Roger Blomquist served as a nuclear propulsion officer on a US Navy nuclear-powered submarine, where he supervised operation of the nuclear propulsion system, including the reactor, mechanical, electrical, and instrumentation systems, as well as the ship’s high-pressure air and hydraulic systems. In parallel with his work at Argonne, he served an additional 26 years in the Navy Reserves.

Blomquist has worked at Argonne since he was a graduate student at Northwestern University in the late 1970s. His career has been centered on computational methods in neutron transport and reactor physics, especially Monte Carlo simulations and nuclear data processing for reactor physics computer programs. He chaired the international Expert Group on Source Convergence in Criticality Safety Analysis, part of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. He did the nuclear design calculations for Argonne’s Intense Pulsed Neutron Source Booster Target and has also performed reactor physics analyses of research reactors and commercial reactor fuels.

He currently serves on the Nuclear Science & Engineering Division Outreach Committee, which responds to public inquiries, provides speakers for civic groups, interfaces with university nuclear engineering departments, and maintains the content in the Argonne Nuclear Energy Exhibition Hall. He has also co-taught nuclear energy courses at Northwestern University, UIC, the University of Chicago, and the National Polytechnic University of Armenia.

Education

• B.S., Physics, College of William and Mary, 1969
• M.S., Ph.D., Nuclear Engineering, Northwestern University, 1979

Awards, Honors & Memberships 

• Member, American Nuclear Society; former Chairman of the ANS Mathematics and Computations Division.
• Former chairman of the Expert Group on Source Convergence in Criticality Safety Analyses, an international technical committee of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Nuclear Energy Agency. The Expert Group’s membership included representative from over a dozen countries.
• Retired US Navy Captain with experience operating submarine nuclear propulsion plants. Occasionally speak on nuclear energy to civic groups.

Selected Publications

• “ENDF/B-VII continuous energy library verification”, International Conference on Physical Reactors (PHYSOR 2008); (CD-ROM) Interlaken,  Switzerland; Sep. 14 - 19, 2008. Author.
• “Overview of the activities of the OECD/NEA/NSC Working Party on Nuclear Criticality Safety”, 2008 International Congress on the Advances in Nuclear Power Plants (ICAPP08), (CD-ROM). Co-author with Y. Rugama, M. Brady Raap, B. Briggs, J. Gulliford, Y, Miyoshi, and K. Suyama.
• “NEA expert group on source convergence : Phase I final report”. Proceedings of the 8^th International Conference on Nuclear Criticality Safety (ICNC 2007); ppII-214-217, St. Petersburg, Russia; May 28, 2007 - Jun. 1, 2007. (CD-ROM) Primary author, with M. Armishaw, D. Hanlon, N. Smith, Y. Naito, J. Yang, Y. Miyoshi, T. Yamamoto, O. Jacquet , J. Miss, Y. Rugama.
• “Comparison of VIM and MCNP ENDF/B-VII libraries”, 8^th International Conference on Nuclear Criticality Safety (ICNC 2007), ppII-218-221, St. Petersburg, Russia; May 28, 2007 - Jun. 1, 2007. (CD-ROM) Author.
• “Analysis of detailed versus simplified ZPR benchmark models for the ICSBEP handbook”. 8^th International Conference on Nuclear Criticality Safety (ICNC 2007); ppII-228-236, St. Petersburg, Russia; May 28, 2007 - Jun. 1, 2007. (CD-ROM) Co-author with R. Lell and R. McKnight.
• “NEA expert group on source convergence Phase II : guidance for criticality  calculations”, 8^th International Conference on Nuclear Criticality Safety (ICNC 2007);ppII-222-224, St. Petersburg, Russia; May 28, 2007 - Jun. 1, 2007. (CD-ROM)  Primary author, with Y. Naito, F. B. Brown, and Y. Rugama.
• “VIM library enhancements”, Proceedings of the 2005 NCSD Topical Meeting; Knoxville, TN; Sep 19-22, 2005. (CD-ROM) Primary author, with J. W. Thomas and M. M. King.
• “OECD/NEA Source Convergence Benchmark Program:  Overview and Summary of Results”, Proceedings of the Seventh International Conference on Nuclear Criticality Safety, Vol I, 278-282, Tokai, Ibaraki, Japan, October 20-24, 2003. (CD-ROM) Author.
• “Monte Carlo Criticality Source Convergence in a Loosely Coupled Fuel Storage System”, Proceedings of the Seventh International Conference on Nuclear Criticality Safety, Vol II, 500-507, Tokai, Ibaraki, Japan, October 20-24, 2003. (CD-ROM) Author.
• “Monte Carlo criticality source convergence in a loosely coupled fuel storage system”, 7^th International Conference on Nuclear Criticality Safety (ICNC2003);  Tokai-mura, Japan; Oct. 20 - 24, 2003  Proc. Vol. 2; JAERI, pp. 500-507; 2003. (CD-ROM) Co-author with E. M. Gelbard.
• “OECD/NEA source convergence benchmark program : overview and summary of  results”, 7^th International Conference on Nuclear Criticality Safety (ICNC 2003);  Tokai-mura, Japan; Oct. 20 - 24, 2003  Proc.; pp. 278-282; 2003. (CD-ROM) Primary author, with A. Nouri, M. Armishaw, O. Jacquet, Y. Naito, and T. Yamamoto.
• “The VIM Monte Carlo code”, Nuclear Mathematical and Computational Sciences M&C 2003; Gatlinburg,  TN; Apr. 6, 2003 - Apr. 10, 2003. (CD-ROM) Author.
• “Alternative Implementations of the Monte Carlo Power Method”, Nucl. Sci. Eng. 141, pp 85-100 (2002), co-authored with E. M. Gelbard.
• “The OECD/NEA Source Convergence Benchmark Program”, Trans. Am. Nucl. Soc., 87, pp143-146, Washington, D.C., November 19, 2002. Author.
• “VIM Calculations of ICSBEP Pu Benchmarks for ANS-8/ANSI”, Trans. Am. Nucl. Soc.; ANS Transactions 86, pp53-55, June, 2002, co-author with J. W. Thomas.
• “Status of the VIM Monte Carlo Neutron/Photon Transport Code”, Proceedings of the 12^th Biennial RPSD Topical Meeting, Santa Fe, NM, April 14-18, 2002. (CD-ROM) Author
• “Fission Source Algorithms and Monte Carlo Variances”, Trans. Am. Nucl. Soc.; ANS Transactions 84, pp172-173, June, 2001. Primary author, with E. M. Gelbard.
• “Neutron transport validation of variational nodal subelement methods”,. 4^th International Conference on Supercomputing in Nuclear Applications  (SNA); Tokyo, Japan; Sep. 4 - 7, 2000. Co-author with M. A. Smith, N. Tsoulfanidis, E. E. Lewis, G. Palmiotti.
• “Monte Carlo Source Convergence and the Whitesides Problem”, Proceedings of the ANS International Topical  Meeting on Advances in Reactor Physics and Mathematics and Computation into the Next Millenium, Pittsburgh, PA, May 7-12, 2000. (CD-ROM) Author.
• “VIM: A Continuous Energy Monte Carlo Criticality Code”, by Proceedings of the ANS International Topical Meeting on Advances in Reactor Physics and Mathematics and Computation into the Next Millenium, Pittsburgh, PA, May 7-12, 2000. (CD-ROM) Author.
• “Source convergence methods and the Whitesides problem”, 2000 ANS International Topical Meeting on Advances in Reactor Physics  and Mathematics and Computation into the Next Millennium; Pittsburgh,  PA; May 7 - 11, 2000. (CD-ROM) Author.
• “SLICER: visualization of VIM geometry”, Trans. Am. Nucl. Soc.; 87: 269-270 (2002). Co-author with T. H. Fanning.
• Analysis of ANS LWR physics benchmark problems”, American Nuclear Society, International Conference on Physics of Nuclear   Science & Technology; Long Island, NY; Oct. 5 - 8, 1998, p 1261. Co-author with T. A. Taiwo, G. Palmiotti, G.; and J. R. Deen. Contributed benchmark results.
• “VIM: Initial ENDF/B-VI Experience”, Trans. Am. Nucl. Soc. 76, p327, Orlando, FL, June 1-5, 1997. Author.
• “Performance Studies of the Parallel VIM Code”, Trans. Am. Nucl. Soc. 74, p169-171, Reno, NV, June 16-20, 1996. Co-author with B. Shi