US Army taps INL’s nuclear expertise, capabilities to strengthen radiological response and readiness

It’s Tuesday morning in early June and the Idaho National Laboratory’s (INL) Transient Reactor Test Facility (TREAT) control room is crawling with visitors. Men in fatigues thumb through logbooks, monitor radiation levels, and consult data and images on laptop computers. These visitors are members of the U.S. Army’s Nuclear Disablement Team (NDT), participating in a new Nuclear Infrastructure, Assessment and Disablement (NIAD) field exercise that validates and certifies training received during INL’s annual NIAD course. The annual course is designed to improve the soldier’s proficiency and knowledge of nuclear fuel cycle processes, hazard mitigation and successful characterization and disablement of nuclear facilities.

The NDTs from the 20th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives Command are highly specialized units stationed at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland. Their mission is to disable potential enemies’ nuclear capabilities, contributing to the nation’s strategic deterrence. These teams feature various experts, including officers who specialize in countering weapons of mass destruction, explosive ordinance disposal and nuclear medical science, and noncommissioned officers who specialize in health physics. The NDTs also facilitate follow-on weapons of mass destruction elimination operations and are trained to handle the world’s most dangerous hazards in support of joint, interagency and allied operations.

During the training exercise at TREAT, several NDT members do the work, while a few observe. Later in the morning, the team will enter the reactor and work its way from the floor to the ceiling of the facility. This is the final day of training, and the exercises are intended to prepare this elite team for worst-case scenarios.

For example, imagine a nuclear power plant with suspect activity in a combat zone. NDT soldiers must have the expertise to assess and identify nuclear and radiological threats, characterize materials and disable nuclear infrastructure as needed. They also facilitate operations to eliminate weapons of mass destruction.

This partnership with INL is critical for NDT soldiers to advance their skills and training. With over 75 years of nuclear expertise, there’s no other place in the world with the same kind of radiological capabilities. INL provides essential knowledge to help NDT soldiers build and maintain their operational readiness.

“You have training and preparation, but you hope you never have to use it,” said Maj. Jeffery Chin, one of the two Army leaders observing the exercise in the TREAT control room.

Chin graduated from West Point with a degree in chemical engineering. Members of his team on this Tuesday have similar backgrounds, including degrees in nuclear engineering, chemical engineering, health physics and related fields. This exercise is part of the NDT teams’ extensive training and instruction, teaching members to evaluate nuclear facilities, apply methods of area reconnaissance, mitigate radiation exposure and operate equipment.

INL has helped train NDTs in government and commercial facilities throughout the nation. As his team walks through its checklist, Chin is struck by the singular nature of this facility. TREAT originally operated on INL’s desert Site from 1959 through 1994, then reopened in 2017. Unlike most reactors, which are cooled by water, TREAT uses air. And its control room is located down the road from the actual reactor.

“This is a very unique control room,” Chin said.

INL’s facilities, capabilities and world-class expertise offer opportunities for comprehensive training not available anywhere else. It provides at-scale exposure to varied operational nuclear technology and better prepares soldiers to respond to a variety of real-world scenarios. The team’s time at INL included classroom lectures by INL subject matter experts and field training exercises, such as the one held at TREAT.

The NDT team also spent time in INL’s Central Facilities Area, Critical Infrastructure Test Range Complex, Materials and Fuels Complex, and the Idaho Nuclear Technical and Engineering Center.

“This is a great way for INL to give back to and support our military,” said Shad Keele, who manages INL’s fuel cycle training for the National and Homeland Security directorate.

Keele’s group participates in roughly 100 exercises annually. He said this training allowed the Army team access to facilities and experts across the fuel cycle, from reactor operations to hot cells, and storage to reprocessing.

“It went really well,” Keele said. “DOE and all the INL facilities were extremely supportive.”

The hope for Keele and lab leadership is that success builds on success. Demonstrating this level of cooperation and competence across directorates, organizations and facilities was a win for everybody.

Having an elite team prepared to mitigate potentially catastrophic events is a critical part of U.S. national security. Through its partnership with INL, the Army’s NDT soldiers enhance their radiological response capabilities and expertise.

For Robert Schumitz, director of INL’s Defense Systems division under the National and Homeland Security directorate, the training demonstrates the importance of teamwork, an INL core value. By setting aside any potential parochial concerns and coming together in common cause, the laboratory increased the nation’s radiological response readiness and set itself up for bigger and better things in the future.

“Many individuals and organizations across INL came together to make this exercise a success,” Schumitz said. “I couldn’t be happier with the positive impact we’ve made on national security by working together. It reflects our high standard of excellence and continued commitment to our customers.”

Learn more about INL’s radiological response efforts here.