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Machine-read from the scan, so expect some errors. Lines that couldn’t be read are left out.
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UNITED STATES ENGINEEROFFICE mwrn TO AE 2378 CALIFORNIA AREA OCFlCC Area Name California Period Ending 3 1 August 1946 1. Thelma L. Peterson, Clerk-stenographer, CAF-4,e nter ed on duty 2. Richard Prigge, William Tsuchida, and Spellmer Blackmon, entered on duty as Chauffeurs, CPC-4, on h, 19, and 21 August 1946, respectively. 4. I&. S. G. Conn and hh-. Bpond Johnson entered on duty as Checkers, 5. Mr. Ulysses Ellis, Fork Lift Operator, Grade 6,entered on duty
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Contractor: The Regents of the University of California Description: Xe search Date of Contract: 1 May 1943 t o 30 June 1947 Approximate Expense f o r August l?k6: 8340, 200 Approximate Expense f o r August 1946 broken down by Approximate expense t o 31 August 1946: $3 17,455,061.27 Estimated Cost to 30 June 1947: 22,500,000.00 1. Laboratory Work: - Project 48. ?fork has continued inthe Physics Laboratories at Berkeley on the separation of isotopes and on designs, experimental studies, and construction work i n connection with the 184-inch cyclotron, the synchrotron, and the linear accelerator. a. Isotope Separation. Sam les have been prepared ofthe work i s proceeding on the preparation of the rare earths in a suitable form for use ina calutron. Further changes are being made inthe Nier spectrometer t o improve its performance. b. Cyclotron. The cyclotron magnet has been completed and magnetic tests are being made. ing the month and the support insulators placed in position to receive it. The electrical work i s now about 85-1complete. of high frequency insulator and vacuum gap breakdown were concluded and the results incorporated into the final design. shielding is being explored. The fabrication of the dee was finished dur- ' The experimental studies The problem of radiation
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c. qynchrotron. The construction of the building to house the synchrotron i s progressing according t o schedule as is also the manufacture of the steel blocks for the magnet. ing the dee sections has been perfected and i s now being used. The oscillator is being redesigned t o make use of air-cooled tubes. d. Linear Accelerator. Experimental work with the 36" vacuum model continued i n cin attempt t o discover the source of a large difference in the cavity voltages as determined by two different methods. stall ation of equipment for the 40 foot section is progressing and a sample 4foot section of the resonator was tested. Graaff machine has been delayed awaiting the arrival of the tex to lite and work has been started on the tube. Work on t h e Van de Designs f o r a 50 megawatt magnetron have been completed e. Cheinistry. Inthe Chernistry Laboratories o. few milligrams of pure $33 were bombarded with 22 Yev deuterons an6 a search was made for the low mass number Np isotopes. Further work was also done on the isotopes in the region o particle bombardnents of Pb2ob and ordinary thal lim. on the separation of americium from curi-ml and on the ? reparation of americiuii and neptunium metals. Xork was also done a. The let a boli c Studies of Pluto ni w and Allied Materials. (1) Radiographic st!idies with americium are being repented and preliminary radioairtographic experiments a r e being instituted with curium, iontun, and astatine (element 85). Tracer studies with beryllium have Seen completed and studies with carrier - free radio arsenic are being continued. The experiments with americium through the & - by period are inthe process o f assay and preliminary studies are to be shortly in - augurated using curium. "he treatiiient of rats with methionine indicates the possible reduction or' the skeletal uptake o f plutopium by hventy-five to forty per cent. These preliminary results must, o f coarse, be repeated before final conclusion can be drawn. (2) Considerable time has been spent ass-aying samples t o determine the ratio of plutonium to fission products activity present on equipment, instruments, drone boats, ships, and permanent instal ht ions used atthe Bikini tests.
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b. The Biological Effects of Uranium Fission. 87.55 U235 has been employed i n a group of 60 mice by i n - thermal neutrons produced by the 60" Cyclotron, and sign if i - cant radiation effects were apparent from close examination of the spleen, i n which of course, a large proportion of the injected s ~ s pensi o nof '$3502 was localized, blood and bone marrow studies are being carried out but as y e t have not been completed. (2) There has been considerable improvement made inthe counting technique for use by this group which will make possible more efficient counting o f samples emitting relat iv ely soft beta radiation. A relatively non-toxic suspension of U@ containing These animals were exposed t o mork on the project has continued along the following major lines : (1) Xe tal s and high teinperature the r mody mic s,including the vapor pressure of graphite, cooper halide e qui libri a, vapor pressure of uranium oxyhalides, and the electrolytic preparation. o f thorium, Fluorodiketone solvent extraction, The sen& works extraction cycle on Clinton slugs has given overall decontamination i n excess of lo7 with 96 percent recovery, It i s believed thata recovery of 99 percent can be attained. Fundamental studies on the diketones continues. (3) Basic chemistry including activity coefficients of plutonium, heats of reaction UO;lf 9 couple and the heat entropy and free energy o f the a. Considerable time was spent during the month on tne preparation of a summry for the Project Record. b. Five patients were treated with wk,ole body irradiation s and blood counts were made on five patients. on three patients and a protnrombin rate determination was made on one Sedimentation rates were measured C. Plans were formulated during the month for the study of the uptake and excretion of radio iodine and its effect upon patients. a. The writing of the project record i s continuing. A t present the record i s about ninety percent complete. b, Construction of the synchrotron building i s about 35< complete as of 31 August 1946.
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C. The Chemistry Annex i s 5%coinplete asof 31 August 1946. Due to difficulty in procurement of materials,this building may require as much as five months t o complete. For t h e Area Engineer: