Mobile Munitions Assessment System Field Capabilities
The US has developed, stored, tested, and conducted disposal operations on various forms of chemical munitions for several decades. The remnants of these activities have resulted in the presence of suspect CWM at more than 200 sites in the US, the District of Columbia, and the US Virgin Islands. An advanced Mobile Munitions Assessment System (Phase II MMAS) has been designed, fabricated, assembled, and tested by the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory under contract to the US Army's Project Manager for Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel for use in the assessment and characterization of ''non-stockpile'' chemical warfare materiel (CWM). The Phase II MMAS meets the immediate need to augment response equipment currently used by the US Army with a system that includes state-of-the-art assessment equipment and advanced sensors. The Phase II MMAS will be used for response to known storage and remediation sites. This system is designed to identify the munition type; evaluate the condition of the CWM; evaluate the environmental conditions in the vicinity of the CWM; determine if fuzes, bursters, or safety and arming devices are in place; identify the chemical fill; provide other data (e.g., meteorological data) necessary for assessing the risk associated with handling, transporting, and disposing of CWM; and record the data on a dedicated computer system. The Phase II MMAS is capable of over-the-road travel and air transport to any site for conducting rigorous assessments of suspect CWM. The Phase II MMAS utilizes a specially-designed commercial motor home to provide a means to transport an interactive network of non-intrusive characterization and assessment equipment. The assessment equipment includes radiography systems, a gamma densitometer system, a Portable Isotopic Neutron Spectroscopy (PINS) system, a Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy (SIMS) system, air monitoring equipment (i.e., M-90s and a field ion spectroscopy system), and a phase determination equipment Command and control equipment includes a data acquisition and handling system, two meteorological stations, video equipment, and multiple communication systems. The Phase II MMAS motor home also serves an as environmentally controlled on-site command post for the MMAS operators when deployed. The data developed by the MMAS will be used to help determine the appropriate methods and safeguards necessary to transport, store, and dispose of agent-filled munitions in a safe and environmentally acceptable manner.
- Research Organization:
- Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Defense Programs (DP) (US)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC07-94ID13223
- OSTI ID:
- 7596
- Report Number(s):
- INEEL/CON-99-00542(2); TRN: AH200116%%102
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 1999 UXO Forum, Atlanta, GA (US), 05/25/1999--05/27/1999; Other Information: PBD: 27 May 1999
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
37 INORGANIC
ORGANIC
PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
98 NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT, SAFEGUARDS, AND PHYSICAL PROTECTION
99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS//MATHEMATICS, COMPUTING, AND INFORMATION SCIENCE
AIR TRANSPORT
CHEMICAL WARFARE
CONTROL EQUIPMENT
DATA ACQUISITION
DETONATORS
ION SPECTROSCOPY
MASS SPECTROSCOPY
MILITARY EQUIPMENT
NEUTRON SPECTROSCOPY
VIRGIN ISLANDS
WASHINGTON DC
MOBILE MUNITIONS ASSESSMENT SYSTEM (MMAS)
ADVANCED SENSORS
NON-INTRUSIVE CHARACTERIZATION AND ASSESSMENT
RADIOGRAPHY SYSTEMS
GAMMA DENSITOMER SYSTEM
CHEMICAL MUNITIONS
PORTABLE ISOTOPIC NEUTRON SPECTROSCOPY (PINS) SYSTEM
SECONDARY ION MASS SPECTROSCOPY (SIMS) SYSTEMS
PHASE DETERMINATION SYSTEM
COMMAND AND CONTROL EQUIPMENT