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| ARGONNE HOME PAGE | ARGONNE INTRANET | NEWS HOME PAGE | BACK ISSUES |
In the face of a depressed economy, Argonne employees rallied in support of the victims of Sept. 11 and other charities to make 2001 a record-setting year for Argonne Combined Appeal contributions.
Employees contributed $418,975 during the 2001 campaign, up 16 percent from the previous year. This total includes contributions made during both the regular campaign and the special drive to assist the attack victims.
"Argonne employees were very generous," said Evelyn Brown (OPA), ACA co-chair. "In September, employees gave thousands of dollars to help the victims of the terrorist attacks and their families. Weeks later they were big-hearted again, pledging nearly 12 percent more to the regular campaign than last year."
ACA committee members were pleasantly surprised at the results, as they believed the two different collections could reduce contributions.
"In fact, we experienced just the opposite," Brown said. "Other fundraising groups have seen contributions fall off, but Argonne employees were more generous than usual."
This generosity enabled the committee to achieve all its fundraising goals, which included increasing the number of participants in the Fair Share and Fair Share Plus programs.
"More people contributed one day's or one and one-half days' pay than during last year's Fair Share program," said Deana Kinzler (UPD), also ACA co-chair. "Overall, more than 68 percent of the lab's employees participated in ACA this year, up from 61 percent in 2000. It was a terrific campaign."
-- Chad Boutin
Top 10 ACA charities by donation amount
United Way-Chicago $81,253
American Cancer Society $58,722
American Heart Association $35,486
American Diabetes Association $27,925
United Way-Will County $22,342
FISH of Downers Grove $20,701
United Negro College Fund $19,019
Misericordia Home $18,656
Arthritis Foundation $16,865
National Multiple Sclerosis $15,779
Ceramicrete, a material developed to encapsulate hazardous and radioactive waste, has found a new use as a quick-setting, long-lasting pothole patch.
How well does it work? Any Argonne-East employee can test the material by taking a spin on Southwood Drive near Building 331. One of the road's many potholes was filled with Ceramicrete two years ago. The patches have remained in place without shrinking or structural cracking -- no small feat in the Midwest, where winter temperatures and weather conditions wreak havoc with road materials, including those used to patch potholes.
According to Pat O'Malley, Utilities Foreman for Plant Facilities and Services, the patch has supported about 50-100 truck trips over it daily for more than two years. "We aim for it," said O'Malley, referring to the Ceramicrete patch. "We want to drive over it as much as possible to see how well it will hold up."
The road test was conducted by Ceramicrete's inventor, Arun Wagh (ET), and his colleague Seung-Young Jeong (CMT). "The material is easy to work with and finishes very much like concrete, using the same tools," Wagh said.
"Ceramicrete is great for this purpose," said Wagh, "because it's lighter and more durable than cement and binds well to all types of road material. It also is more impervious to water, which means it holds up well under freeze-thaw conditions."
Ceramicrete cures in under two hours, even at temperatures below freezing. It also sticks to the edges and to any rubble in the pothole, which would save road-repair crews time they would otherwise use cleaning out the pothole. Time also is saved because Ceramicrete is self-leveling, requiring at most only minimal troweling to achieve a smooth surface.
Ceramicrete's original purpose was the encapsulation of radioactive and hazardous waste, and it is being considered and tested for that purpose at several U.S. Department of Energy sites. Since its early development, however, Wagh and his research team have created formulations with various properties, and the materials are finding a range of other uses.
To date, seven companies have licensed Ceramicrete, and research is underway with industrial partners for several other applications. These include building and home construction products, dental material products, and oil well cement products.
Wagh credits Argonne's Office of Technology Transfer (OTT) with much of Cerami-crete's success in the commercial arena. "OTT account managers have played a strong role in our success with Ceramicrete," he said. "This truly has been a team effort."
More information about Ceramicrete is available on the technology transfer Web site.
So far -- knock on wood -- the winter has been almost completely free of heavy snowfall. But in case of a snowstorm, employees at both site have a variety of ways to learn about changes in site operations.
If heavy snow falls at Argonne-East during the work day, the chief operations officer, in conjunction with DOE management, may decide to close the site early. If this happens, employees should use extra caution when leaving the site since traffic is likely to be heavy and visibility poor.
When heavy snow falls early in the morning, Argonne-East employees may want to delay travel to the laboratory until roads have been cleared. Employees should discuss their options with their supervisors in advance and monitor broadcast weather reports. On arrival at the site, drivers may be directed to park in a designated area to allow the parking lots to be cleared.
If in doubt, Argonne-East employees can call the Argonne Info-Line (252-INFO). Employees with Internet connections at home may also check the Argonne home page, which will be updated as necessary with the latest information.
Chicago-area radio stations have proven unreliable in past years and will not be provided with late opening or laboratory closing information for Argonne-East.
INEEL toll-free number
The Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) has a toll-free phone number employees can call to find out about changes in bus routes or schedules due to weather: 1-877-424-4635.
INEEL Bus Operations will record announcements of weather-related changes as soon as they are made.
The number was established because radio and television broadcasts have been unreliable.
Argonne-West employees and their families are invited to a ski party at Kelly Canyon Ski Resort, Saturday, Jan. 26, from 6 - 10 p.m.
The cost is $15 per person, and includes lift tickets and choice of hamburger, cheeseburger or chickenburger, fries and small hot or cold drink. For tickets, contact an area representative.
Kelly Canyon is located nine miles off of Highway 26, four miles past Ririe.
"Understanding Your Taxes" will be the topic of a seminar sponsored by the Argonne Credit Union Wednesday, Jan. 30, starting at 7 p.m. at the Lisle/Naperville Hilton, 3003 Corporate West Drive, Lisle.
The workshop will cover tax preparation. Experts will be available to answer questions about IRS regulations and specific tax-preparation problems.
For a reservation, call ext. 2-5800 or visit the Argonne Credit Union in Building 233.
Leslie Burris and Robert Steunenberg have received 2001 Stephen Lawroski Awards of the Chemical Technology Division (CMT).
The awards recognize excellence and innovation in the application of basic principles of science in pursuit of applied research and development in the division.
Award recipients have made significant or meritorious contributions to CMT engineering programs.
The awards are given annually to up to two members of CMT who have been retired for at least five years, and whose active careers in the division spanned at least 15 years.
Burris was honored for exceptional and long-standing contributions to CMT through the use of pyroprocessing and high-temperature electrochemistry to close the nuclear fuel cycle.
Steunenberg's award recognizes his exceptional and long-standing contribution to CMT through the application of molten-salt chemistry for the development of pyro-chemical processing and advanced batteries.
Argonne's retirement vendors will send representatives to Argonne-East to meet individually with employees to answer their questions about retirement plans and assets.
Appointments last a half-hour, except for Prudential, which offers half-day sessions. To schedule an appointment, call the number listed.
| Vendor | Day | For Appointments, call: |
| Fidelity | Tuesday, Feb. 5 and Feb. 19 | (800) 642-7131 |
| TIAA-CREF | Monday, Feb. 18 and Tuesday, Feb. 19 | (800) 842-2005 |
| Prudential | Wednesday, Feb. 6 and 20 | (847) 619-3519 |
Argonne's Florida retirees will meet Saturday, Feb. 23, 2002, for their annual luncheon in Tampa.
The luncheon will be held at the Colonnade Restaurant, 3401 Bayshore Blvd. Take I-275 to Gandy Boulevard. Take Gandy east to Bayshore and turn left (note that streets have been renamed in the area). The restaurant's phone number is (813) 839-7558.
Cost is $15 per person. Send payment by Jan. 31 to Robert H. Krueger, 1511 Estero Blvd., Apt. 506, Fort Myers Beach, FL 33931-2842. For more information, call (941) 463-0145.
Argonne-East employees can meet with a Social Security representative Wednesday, Feb. 13, from 8 a.m. to noon in the Human Resources office in Building 201.
The representative can:
Enroll employees in Social Security.
Take applications for new Social
Security cards, whether they are replacements, original cards for newborns or changes due to
marriage.
Help with earnings posting problems.
Answer general questions about Social
Security.
To schedule a meeting, call Fran Perri (HR) at ext. 2-2989.
Electronics and Computing Technologies will offer several computer software classes during February and March.
Detailed class descriptions, schedules and enrollment forms are available online (See "On the Web," page 2.)
Unless otherwise noted, classes will be held in Argonne-East's Building 221, Room A142, and are limited to 10 participants.
"Beginning Unix" (ECT564) -- This
class consists of two three-hour sessions for a total of six hours. First session: Tuesday,
Feb. 5, 9 a.m. - noon. Second session: Thursday, Feb. 7, 9 a.m. - noon. Another class
will be held in March. First session: Tuesday, March 5, 9 a.m. - noon. Second session:
Thursday, March 7, 9 a.m. - noon. Cost: $265.
"vi Editor in Unix" (ECT567) --
Friday, Feb. 8, 9 a.m. - noon. Another class will be held Friday, March 8, 9 a.m. - noon.
Cost: $180.
Intermediate Word 2000 (ECT374) --
Monday, Feb. 11, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Cost: $215.
Intermediate Excel 2000 (ECT375) --
Tuesday, Feb. 12, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Cost: $215.
"Intermediate Access 2000" (ECT376) --
Wednesday, Feb. 13, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Class size limited to eight. Cost: $215.
"Front Page 2000" (ECT383) -- This
class is two full days. Thursday, Feb. 21, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., and Friday, Feb. 22,
8:30 a.m. - 4:30 a.m. Class size limited to eight. Cost: $430.