For most people, Kodak is a name associated with cameras and photographic film.
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Kodak → associate → cameras
But for 31 years, the American company had something far less familiar inside its research facility in Rochester, New York: a nuclear device containing highly enriched uranium.
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company → have → uranium
The machine began operating in 1975 and remained in use until 2006.
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machine → begin → 2006
Its existence attracted widespread attention only in 2012, years after it had shut down.
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it → attract → 2012
Now, a report by Popular Mechanics, published on Wednesday, has revisited the unusual facility and explained why the equipment, despite using uranium, was not a self-sustaining nuclear reactor.
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equipment → publish → uranium
The machine was about the size of a refrigerator and was kept in a secure underground laboratory.
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machine → keep → laboratory
According to the report, it was not being used to produce electricity or develop nuclear weapons.
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it → accord → weapons
Kodak's scientists, however, used it to examine materials, identify unwanted substances in chemicals, and look inside objects without damaging them.
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scientists → use → them
The equipment was known as a californium neutron flux multiplier, or CFX, whose purpose was to produce a supply of neutrons, tiny particles found inside atoms, which scientists could use to study different materials.
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scientists → know → materials
What later drew attention was the uranium inside the machine.
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drew → draw → machine
Highly enriched uranium can also be used in nuclear weapons, raising questions about why a photography company had access to it.
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company → enrich → it
However, the device had operated under government supervision, and its existence had been mentioned in scientific papers even though Kodak had not widely publicised it.
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Kodak → operate → it
Why did Kodak need nuclear equipment?
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Kodak → need → equipment
Kodak's work involved more than making cameras and selling photographic film.
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work → involve → film
The company also carried out research into the materials and chemicals used in its products.
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company → carry → products
Scientists needed to check what those materials contained and whether unwanted substances were present.
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substances → need → what
The nuclear device helped them do this in two ways.
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them → help → ways
The first was a process called neutron activation analysis.
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first → call → ?
Scientists directed neutrons at a sample, causing some of its atoms to release signals in the form of gamma rays.
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some → direct → rays
By measuring those signals, researchers could identify the elements present in the material.
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researchers → measure → material
This allowed them to detect impurities.
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them → allow → impurities
The second method, neutron radiography, helped scientists examine the inside of an object without cutting it open.
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scientists → help → it
This makes neutron imaging useful for examining certain lighter materials, including water and photographic film, that may not show up clearly in ordinary X-ray images.
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that → make → images
The machine used two radioactive materials to produce the neutrons needed for its experiments.
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machine → use → experiments
One was californium-252, a substance that naturally releases neutrons.
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that → release → neutrons
The device contained only about 3.1 milligrams of it.
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device → contain → it
These neutrons then travelled through 52 plates containing highly enriched uranium.
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neutrons → travel → uranium
When neutrons struck some of the uranium atoms, the atoms split and released more neutrons.
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atoms → strike → neutrons
This process is called nuclear fission.
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process → call → ?
The arrangement allowed Kodak to produce a much larger supply of neutrons than californium alone could provide.
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californium → allow → neutrons
According to the report, the number could increase by as much as 30 times.
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number → accord → times
But the machine could not keep this process going by itself.
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machine → keep → itself
It depended on californium to supply the neutrons needed to start and maintain the reactions, or the reaction would gradually stop.
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reaction → depend → reactions
How did the public find out about the device?
Kodak operated the machine for more than three decades.
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Kodak → find → decades
During that period, its californium source was replaced approximately every seven years so the equipment could continue functioning.
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equipment → replace → period
The device was housed behind thick protective walls and operated under government-approved security arrangements.
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device → house → arrangements
Although it was used for research, the company did not widely publicise its presence.
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company → use → presence
The story reached a much larger audience in 2012, when information about the facility appeared in local news reports.
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information → reach → reports
According to an Associated Press report published in May 2012, Kodak's equipment contained about 3.5 pounds of highly enriched uranium.
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equipment → accord → uranium
The report also confirmed that the machine had been used for examining materials and producing images.
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machine → confirm → images
…and 5 more, not listed.
The Aporia
