Summer Research

Katie Hutchinson ‘09 works with an Optical Profiler as a summer research intern at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. During WWII, Y-12 was the site where the atomic bomb was first engineered and partially assembled - the "Manhattan Project". As a part of the National Nuclear Security Administration, Y-12 still works with the Department of Energy's Nuclear Weapons Complex, creating safer ways to manufacture, store and utilize nuclear weapons components. Similarly, Y-12 is involved in homeland security operations to protect the United States from threats by other WMD-capable countries.

Katie’s work, however, has been under the Technology Development Division. She works with various salt and ceramic components looking at how they might be used for hydrogen storage in alternative fuel applications—a positive application in light of rising energy costs.