Canadian Chemistry Story of Canada's part in development of the atomic bomb told: Foundation laid byRutherfordat McGilL.Chanceunearthing of Great Bear Lake uranium deposits...Huge research laboratory established at Montreal... Pilot plant in Ontariotocontinuetosupply radioactive materialsfor study ^LIMAXINC; Canada's contributions to ^" the defeat of the Axis powers was her participation in the immediate cause of the sudden capitulation of Japan. Canada was one of the three countries whose governments and scientists embarked together on the gigantic, yearslong gamble, the best-kept secret of the war, which resulted in the manufacture of the atomic bomb from materials mined in ( 'anada and made available to the United States for the purpose. The history behind the discovery of the uranium deposit 1,500 miles north of Edmonton in the Great Bear Lake area, is 61 led with human interest. Gilbert Labine and his associate Charles St. Paul were poking around in that difficult terrain looking for cobalt bloom staining on the rocks. Then one day St. Paul complained about his eyes, and said he could go no further. He had become snow blind. So they stayed in that one place for some days while Labine prospected the surrounding area. On the morning of May 16, 1936, Labine was following the shore of an island near the camp when he discovered what looked like a beautiful vein. He "felt sure investigation would prove it t o be silver". Continuing his narrative, Labine relates: . As 1 looked over to the shore, a distance of about 300 feet, 1 noticed a grout wall that was stained with cobalt bloom and copper green. I walked over t o this place, investigated it carefully, and found all the associated ores of cobalt including some silver. Following along I found a tiny dark piece of ore, probably the size» of a large plum. Looking more closely, 1 found the vein. I chipped it off with m y hammer, and there it was—pitchblende. T h a t moment may yet prove t o be one of the most important in history. Since then millions of lives have been saved by radium and now thousands have been killed by uranium. An official statement on Canada's role in t h e atomic bomb drama, released by the Hon. C. D . Howe, Minister of Munitions and Supply and Reconstruction, states that Canada has been associated with scientific developments in atomic research since 1899 when Sir Ernest Rutherford began his work o n radioactiv-
1780
ity at McGill University. But it was the discovery, reported in 1939, of "fission" of the uranium atoms that gave the first hope that it might be possible to release atomic energy on a large scale, capable of military and industrial applications. From that time scientists in Great Britain, t h e United States, Canada, and France directed their energies towards the possibility of finding a war application for this research. On the fall of France, French scientists were sent to join the British scientists. In October 1940 information was exchanged among the countries concerned, and in 1942 Britain proposed that a n important section of t h e work should be carried on in Canada a s a joint enterprise. A laboratory was established in Montreal under the administration of the N a tional Research Council of Canada. This laboratory now has a staff of 340 and is by far the largest organization ever created in this country to carry out a single research project. Cooperation on Pilot Plant
Work o f this laboratory was closely coordinated with the tremendous activity in this field in the United States. Its work led t o the design of a pilot plant for the production of atomic bomb materials. This plant now under construction is located at Petawawa, Ontario, about 100 miles west of Ottawa. A branch of the National Research Council will be established there in association with the pilot plant to carry out research on the application of atomic energy in war and iu industry and o n the use of i t s produces in research and medicine. The primary material required for the operation of this pilot plant and for its production o f materials for atomic bombs is uranium. One of the world's two most important sources of this substance is the Canadian deposit at Great Bear Lake. To preserve this important asset for the United Nations the Dominion Government has taken over the ownership of the mines and the extraction plant. The basic process in the Petawawa pilot plant is the production of fission in uranium 235 by a slow neutron. This fission releases high-speed neutrons which
in turn collide with heavy water molecules without being absorbed and so lose speed until they in turn produce fission- In this way a slow neutron chain-reaction is set up and large numbers of neutroos are set free. Some of these neutrons are absorbed in U238 atoms to procfiuce p l u tonium. Later the uranium ca-n be removtïd from the , lant and t h e plutonium extracted chemically. Other neutrons can he absorbed in m a terials placed around the reaching uranium. B y thi? means interesting n e w radioactive materials can b e produced in large quantities. The plant will therefore be a source of supply of such ^material? for the study of chemical and biological processes and for application in *nedicine. The official statement adds tfiat some of the energy of fission is released in the form of fast neut rcms and energetic gamma radiation. The intensity of the fast neutron radiation is much greater than a n y previously available to physicists and presents great possibilities for scientific research.
Collective Bargaining for Chemists and Chemical Engineers The Canadian Minister o f Labour has announced that employe engineers and scientists, including chemists and chemical engineers, are to remain under the N a tional Labour Code P.C. 1003 at least until they have pained cxpericmee in the operation of the collective bargaining law. The Board of Directors of the Chemical Institute has recommended bhat this method should be used without delay by those professional members of t h e institute who desire to employ it, s o t h a t the law may be given a fair trial. The Chemical Institute o f Canada cannot act as a collective bargaining agency for its members; professional members who wish t o employ collective bargaining must form their own units for t h e purpose. The institute has made arrangements whereby i t s professional member-s residing in Ontario and Quebec may ma.ke use of existing organizations—the Federation of Employee Professional Engineexs in Ontario and the Quebec Federation of Professional Employees in Applied Science and Research. Arrangements will be made for other provinces. A committee is studying the economic status of chemists and chemical engineers and is cooperating with the Canadian Council of Professional Engineers and Scientists in a general survey.
CH E M I C A L A N D
ENGINEERING
NEWS
