Clarice Phelps

Colleagues at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Russia used the purified berkelium-249 to create and confirm the existence of tennessine. Tennessine was produced by bombarding atoms of berkelium-249 with ions of calcium-48. Tennessine is called a super-heavy element since its atomic numberatomic number is 100 or higher, meaning it has 100 or more protons in its nuclei. Tennessine formed when calcium with atomic number 20 and berkelium with atomic number 97 fused to make an element with 117 protons in its nuclei.

Phelps works with the graduate chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority’s ASCEND program which teaches Knoxville high schoolKnoxville high school students about robotics, drones, circuitry and coding. Phelps is a member of the American Chemical Society as well as the Educational Outreach Committee for the ORNL as the diversity chair for Knox County Schools.

Phelps collaborated with the Argonne National Laboratory’s Californium Rare Isotope Breeder Upgrade (CARIBU) to electroplate platimum and stainless-steel plates with californium-252 for nuclear fission fragment analysis. CARIBU (California Rare Isotope Breeder Upgrade) creates beams of californium-252 fission fragments, neutron-rich isotopes, allowing physicists to study the nuclear structure of atoms.

ThePhelps collaborated with the Argonne National Laboratory’s Californium Rare Isotope Breeder Upgrade (CARIBU) to electroplate platimum and stainless-steel plates with californium-252 for nuclear fission fragment analysis. PhelpsCARIBU performed(California electrodepositionRare workIsotope withBreeder Cf-252Upgrade) creates beams of californium-252 fission fragments, neutron-rich isotopes, allowing physicists to study the nuclear structure of atoms.

Phelps was one of the authors on a technical report for the DOE on the separation of plutonium from uranium using hydroxylamine nitrate (HAN) in 2015. It outlines safe methods to decompose HAN in the reprocessing of nuclear fuel. Phelps is an author on a 2019 report for the DOE titled, “Dissolution of Light Curium Oxide with a Catalyzed Electrolytic Process". aboutThe theirreport includes research on a method to improve the curium feed material for more efficient production of transcurium elements and isotopes such as berkelium-249 and californium-252 (Cf-252).

Colleagues at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Russia used the purified berkelium-249 to create and confirm the existence of tennessine. Tennessine was produced by bombarding atoms of berkelium-249 with ions of calcium-48. Tennessine is called a super-heavy element since its atomic number is 100 or higher, meaning it has 100 or more protons in its nuclei. Tennessine formed when calcium with atomic number 20 and berkelium with atomic number 97 fused to make an element with 117 protons in its nuclei. Researchers are interested in superheavy elements to understand the limits of existence of matter.

Researchers are interested in superheavy elements to understand the limits of existence of matter. Phelps is mentioned in the book Superheavy: Making and Breaking the Periodic Table by Kit Chapman. She is thought to be the first African American woman to help discover an element.

Colleagues at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Russia used the purified berkelium-249 to create and confirm the existence of tennessine. Tennessine was produced by bombarding atoms of berkelium-249 with ions of calcium-48. Tennessine is called a super-heavy element since its atomic number is 100 or higher, meaning it has 100 or more protons in its nuclei. Tennessine formed when calcium with atomic number 20 and berkelium with atomic number 97 fused to make an element with 117 protons in its nuclei. Researchers are interested in superheavy elements to understand the limits of existence of matter.

PurificationPhelps participated in the purification of berkelium-249, used to confirm the discovery of element 117, tennessine. Tennessine is a radioactive metal of which only a few atoms of it have ever been made. International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) confirmed the discovery by scientists from the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Dubna, Russia, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, USA, and ORNL.

ORNL produced berkelium with its nuclear reactor and was the only place that could produce berkelium at significant quantities. Phelps was part of a small team, which included Rose Boll and Shelly Van Cleve, that purified berkelium-249, from a 27 milligram sample. Manipulations were performed inside radiation-proof glove boxes to remove specks of impurity that could interfere with the reaction that would make tennessine and theythe lostteam managed to lose less than a milligram of material in the process. Colleagues at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Russia used the purified berkelium-249 to create the new element and confirm the existence of tennessine. Tennessine was produced by bombarding atoms of berkelium-249 with ions of calcium-48.

Colleagues at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Russia used the purified berkelium-249 to create and confirm the existence of tennessine. Tennessine was produced by bombarding atoms of berkelium-249 with ions of calcium-48. Tennessine is called a super-heavy element since its atomic number is 100 or higher, meaning it has 100 or more protons in its nuclei. Tennessine formed when calcium with atomic number 20 and berkelium with atomic number 97 fused to make an element with 117 protons in its nuclei.