Status of the DARHT 2nd Axis at Los Alamos National Laboratory

Abstract

The Dual Axis Radiographic Hydrodynamic Test Facility (DARHT) was constructed at Los Alamos National Laboratory as a radiographic facility to provide two-axis multi-time radiography to support the US Stockpile Stewardship Program. The DARHT 1st Axis has been operational since 1999 and has been providing excellent radiographs. The DARHT 2nd Axis construction project was completed in early 2003. However, during the subsequent commissioning efforts to bring it to the full specifications of 18 MeV, 2 kA and 2 micro-second pulse length, high voltage breakdown was observed in several of the 78 induction accelerator cells. In January 2004, the DARHT 2nd Axis Refurbishment and Commissioning Project was launched. It is a Los Alamos National Laboratory effort in collaboration with the Lawrence Livermore and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories. Its purpose is to first address the HV breakdown problems with the 2nd Axis accelerator cells. A redesign of the cell is currently undergoing acceptance testing and will be discussed in companion papers presented at this conference. After the cells are refurbished and reinstalled, commissioning of the injector, accelerator and downstream transport will commence. Work is also continuing on beam transport and conversion target physics to reduce overall risk and ensure that the DARHT 2nd Axis can achieve its original design goal. The DARHT 2nd Axis is scheduled for completion in early 2008, at which point the DARHT facility will be ready to support two-axis, multi-pulse radiography in support of the Stockpile Stewardship Program. In this paper, we present the overall project status, commissioning strategy and schedule.