Fabrication of Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) Targets

FEDERAL AGENCY NAME: Department of Energy (DOE) / National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)

PROPOSED CONTRACT ACTION NOTICE: This notice is NOT a request for proposals (RFP) and proposals should NOT be submitted at this time.

DESCRIPTION: This notice of proposed contract action is for the acquisition of Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) capsule targets. ICF capsule targets are complex, multi-component systems employed by multiple DOE programs for a multitude of high-energy-density (HED) experiments. A Request for Proposal (RFP) announcement is anticipated on or around April 12, 2024.

The DOE/NNSA Office of Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E), Experimental Sciences (NA-113) is an important constituent of the agency's Stockpile Stewardship Program (SSP), which enables the United States to maintain a safe, secure, and reliable stockpile without the need for underground nuclear tests (UGTs). ICF/HED experiments conducted at the DOE's HED programs typically involve intense energy with fluxes ranging up to 1016 W/cm2 directed onto small targets in very short time intervals, which range from 0.01 to 100 nanoseconds. Under these conditions, the target material is driven to conditions of extreme densities, pressures, and temperatures comparable to those encountered in nuclear weapon events. Material behaviors under these conditions are investigated and analyzed to improve experimental, theoretical, and numerical methods. ICF target dimensions are typically several millimeters (mm) in diameter and can have shell thicknesses ranging from a few microns to mm; surfaces also vary according to specifications, which can include smooth, rippled, and random but well-quantified texture designs. Targets can also consist of multiple layers separated by gaps ranging from a few microns to mm, and can be fabricated from single, multiple, or composite materials (e.g., plastics, beryllium and uranium metals, alloys, low-density foams, and/or cryogenically cooled hydrogen and/or deuterium); these specifications are characterized to prescribed precisions while minimizing impurities to acceptable fractions. ICF target requirements must also be directly connected to mission Level 2 Milestones and directives. Thus, many of the target components require short-term or long-term research and development (R&D) as well as innovative designs through engineering or assembly development.

Reliable fabrication and timely delivery of targets is essential for continuous and efficient HED program operations. Timely development is key to target fabrication, including continuous improvement of innovative avenues, and increasing process efficiencies. In order to meet these requirements, the contractor must have access to highly specialized ICF target infrastructure: components, equipment, qualified personnel, R&D expertise, engineering support, and capable history of ICF target fabrication and assemblies. The scope of the acquisition is to provide target fabrication support to the following NNSA HED programs executed at the following locations:

1. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL),

2. Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL),

3. Sandia National Laboratories (SNL),

4. University of Rochester Laboratory for Laser Energetics (UR/LLE),

5. U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL).

TYPE OF CONTRACTS/INSTRUMENTS: The Government intends to award a single Cost-Plus-Fixed-Fee (CPFF) contract. However, NNSA does reserve the right to make multiple awards. The successful contractor will be required to have an adequate accounting system for tracking costs applicable to the contract. The anticipated period of performance for this effort is ten-years inclusive of a five-year base period and one, five-year option period.

POINT(S) OF CONTACT: All questions shall be addressed to the Contract Specialist, Kwanita Brown at kwanita.brown@nnsa.doe.gov, with a copy to the Contracting Officer, Fernando Soto- Perez at fernando.soto-perez@nnsa.doe.gov, for review and resolution by the Government. The Contracting Office Address is as follows: National Nuclear Security Administration, Headquarters Services Acquisition Branch, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20585. No telephone requests, or questions, will be accepted.

DISCLAIMER: The information being requested does not constitute a commitment on the part of the government to award a contract, nor to pay for any costs incurred as a result in replying to this notice. This notice should not be construed as a commitment by the government for any purpose. No proposal submittal expenses will be reimbursed. The Government does not intend to acquire a commercial item using FAR Part 12.