Ames Project

The Ames Project was a research effort that helped build the first atomic bombs during World War II. It started in Ames, Iowa and was led by a scientist named Frank Spedding from Iowa State College.

The project focused on chemistry and metallurgy, which are ways to study and work with metals.

One important thing the Ames Project did was create a special method called the Ames Process. This process made pure uranium metal, which was very important for the atomic bombs and for early nuclear reactors.

The Ames Project also worked with other metals like thorium, cerium, and beryllium. In 1945, Iowa State College received a special award called the Army-Navy "E" Award for excellent work. Later, in 1947, the project became known as the Ames Laboratory, a big science lab run by the Atomic Energy Commission.

Background

The discovery of the neutron by James Chadwick in 1932, and nuclear fission by Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann in 1938, showed that it might be possible to create a controlled nuclear chain reaction using uranium. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor brought the United States into World War II, physicist Arthur H. Compton started work on building atomic bombs. This became part of the larger Manhattan Project.

Compton set up the Metallurgical Laboratory at the University of Chicago in February 1942 to build nuclear reactors. He asked Frank Spedding from Iowa State College in Ames, Iowa to help lead the work. Because there wasn’t enough space in Chicago, some of the work was done in Ames. The team there did very well and stayed as a separate part of the Manhattan Project.

Organization

Frank Spedding started the Ames Project by asking two fellow scientists from Iowa State College to help him. Harley A. Wilhelm led the Metallurgy Division, studying metals. Iral B. Johns led the Plutonium Division. Over time, the project grew to include more than 90 scientists and eventually had over 500 staff members. Senior staff met every Sunday morning to discuss their work and set goals for the week, calling these meetings "Speddinars."

Spedding received support from Charles E. Friley, the president of Iowa State College, even before he could share all the project details. After security checks were done, Harold V. Gaskill was brought in to manage the project. In late 1942, the United States Army Corps of Engineers took control of the Ames Project as part of the larger Manhattan Project.

Uranium

Ames Process

The Ames Project needed uranium for early nuclear reactors. Uranium ore had impurities that could stop a nuclear reaction. Scientists found a way to clean uranium using a method called the Ames Process. This method used uranium tetrachloride and calcium to make pure uranium metal. They tested and improved this process to make bigger pieces of pure uranium for experiments.

Production

The Ames Project grew quickly. They turned an old building into a lab and bought tools to help make uranium metal. By December 1942, they made enough uranium for the world’s first nuclear reactor. They found a cheaper way to make uranium using magnesium. The project made uranium metal pieces that were sent to other labs for early nuclear reactors. By 1943, they made thousands of pounds of uranium metal each month. The cost of uranium metal dropped from $1,000 per pound to about one dollar per pound. The Ames Project helped supply uranium for early nuclear science and production.

Other metals

Beginning in 1942, the Ames Project worked on producing and purifying important metals such as thorium, beryllium, and cerium, in addition to uranium. These metals were needed for the Manhattan Project.

Scientists discovered that thorium could be turned into a material called uranium-233, which could also be used in atomic bombs. Although this idea wasn't used for the bombs, it was interesting because thorium was more common than uranium at the time. The project tried to make thorium metal but faced challenges due to its high melting point. By the end of 1945, they had produced thorium.

Beryllium was important because it could help control reactions in nuclear bombs. The Ames Project developed ways to produce beryllium safely. Work on cerium, another useful metal, began in 1944. Cerium was needed to make special containers. By August 1945, the project had produced cerium metal in the shape of small rods.

Alloys

During World War II, the Ames Project looked at mixing uranium with other metals to make it work better in reactors. They tested uranium carbide as a possible fuel for reactors and uranium-bismuth alloys because bismuth does not easily absorb neutrons. They also studied uranium-copper alloys to help protect uranium from damage and checked mixtures with aluminum, tin, and other metals.

The project also tested thorium mixed with different metals and looked at beryllium combined with bismuth, lead, thorium, uranium, and zinc to find useful combinations for their work.

Chemistry

The Ames Project studied the chemistry of uranium. They looked at different forms like uranium oxides and uranium hydride. Scientists once thought about using uranium hydride in atomic bombs, but decided against it. They also found ways to recover depleted uranium from old materials.

Plutonium was not well understood at the time because scientists had only small amounts. The Ames Project worked on ways to separate plutonium from uranium and other materials. Most plutonium research happened at the Metallurgical Laboratory.

Post-war

Major General Leslie R. Groves Jr. visited Iowa State College. He gave the school an award called the Army-Navy "E" Award for Excellence in Production. This award was special because it was usually given to big companies, not colleges. The award was a banner with four white stars.

After the war, the Iowa State Board of Education made the Institute of Atomic Research. This group helped organize studies in the Midwestern United States. The Ames Laboratory became a national laboratory in 1947. It stayed on the Iowa State College campus. New buildings were built and named Wilhelm Hall and Spedding Hall. The laboratory kept working on chemistry and metallurgy.