A COMPUTERIZED TOOL FOR PREDICTING NUCLEAR MATERIALS USAGE AND RESOURCE UTILIZATION IN PRODUCTION PROCESSES

The UK Ministry of Defence in collaboration with AWE Aldermaston developed a spreadsheet to assist in planning nuclear materials inventories to support production programs. The spreadsheet tracks recovery of materials from service returns and materials recycle through nuclear materials production processes and forecasts future nuclear materials needs. The spreadsheet lends itself to “what-if” analyses for materials supplies, program modifications, and operational configuration scenarios. Calculations are based on input feed stocks, process efficiencies, and the resulting inventories for different materials. The nuclear materials management organization at Los Alamos National Laboratory adopted the spreadsheet to supplement analysis tools for nuclear materials usage predictions. The forecasting tools currently being used are structured to predict materials movements throughout the weapons complex and not necessarily usage in production. Upgrades to the spreadsheet to enhance functionality are the incorporation of material movements through process exchanges and the introduction of personnel and instrument resources. The modified spreadsheet is modeled after the process accountability flow diagrams used by Los Alamos to define material flows through individual production processes. This approach enables materials management personnel to predict not only materials usage and accumulation, but also the utilization of non-destructive assay and analytical chemistry resources.