B Reactor Museum Association

National Historic Civil Engineering

Landmark Nomination

Date: April 16, 1993
To:   Committee on the History and Heritage
        of American Civil Engineering (CHHACE)
      American Society of Civil Engineers
      345 East 47th Street
      New York, NY  10017-2398
From: Columbia Section, ASCE
      66 Newcomer
      Richland, WA 99352

This is to nominate the following for designation as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark:

Hanford B Reactor - Located in 105-B Building in the 100 B Area on the Hanford Site at Richland, Benton County, Washington.

Latitude and Longitude to the nearest minute:

46° 38' N, 119° 39' E. (Sec. 11, R 25 E, T 13 N, - Washington State)

UTM Reference:

Zone 11 E 297440 N 5167287

B Reactor is owned by:

U. S. Government, Department Of Energy (DOE)

In support of this nomination the following information is provided:

1. Date of Construction:

Construction started June 7, 1943. Reactor was first operated September 26, 1944.

2. Name of key professionals associated with project:

• General Leslie R. Groves, Chief of Manhattan Project, Army Corps of Engineers.
• Colonel Franklin T. Matthias, Hanford Engineer Works Commander, Army Corps of Engineers (Civil Engr.)
• Crawford Greenewalt, Head Reactor Design for E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. Inc.
• Frank Mackie, Manager Construction Division, E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. Inc. (Civil Engr.)
• G. P. Church, Du Pont Construction Manager at Hanford
• Dr. Enrico Fermi, Nuclear Physicist
• Prof. Eugene P Wigner, Physicist (Design Lead, Univ. of Chicago)
• John A. Wheeler, Nuclear Physicist, Lead Physicist at Hanford

3. National civil engineering historic significance of this landark:

• Hanford B Reactor was the world's first full-scale nuclear production reactor ever designed and constructed. The reactor produced the nuclear materials (plutonium) that significantly shortened World War II through its use in a nuclear bomb. Work done at the B Reactor initially verified the nuclear process (fission) which allowed full development of nuclear energy for a needful world.
• This construction project provided the initial exposure of the Civil Engineering profession to the complex construction and management needs associated with large nuclear facilities.
• Many very significant problems of plant arrangement, materials, and operational features were satisfactorily solved in the design of the B reactor. The nature of the fuel channel arrangement and spacing (lattice) and methods of loading and unloading the fuel had to be worked out. Proper materials had to be selected for protecting the uranium from corrosion and to carry the coolant water. A huge purified water supply system was required to carry off thousands of kilowatts of heat. Operators had to be protected from the intense radiation given off from the reactor at high power levels. Shielding designs had to accommodate fuel loading, prevent neutron leakage, be air tight, provide for reactor coolant penetrations, and accommodate all of the other mechanical equipment and instrumentation needs for the reactor.
• These many design problems were met and the worlds first production reactor was constructed and successfully operated in the phenomenally short time of only 15 months. All was accomplished during war time conditions with a shortage of manpower and materials.
• It was at B where the original phenomenon of xenon poisoning occurred, was analyzed, and was understood. A conservatism in the number of fuel channels built into the reactor permitted this nuclear physics problem to be resolved. The additional "spare" fuel channels were loaded with uranium fuel and the xenon problem was solved.

4. Comparable or similar projects:

• The worlds very first controlled self-sustaining chain reaction was produced in a crude graphite "pile" assembled by the physicists at the University of Chicago in late 1942. That assemblage consisted of a stack of graphite blocks and lumps of uranium metal and with crude instrumentation. It eventually operated at a power level of 200 watts.
• A pilot plant graphite reactor was constructed at the Clinton Engineer Works in Tennessee (later referred to as Oak Ridge). That laboratory-sized prototype was somewhat larger than the Chicago pile, included forced air cooling, and was expected to operate at a power level of 1000 kw. The Clinton pile started operation on November 4, 1943, and within a few days was brought up to a power level of 500 kw. With improved cooling fans, later installed, it exceeded 1800 kw in June 1944.
• The Manhattan Project, under the direction of the Corps of Engineers, constructed three production reactors at Hanford. These three reactors were designated B, D, and F and were designed to operated at 250 mega-watts. The B Reactor was the first to be built and operated.
• As mentioned in section 3 above, since B Reactor was to be a production facility, the design had to assure that specific operating parameters and conditions could be met. The size of the graphite stack, or "pile" as commonly called, was increased extensively. The B reactor graphite stack measured 36 ft. side to side, 36 ft. top to bottom, and 28 ft. front to rear. Radiation shielding that surrounded the reactor included a nominal 10 inch layer of cast iron thermal shield and a 52 inch thick biological shield which was made up of alternate layers of masonite and steel. The entire reactor block was enclosed in a welded steel box that served to confine the inert gas atmosphere within the reactor. Later cooling water modifications and other upgrades to B reactor (during the 1960s) allowed B reactor to operated to power levels as high as 2000 mega-watts or higher.
• Since B Reactor and its required very extensive supporting facilities was the first such complex built it provided significant knowledge and guidance for future reactor plant construction. A note recorded in a construction engineers log stated, "experience gained during construction of B reactor greatly benefitted progress and schedule for the subsequent reactors".
• Eventually a total of 9 plutonium production reactors were constructed and operated at Hanford. The ninth production reactor, called NPR, was a dual purpose reactor, producing both weapons materials and 860 mega-watts of electrical power for commercial use (4000 mega-watts thermal). All of these Hanford reactors were water cooled, built of graphite, and of the same general design as the original B reactor. They all of course incorporated various improvements and advances in their design as the nuclear and other engineering technologies developed.
• Other early production reactors where those built at (Savanna River, SC. )(Oak Ridge, TN). Their start up dates were however some ten years later and those reactors were of the heavy water type.

5. Unique features or characteristics which set B Reactor apart from other civil engineering projects, including those in 4 above:

• The design and construction of the Hanford Engineer Works, including the B Reactor was an unprecedented engineering and Construction feat, all accomplished under war time procurement conditions. The coordination and integration of the scientific and engineering skills to build this huge plutonium production facility were unique to the world at that time in history.
• Detailed design was performed by the du Pont company under the direction of the Army Corps of Engineers and from conceptual and preliminary design work by the University of Chicago and several of the worlds leading nuclear physicists.
• The reactor plant was built in a record setting 15 month period. Construction management meant the coordination and application of the skills of the scientists and the many engineering disciplines, while adjusting to the diverse needs and requirements of wartime industry, procurement, and construction.
• The application of new materials and construction methods to such structures was exceedingly challenging. Construction tolerances and cleanliness requirements for building the reactor were extremely tight. This included the machining of high grade graphite blocks to within zero to five thousands of an inch tolerance, the fabrication and installation of special aluminum tubes, cast iron blocks, laminated steel and masonite shield blocks, and the construction of control rod drive mechanisms to extremely strict specifications.
• Now fifty years after plant construction, the 15 month schedule from start to finish still borders on incredible. Without the benefit of computers and software programs the construction management was truly outstanding.
• The core of B Reactor, roughly a 30 foot cube of high purity graphite, is pierced by over 2000 aluminum lined nuclear fuel channels and many control rod channels. Construction tolerances for the reactor foundation, concrete shielding, walls and control rod structures were extremely demanding.
• Because B Reactor operated at very high thermal power levels (at that time) and was cooled by once-through flow of cooling water, a very large water treatment plant was built to provide high purity, minimum solids water. Water was pumped from the Columbia river by ten 10,500 gallon/minute pumps with 180 ft head. Primary coolant flow to the reactor was initially 30,000 gpm (later increased to 70,000 gpm). Electric powered pumps were backed up by steam turbine pumps for driving the secondary cooing system. And thirdly, each of the Hanford reactor areas contained two 300,000 gallon high tanks and were interconnected by pipelines for further insurance of adequate coolant capacity. Filtration and chemical treatment of the coolant flow was performed to prevent filming in the reactor process tubes.
• Reactivity control of the reactor was maintained by nine horizontal control rods, twenty nine vertical safety rods, and a back up "3X safety system". The 3X system permitted the potential addition of boron to the reactor in the event the safety rods became inoperative or useless due to physical shifting or distortion of the graphite stack. This system initially designed to handle a liquid boron solution was later modified to contain nickel-plated boron steel balls.
• The reactor contained substantial instrumentation for monitoring and control of the nuclear, thermal, coolant, gas atmosphere, and radiation parameters.
• Other required facilities included large capacity electrical supply and distribution system, steam power plant and full railroad service.
• For a more detailed description of the reactor refer to reference document, History of 100-B Area, WHC-EP-0273.

6. Contribution which B Reactor made toward the development of: (1) the civil engineering profession and (2) the nation or a large region thereof:

• (1) The design and erection of the radiation shielding to protect the operators was a new challenge for the civil engineering profession. This technology was significantly developed and advanced by this project.
• Construction of the Hanford B Reactor verified that a full scale, instrumented, engineered, and enclosed nuclear reactor could be built and operated. This project introduced the civil engineering profession to many of the complex scheduling and technology integration needs of building future nuclear power plants.
• (2) The Hanford B reactor produced the plutonium for the fabrication of the "Fat Man" bomb (carried to Nagasaki) that convinced the Japanese to surrender ending WW II.
• The plant significantly advanced the science of nuclear engineering and was the birthplace for many technical advancements which contributed to making nuclear plants practical for the generation of electricity.

7. In further support of this nomination the following documentation is submitted: (please list all enclosed documents, publications, photographs, and supporting historical evidence)

(1) Leading Photo, P1 HANFORD B REACTOR, AND SUPPORT FACILITIES, 1944

(2) Booklet, "Welcome to Hanford's B Reactor", by Department of Energy, Richland Operations Office.

(3) Registration Form, National Register of Historic Places, US Dept. of Interior, National Park Service, 6 pages

(4) Memorandum, USDOE, Dated April 30, 1992, Listing of Hanford B Reactor in the National register of Historic Places, 3 pages

(5) Vicinity Map, Hanford Area, Washington State

(6) AREA MAP OF 100-B AREA AT HANFORD

(7) FLOOR PLAN OF 105-B REACTOR BUILDING

(8) P2 100-B AREA, INCLUDING RIVER PUMP HOUSE, 1944

(9) P3 100-B AREA CONSTRUCTION DURING LATE PHASES, 194

(10) P4 REACTOR FRONT FACE, 1944

(11) P5 CLOSEUP OF FRONT FACE

(12) P6 NIGHT TIME CIVIL CONSTRUCTION, B REACTOR

(13) P7 COLUMBIA RIVER PUMP HOUSE FOR B REACTOR

(14) Photographs P8 through P19. Miscellaneous pictures taken in 1993.

(15) News Article, Hanford Reach, "Smithsonian To Display Reactor Panels"

(16) News Article, Tri-City Herald, "Ex-workers foundly recall B Reactor, March 14, 1993

The Smithsonian Institute has obtained data and artifacts from the Hanford D Reactor (identical to B reactor) for their "Last 100 Years of Technological Progress" display in the Washington D. C. Museum. Such material was obtained from the D reactor because local interests wanted to preserve similar materials at the B reactor. See attachment 15 above.

Other non-submitted references:

• ATOMIC ENERGY FOR MILITARY PURPOSES, by Henry DeWolf Smyth. The official report on the Development of Atomic Bomb under the Auspices of the United States Government, 1940-1945
• DAWN OVER ZERO, by William L. Laurence, 1947. The story of the atomic bomb.
• HANFORD AND THE BOMB, An Oral History of World War II, by S. L. Sanger, 1989
• ON THE HOME FRONT: The Cold War Legacy of the Hanford Nuclear Site, By Michele Gerber, 1992
• HISTORY OF 100-B AREA, A Westinghouse Hanford Company document, WHC-EP-0273

8. * The following is the recommended citation for Board consideration:

NATIONAL CIVIL ENGINEERING LANDMARK - HANFORD B REACTOR

THIS NUCLEAR REACTOR WAS THE WORLDS FIRST FULL SCALE NUCLEAR REACTOR CONSTRUCTED TO PRODUCE PLUTONIUM AND DEMONSTRATED BRILLIANT OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY THE CIVIL ENGINEERS AND OTHER ENGINEERING DISCIPLINES AND SCIENTISTS INVOLVED.

MANAGEMENT BY: U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS

DESIGNED & CONSTRUCTED BY: E.I. du PONT de NEMOURS CO.

THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CIVIL ENGINEERS - 1993

9. The following is a summary of the owner's attitude concerning our nomination:

• The Department of Energy, US Government, owner of this now retired facility prepared and submitted to the U. S. National Park Service the nomination of B Reactor as a Historic Place, . That designation was granted on April 3, 1992 and B reactor is now listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
• An environmental impact statement, also prepared by the DOE, has been issued. That document does not preclude the preservation of the B Reactor and its conversion to a public accessible facility, such as a museum or historical site.
• Two other engineering societies have previously given national recognition to B Reactor; the History and Heritage Committee of the ASME in 1976, as National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark; and the American Nuclear Society in 1992, as a Nuclear Historic Landmark.
• The DOE has stated in a letter to the B Reactor Museum Association, a local non-profit organization committed to the preservation of the reactor, that they support the development of a permanent legacy commemorating the construction and operation of B Reactor. Based on the above actions and statements it is believed that the DOE would welcome the proposed recognition by the ASCE.

If this nomination is approved for designation as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the Board of Direction of ASCE, we understand that the Section will have the major responsibility for the public presentation ceremony of the plaque.

[signed]

Delbert L. Ballard

Chairman, History & Heritage Committee, Columbia Section

Cindy Philbrook

Secretary, Columbia Section

John Axford

Acting President, Columbia Section

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