PAST  EVENTS, 2007-2008

Thursday, September 13, 2007

Time: 6:00 pm

Location: Aiken Brewing Company, 140 Laurens St SW, Aiken, South Carolina, (803) 502-0707.

Dinner: Buffet (includes Slow Roasted Beef Top Round, Marinated Grilled Chicken Breast, Tossed Salad with choice of 2 dressings, Tri-color pasta salad, onions, cheese and creamy vinaigrette dressing, Corn, Green Beans, Asparagus Casserole, Rice Pilaf.
Section will buy a free drink for all who bring a guest (newcomer or member who hasn't come recently).

Presentation: This meeting is our kickoff meeting for the year. We will meet at 6:00 pm for drinks, fellowship and dinner. We will discuss the sectionÕs plans for our monthly meetings and other activities that our section is involved in, including Tech Days at Fort Discovery, the Future City Competition and the Fuel Cell Challenge. We will have a fun activity to introduce us to each other and learn what our section does. And, we will tour the brewery and learn how they produce their beer.

Speaker: The meeting will be led by Dan Lambert, Vice Chair

For more information, contact Dan Lambert.

Time: 6:00 pm

Location: Center for Hydrogen Research, 301 Gateway Drive, Aiken, SC 29803

Dinner: Dinner will be catered by The Mint Julep (Beth Huff Johnson) and will include Garden Salad, Company Chicken (6 oz. chicken breast wrapped in dried beef and bacon, baked in a mushroom sauce), Rice, Green Bean almondine , Rolls and Tea. Cost $15. Please let Dan Lambert know about special dietary needs.

Presentation: Dr. Shannon Baxter-Clemmons, the executive director of the South Carolina's Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Alliance, will discuss the ongoing research into hydrogen energy, fuel cells and other alternative fuels. She will focus on changing the way we look at energy in the United States and the world. After dinner and Shannon's talk, we will have a tour of the hydrogen labs at the Center for Hydrogen Research. All attendees need to bring an SRS DOE badge or two forms of identification (one with a picture). Foreign Nationals (non US citizens) will need special paper-work.

Speaker: Shannon Baxter-Clemmons, PhD, previously served as the Assistant Secretary for Hydrogen and Alternative Fuel Policy at the California Environmental Protection Agency. In 2004, she led the development of the California Hydrogen Blueprint Plan for the State with the input of more than 200 stakeholders. Governor Schwarzenegger adopted the Blueprint in May 2005 as the StateÕs hydrogen policy agenda, and the Legislature endorsed the Blueprint by placing a multi-million, multi-year implementation program at the Air Resources Board (ARB).

For more information, contact Dan Lambert.

Time: 6:00 pm

Location: GIW Industries Inc., 5000 Wrightsboro Rd, Grovetown, GA, 30813-2842.

Dinner: Sandwiches will be available at a cost of $7.

Tour: Enjoy a tour of GIW's manufacturing facilities, where the world's largest slurry pumps for mining, dredging and other industrial applications are produced.

Speaker: Lee Whitlock, Hydraulic Test Lab Manager, GIW Industries, Inc.

For more information, contact Mike Robertson.

Time: 6:30 pm

Location: Riley's Whitby Bull, 801 E Pine Log Rd, Aiken, SC 29803 (803) 641-6227

Cost: $50 per couple or $30 per person ($18 per person without wine)

Details: Please attend our end of year social meeting (no technical presentation) and awards night. James Brook has done a fabulous job of planning an enjoyable evening for everyone. He has worked with the owners and chefs at Riley's Whitby Bull to create a great blend of Spanish wine and food. This is a fun night to invite your spouse, friend or significant other. For more information, please read this description.

Please make a reservation by COB on Monday, December 3 to Bob Chang, (803)725-7923, . Please make your reservation as early as possible to help with the planning for this event. Money will be collected at the door.

Time: 6:00 pm

Location: United Energy.

Dinner: Sandwiches will be available courtesy of United Energy

Tour: United Energy Distributors, Inc., is the largest distributor of biodiesel fuel in the southeast. United Energy, currently supplies the diesel fuel to run the state's school buses. The company, headquartered in Aiken, is working closely with the State Department of Education and Material Management Office to provide biodiesel for use in the school bus fleet as part of the EPA Clean School Bus USA Grant. Biodiesel is a fuel that is made from vegetable oils such as soybean oil, and recycled cooking oils. Biodiesel is cleaner burning, less toxic than table salt, and provides improved lubricity that will reduce engine wear and tear, thus extending the periods between scheduled maintenance. We will tour United EnergyÕs Biodiesel production Facility.

For more information, contact Jim Morrison.

Time: 6:00 pm

Location: Asian Buffet, 611 E Martintown Rd, North Augusta, SC.

Dinner: buffet or order from menu

Presentation: Hazardous and radioactive substances from DOE nuclear and non-nuclear programs have contaminated environmental media at the Savannah River Site (SRS). This presentation examines the scope and progress of the Soils and Groundwater Closure Project (SGCP) of SRS that was created to clean up contaminated media at the site, and several innovative technologies used in the remediation of wastes in site groundwater, surface water and soils.

Speaker: Chip Lasher, M.S. Chemical Engineering, currently works for Bechtel at the Savannah River Site as a Waste Management CTF in the Soils & Groundwater Closure Project, and is past chair of the AIChE-CSRA local section.

For more information, contact Chip Lasher.

Please RSVP to Bob Chang, (803)725-7923, robert.chang@srs.gov.

Time: 6:00 pm

Location: SRS's Defense Waste Processing Facility (will need to get advance registration for all non-SRS employees)

Dinner: Subs, chips and drinks will be available at a cost of $8.

Tour: The largest radioactive waste glassification plant in the world, the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) converts the liquid nuclear waste currently stored at the Savannah River Site (SRS) into a solid glass form suitable for long-term storage and disposal. Scientists have long considered this glassification process, called "vitrification," as the preferred option for treating liquid high level waste. By immobilizing the radioactivity in glass, the DWPF reduces the risks associated with the continued storage of liquid nuclear wastes at SRS and prepares the waste for ultimate disposal in the federal repository. About 36 million gallons of liquid nuclear wastes are now stored in 49 underground carbon-steel tanks at SRS. This waste has about 417 million curies of radioactivity, of which, the vast majority will be vitrified at DWPF. Construction of DWPF began in late 1983, and it began radioactive operations in March 1996. DWPF is projected to produce more than 5,000 canisters by the year 2019. DWPF has produced more than 2,000 canisters and has processed more than 2,000,000 gallons of sludge.

For more information, contact Dan Lambert.

The previous year's events are here.