far-reaching impact on our technology, economy, health, and our fundamental knowledge of the materials that make up our world.