SOLICITATION NOTICE
A -- Notice of Intent to Award Sole Source - NEUTRINO Detector
- Notice Date
- 11/27/2012
- Notice Type
- Presolicitation
- NAICS
- 541712
— Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
- Contracting Office
- Idaho OperationsU.S. Department of EnergyIdaho Operations1955 Fremont AvenueIdaho FallsID83415US
- ZIP Code
- 00000
- Solicitation Number
- DE-NE0000586
- Point of Contact
- Gravelle, Aaron P 208-526-0208, gravelap@id.doe.gov ; Hillebrant, T. Wade 208-526-0547, hillebtw@id.doe.gov
- E-Mail Address
-
Gravelle, Aaron P
(gravelap@id.doe.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- Total Small Business
- Description
- The Department of Energy ? Idaho Operations Office (DOE-ID) and Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE), Idaho Falls, ID, intends to award a sole source contract to a small business, Snare, Inc., 5821 Farm Ridge Rd., West Lafayette, IN, 47906-9492 for technical support to provide a portable neutrino detector; perform experiments to determine the effect of reactor-produced neutrinos on decay rates of multiple, specific isotopes; and investigate the correlation between solar flares and nuclear decay rates of specific isotopes using data from multiple experiments. The resulting contract will be firm-fixed price. The DOE-ID procurement services office intends to award a purchase order in accordance with FAR 13, Simplified Acquisition Procedures, providing justification for sole source in accordance with FAR 6.303-2 as explained in Subpart 13.5. The proposed contract action is for supplies or services for which the Government intends to solicit and award to only one source. THIS NOTICE IS NOT A REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE QUOTES. However, any interested firm that believes it can meet the requirements may provide written notification prior to the response due date. Responses are required to be submitted via email. The Government will not be responsible for any cost incurred in preparation of quotes. A determination by the Government not to compete with this proposed contract based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will normally be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. Any responses to this notice of contract action shall be submitted via email to Mr. Aaron Gravelle, gravealp@id.doe.gov, no later than 5:00 PM Mountain Time on Friday, November 30, 2012. The NAICS code is 541712, RESEACH AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE PHYSICAL, ENGINEERING, AND LIFE SCIENCES (EXCEPT BIOTECHNOLOGY) STATEMENT OF WORK Introduction: Support is requested to provide a portable neutrino detector, perform experiments to determine the effect of reactor-produced neutrinos on decay rates of multiple, specific isotopes; and investigate the correlation between solar flares and nuclear decay rates of specific isotopes using data from multiple experiments. Background: A number of scientific groups have recently reported unexpected variations in nuclear decay rates, which appear to be linked to a solar influence. These observations include a change in the decay rate of 54Mn during a solar flare, and periodicities observed in various decays including 3H, 32Si, 36Cl, 56Mn, 60Co, 90Sr, 137 Cs, 152Eu, 222Rn (and/or its daughters), and 226Ra (and/or its daughters). The indication of a solar influence leads to the suggestion that solar neutrinos may be responsible for the observed effects, and this influence is being tested in a number of laboratories in the United States and abroad The indication that nuclear decay rates can be affected by neutrinos has a number of significant practical implications, and the contractor selected will explore three of these: (a) If at least some isotopes do respond to solar neutrinos, this implies that radioactive nuclei can act as sensitive small scale neutrino detectors capable of monitoring nuclear reactors here or abroad. (b) Additionally, this phenomenon could be used to accelerate the decay of some nuclear waste by exposing the waste to an appropriate neutrino source. (c) Finally, the observation of a change in decay rate coincident with a solar flare, has significant implications for predicting the arrival of a solar flare. This would enable, for the first time, the capability of preventing damage to the nation?s power grid and communications systems including satellites, by providing approximately 24 hours of advanced warning of an impending solar storm and resultant current surge. Scope of Work: The Contractor will provide a portable neutrino detector. They shall perform experiments to determine the effect of reactor-produced neutrinos on decay rates of multiple, specific isotopes. The contractor will also investigate the correlation between solar flares and nuclear decay rates of specific isotopes using data from multiple experiments. The scope of work includes that the contractor will provide all labor, material, and other resources necessary to successfully accomplish this work. The selected vendor will be responsible for the design, assembly, testing, conducting of experiments, and analysis of results. Each stage of the project will require approval from DOE management before moving on to the next stage. The selected contractor must ensure it has adequate resources for accomplishing this work. Specific deliverables and milestones are listed below in this Statement of Work.   Required Skills/Expertise The selected contractor shall have scientific and technical experience with neutrino detectors (including design, assembly and test, and analysis), and the impact of neutrinos on the decay of radioactive isotopes, experience with the science of the solar creation of neutrinos, and with the handling of and detectors of unstable radioactive isotopes. Also, the contractor will need to have experience in decay counting appropriate to determining half-lives. Security Considerations: Contractor personnel will need to be able to gain access to government reactor sites such as the Advanced Test Reactor at the Idaho National Laboratory and the National Institute of Standards and Technology Research Reactor in Gaithersburg, Maryland, Environmental, Safety and Health Considerations: The person will be handling radioactive isotopes, so the contractor will need the proper equipment to get access and handle safely the appropriate isotopes. The contractor shall provide a completed environmental checklist with their proposal. Export Control The contractor will be required to comply with export control laws due to any export control issues that arise from the work performed. Quality Assurance/Control The contractor should maintain monthly contact (for example, through mutually agreed times for video conference calls) with the point of contact within the Office of Nuclear Energy. QA shall be adequate to rule out non-neutrino influences on detectors such as: temperature, gamma rays, neutrons, voltage, vibration, and magnetic and electric fields. Intellectual Property It is DOE?s intent to award this contract to a small business. Consistent with the Bayh-Dole Act, 37 CFR 401.14(a)(b) Allocation of Principle Rights, the small business contractor awarded this work will retain the entire right, title, and interest throughout the world in the subject invention. Period of Performance: The period of performance is from January 1, 2013 through March 31, 2013. All work must be completed within this timeframe.   Travel/Work Location: The selected contractor will perform a majority of the work at its own facility. The contractor will be required to have a monthly conference call with DOE project management personnel (day and time TBD) for a status meeting; the monthly status meeting will include project progress and status, project financial status and burn rates, and a discussion of any issues, including delays or problems. Additionally, DOE project management personnel may visit the contractor?s facility for reviews. The contractor will provide and arrange for meeting spaces within its facility for all required meetings. As discussed in the Statement of Work Effort section below, major task 4 states the contractor will travel to up to three reactors to test the neutrino detector?s ability to detect impact of neutrinos on the decay rates of various radioisotopes. The reactor must have sufficient neutrino flux to test the hypothesis that neutrinos affect radioisotope decay rates. Potential reactors include the Advanced Test Reactor at the Idaho National Laboratory, the National Institute of Standards and Technology Research Reactor in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and one university reactor (1 to 2 MW size). This travel will include transporting the neutrino detector. Each trip will be three to ten days long. Technical Point of Contact: The DOE-ID technical point of contact will be: Cliff Fineman Nuclear Engineer, DOE-ID 208-526-2753 or finemacp@id.doe.gov Statement of Work Effort: The contractor will be responsible for performing all required tasks throughout the various stages of this project. The following is a list of major tasks that will result in the successful completion of this project: 1)Kickoff: ?The contractor will create and present a project plan. The plan should address project schedule, design, detector assembly, test, implementation/experiment, documentation/data completion, and transition of data to the Government. ?The contractor will present its project plan to DOE for review and approval within 1 week after contract award. ?DOE review of the plan, along with authorization to proceed, is anticipated to be provided within 1 week after contractor submission of the plan. ?Work efforts, including design, detector assembly, test, and implementation/experiment, documentation/data completion and transition of data phases shall adhere to the approved schedule. 2)Design Phase: ?The contractor will work with DOE to gather and establish detailed requirements. These include but are not limited to: oThe detector must be capable of detecting neutrinos emitted from reactors or other similar sources in order to test the hypothesis that reactor neutrinos will perturb nuclear decay rates based on approved requirements. oThe detector shall be based on the use of exempt sources for the radioactive isotopes tested. If the detector cannot be designed using exempt sources, the contractor is responsible for obtaining the necessary NRC license and security clearances, training personnel, etc. oThe detector shall accommodate the changing of the exempt source so a single detector can be used to test a variety of isotopes. oThe detector shall be portable. oThe detector shall include hardware for measuring the decay rates of the isotopes oThe detector will include software and algorithms that will look for unexpected deviations in the decay rates of the isotopes when exposed to neutrino flux. ?The contractor will submit the design proposal for DOE review and approval. Presentation to DOE of the proposed design for DOE review and approval will take place by conference call and web-based presentation or video conference call. 3)Assembly/Test Phase: ?The contractor will only build the detector after the DOE-HQ TM approves the design. Upon receiving DOE approval to proceed, the contractor will build the detector to the DOE approved design in order to test the hypothesis that reactor neutrinos will perturb nuclear decay rates. ?The contractor will provide DOE with a testing plan for the detector. ?Upon receiving DOE approval of the testing plan, the contractor will conduct testing and provide DOE with test verification results that ensure the device is built correctly per the design, is in working order, and is ready to be used in performing experiments. ?The contractor will provide DOE with a written test report for DOE review and approval. Presentation to DOE of the of as-built detector and the test report for DOE review and approval will take place by conference call and web-based presentation or video conference call. 4)Implementation/Experiment Phase. ?Upon receipt of DOE approval to proceed, the contractor will implement the experiments using the detector. The detector will use multiple isotopes to test the hypothesis. ?Contractor will perform experiments in the proximity of a reactor whose neutrino flux has intensity similar to that of solar neutrinos impinging on the earth. The reactor will be switched on and off multiple times over several days to determine whether the modulation in neutrino intensity is observable by the experimental apparatus. ?Contractor will perform experiments on multiple isotopes in a laboratory environment to determine which isotopes are more sensitive to solar annual periodicities with a view toward determining the extent to which decay rates can be modified by exposure to neutrinos emanating from the sun. 5)Contractor will examine solar flare occurrences to determine the extent to which they are correlated to perturbations of nuclear decay rates. Multiple instances of decay data will be analyzed to verify the correlation is valid. 6)The contractor will document all experiments and results, including providing an analysis of these and providing this information to DOE in the form of a complete report for DOE review and approval. Because this is a government funded project, all results will be available to the public. 7)Project Handoff/Closure: ?The contractor will present its findings from the work completed to DOE-HQ. Presentation to DOE of the overall project findings and the final project report for DOE review and approval will take place by conference call and web-based presentation or video conference call. ?The contractor will also provide DOE with all documentation in accordance with the approved project plan, including its findings, as well as any documentation on maintaining and operating the detector. ? The contractor will complete a project requirements checklist showing that all project tasks have been completed ?A final meeting may be required to resolve any final issues outstanding. The meeting will take place by conference call and web-based presentation or video conference call. Task Deliverables: 1)Project Plan 2)Design for detector 3)Detector Test Plan 4)Detector Test Report 5)The contractor will provide a detector capable of testing several radioactive isotopes and hardware for measuring the decay rates of the isotopes. The detector will also come with software and algorithms that will look for unexpected deviations in the decay rates of the isotopes when exposed to neutrino flux. 6)The contractor will provide a report documenting the experiment results and analysis of results from each task. 7)The contractor will provide a final report with the information identified in this task. 8)Disposition of detector and associated materials.   Quality of Deliverables: All deliverables are expected to meet all the requirements and guidance furnished by the award, including the applicable inspection clauses of the contract, and the COR. All written deliverables should be spell-checked, grammatically correct, in a professional looking format, and without any corporate tags (e.g., headers, footers, stationery, etc.). Deliverables must be furnished using the Microsoft Office 2003 or newer suite (e.g., Word, Excel).
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- SN02937206-W 20121129/121127233942-85e2167a2231cb7edd693d0b0f421028 (fbodaily.com)
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