Subject: OVERVIEW OF OPS AT TUWAITHA NUCLEAR
Not Finally Evaluated Intelligence
TO FACILITATE ELECTRONIC ACCESS, THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN
REFORMATTED TO ELIMINATE INFORMATION THAT DOES NOT PERTAIN
TO GULF WAR ILLNESS ISSUES OR THAT IS CLASSIFIED. A COPY OF
THIS REDACTED DOCUMENT, IN ORIGINAL FORMAT, IS AVAILABLE ON
REQUEST.
DIST: AUGUST 1991
COUNTRY: IRAQ
SUBJ: 1. OVERVIEW OF OPERATIONS AT THE TUWAITHA NUCLEAR
CENTER FROM 1985-1987
2. EFFECTS OF ISRAELI BOMBING OF THE SITE AND
SUBSEQUENT WORK DONE ON THE NUCLEAR REACTOR
DOI: 1985- 1991
SUMMARY: OPERATIONS AT THE TUWAITHA NUCLEAR CENTER INCLUDED
URANIUM ENRICHMENT AND URANIUM PROCESSING. ENRICHMENT
RESEARCH INCLUDED ELECTROMAGNETIC, CENTRIFUGE, AND LASER
PROCESSES. WORK INVOLVING GLASS PIPES AND ACETONE WAS ALSO
CONDUCTED IN THE TUWAITHA BUILDINGS WHERE ENRICHMENT
RESEARCH WAS CONDUCTED.
THE SMALLER SUPPLIED REACTOR
WAS OPERATING UNTIL THE GULF WAR; THE OLD REACTOR HAD
BEEN MODIFIED TO INCREASE ITS POWER TO 10 MEGAWATTS; AND ONE
BUILDING WAS USED TO PRODUCE HEAVY WATER, ALSO BEFORE THE
GULF WAR.
1991, IN 1985, EXPERIMENTS ON ENRICHMENT WERE CONDUCTED IN
THE LABORATORY WORKSHOP BUILDING (LWB). OPERATIONS IN THIS
BUILDING FOCUSED ON THE ENRICHMENT OF URANIUM
WORK INCLUDED EXPERIMENTS WITH CENTRIFUGE, ELECTROMAGNETIC
SEPERATOR, AND LASER SEPERATION EXPERIMENTS. ALSO IN THIS
BUILDING WAS A GROUP WORKING ON CHEMICAL PROCESSES USING
ACETONE.
2. THE "HOT LABORATORIES" WERE
3. A PROJECT,
WAS INVOLVED IN THE PRODUCTION OF NUCLEAR FUEL.
THE PIPES CONNECTED WITH VESSELS ON THE GROUND FLOOR OF THE
BUILDING.
THAT THERE WAS A "WET AREA" FOR PUMPS WHICH WAS
CONTAMINATED WITH URANIUM, THAT THERE HAD ONCE BEEN A FIRE
IN A SPRAY DRYER, AND THAT THE FURNACES WERE MADE OF
INCONEL. THIS BUILDING ALSO HAD SPECIAL PUMPS WITH
CAREFULLY CONTROLLED SPEED. HE RECALLED ONE OF ITS
FUNCTIONS WAS TRAINING PEOPLE FOR THE AL-JAZIRA SITE;
SOURCE ASSUMES THIS TRAINING WAS INVOLVED IN YELLOWCAKE
PRODUCTION.
AL JAZIRA HAD A SPRAY DRYER LIKE THE ONE AT TUWAITHA, WHICH
WAS ORIGINALLY DESIGNED FOR MILK. ALL THE EQUIPMENT WAS
MADE IN
IN 1987 A SPECIAL SIX MONTH EXPERIMENT WAS PERFORMED AT THE
30 JULY SITE. MANY SECURITY PEOPLE WERE THERE AND ONLY
SPECIALLY AUTHORIZED PEOPLE WERE ALLOWED IN THE BUILDINGS.)
SINCE AT LEAST 1987,
SITE WAS VIGOROUSLY "CLEANED" TO CONCEAL THE ACTIVITIES
THERE BEFORE IAEA SAFEGUARDS INSPECTIONS.
6. THERE WERE HOT CELLS IN THE BUILDING ADJACENT TO THE
REACTOR.
7. HEAVY WATER WAS PRODUCED IN A FACILITY BUILT INSIDE A
WAREHOUSE NOT FAR FROM THE REACTORS, EITHER IN BUILDING 27
ON OR AN ADJACENT BUILDING.
9. BUILDING B10 USED AS PART OF THE
URANIUM ENRICHMENT RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM AND
INVOLVED TREATMENT OF URANIUM.
10. BUILDING B6 WAS LOCATED OUTSIDE OF THE BERG, NEAR THE
RIVER. , MAGNETIC COILS FOR THE
ELECTROMAGNETIC SEPERATORS WERE FABRICATED AT THIS LOCATION.
ACQ: 1991).
END OF MESSAGE
1.5(c)
65802:65802
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