Since World War II, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has been focusing on national security. After the September 11th terrorism strike on the United States, homeland security became priority number one for the research lab, particularly when it comes to protecting the country's thousands of power and chemical plants.

ORNL has attracted many experts of security and defense issues to its staff, including Jeff Wadsworth, homeland security specialist, and Frank Akers, former general and commander of a Vietnam rifle company. Over the past few years, these specialists have been weaving together a combination of hi-tech sensors and national databases into SensorNet, the first real-time, national plant hazard warning and alert system.

Hypersensitive sensors located all over plants can detect chemical, biological, or radiological toxins in the air or water. Cameras zoom in and record three-dimensional views of the area under suspicion. Then, SensorNet communicates by broadcasting this information from cell phone towers with special module sensors attached. The remote telemetry, funded by government and private sectors, provides real-time data, assuring that help can be on the way within minutes of an incident.

False alarms are largely ruled out at the immense computational hub, through which all data is processed. If an area provokes legitimate concern, local, state, and national authorities are notified instantly. SensorNet's detailed information can aid rescue missions in several ways, including calculating plume progressions and directing emergency personnel accordingly.

Though the nation will soon be hooked up to SensorNet, so far Nashville, Knoxville, and Oak Ridge, Tennessee, have been the main testing grounds for this system. Memphis, Chattanooga, and Sullivan County will soon follow the model. An overview and demonstration that took place in March proved the efficiency of this technologically integrative system. The State of Tennessee has 332 chemical sites with 500,000 – one billion pounds of explosives. The number of chemical sites with more than one billion pounds of explosives is 342. Here are some of the new gadgets that monitor these facilities:

Optical Seals, comprised of fiber optic materials, guard high-risk atomic nuclear products. Light is emitted from the seals in spurts of less than 1 billionth of a second apart. If any tampering occurs in its path, the optic seal will sense the interruption in light flashes and identify the area in question within 2 inches.

Land scans are like people-trackers for any given area. Programmed to draw on population databases, such as the U.S. Census reports, as well as geographic information, the land scan can instantly provide accurate tallies of habitants in a specific location. In the event of a natural or chemical disaster, these numbers are crucial to effective medical response or evacuation plans.

Hot spotters are portable detectors of radiation. Within seconds of detection, hot spotters can identify the hazardous material and the level of danger it imposes.

Lastly, the SniffEx, another portable device, has an electronic nose for explosives. The micro-cantilevers, or microscopic board-like projections with sensitive coatings, inside the SniffEx change shape when exposed to different vapors. The gadget then classifies the explosive.

With help of these nifty tools, SensorNet will be an even more powerful watchdog. The infrastructure for the mass execution of SensorNet is already in place, as cell phone towers are the medium of communication, and it will be running on full scale after a few more tests.

Sources:

SensorNet proposed as system to protect millions nationwide
Ron Walli
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, March 2004
http://www.ornl.gov/info/press_releases/get_press_release.cfm?ReleaseNumber=mr20040312-00

Bush to key on ORNL's role in terror fight
Frank Munger
Knox News, July 12, 2004
http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/local_news/article/0,1406,KNS_347_3029025,00.html