Tennessine's Tennessee Tale: Oak Ridge, Berkelium, and the Race to Element 117

In Chemistry World’s Curious Tales of Chemical Compounds, Kit Chapman recounts Tennessee’s key part in the story of the heaviest elements. The episode follows Oak Ridge’s nuclear legacy, the Berkelium target that made Tennnessine possible, and the high‑stakes collaboration between US and Russian teams that bridged laboratories from Vanderbilt to Dubna. It’s a tale of history, logistics, and scientific daring behind the periodic table’s frontier.

• How Oak Ridge produced Berkelium and supported heavy element chemistry
• The partnership between Oak Ridge, Lawrence Livermore, and Dubna to chase Element 117
• The long journey of the Berkelium target across oceans and airways
• The eventual announcement and official naming of Tennnessine

Introduction: Tennessee at the Heart of the Periodic Table

The podcast presents a narrative about how a US state with a storied history in nuclear science contributed to the discovery of a new chemical element. Tennessee’s ties to the elements go back to the mid‑20th century when Oak Ridge hosted facilities central to the United States’ nuclear research program. The conversation situates Tennessee as more than a backdrop, showing how its laboratories and universities have repeatedly connected to global efforts to extend the periodic table.

Oak Ridge and the Nuclear History of an Elemental Frontier

The episode recounts Oak Ridge’s early work on a reactor intended to produce materials for top secret projects, framing promethium’s discovery in 1945 as a milestone that filled a gap on the periodic table. The narrative moves to the 1966 reactor designed to deliver a high neutron flux, a crucial capability for transmutations that push the table upward through beta decay. By 2005 Oak Ridge stood among a handful of facilities capable of producing heavy elements, underscoring Tennessee’s central role in this niche of nuclear chemistry and materials science.

The 117 Quest: A Collaboration Cross the Globe

The core episodes of collaboration begin in 2005 when Yuri Oganessian, the renowned figure behind several heavy element discoveries, reached out through a mutual contact to pursue collaboration on 117. The network included the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Dubna and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the United States. The podcast highlights how, even in 2005, long‑running international collaborations were the norm in this field, reflecting the scale and complexity of discovering superheavy elements.

Berkeley Target, Californium, and a Lab on the Clock

A central logistical challenge was Berkeley’s need for Californium, which was produced as a byproduct of Californium generation. Oak Ridge was not in operation mode to supply Berkeley at that time, illustrating how production schedules and interlab dependencies can shape scientific possibilities. The story then moves to the plan that emerged: Oak Ridge would create Berkelium targets, while Oganessian’s team would bombard them with calcium ions to forge a new element. The plan was ambitious and time‑sensitive, since Berkelium has a half‑life of about 330 days, creating a strict clock for the experiment.

The Berkelium Target and the Moscow Connection

Berkeley’s collaboration was anchored by a trio of scientists: James Roberto, Yuri Oganessian, and Joseph Hamilton. They would coordinate Vanderbilt and the University of Tennessee Knoxville in the experiment, with Oak Ridge producing Berkelium and the Russian team performing bombardment. The Berkelium target produced at Oak Ridge in December 2008—22 milligrams had a half‑life of 330 days—was cooled and prepared for transport. The journey would be long and fraught with challenges as the sample crossed the ocean multiple times in the hopes of arriving intact in Russia for the bombardment and subsequent discovery phase.

Logistics, Delays, and a Target on the Move

The target’s crossing proved a dramatic example of the practical hurdles in experimental nuclear chemistry. The suitcase‑sized target traveled thousands of miles by air, with each moment of travel allowing radioactive decay to erode the remaining quantity. The first attempts to ship the sample to Moscow ran into documentation gaps and airline safety concerns; a Delta flight carrying the material faced multiple manifest problems and customs issues. The pilots’ right of refusal for hazardous materials, coupled with paperwork delays, created a tense, multi‑month postponement cycle. After five trips the Berkelium target finally reached Dubna, accumulating more than 25,000 air miles in total. The story emphasizes that in heavy element research, the journey can be as pivotal as the collision itself, because decay can erode the sample between origin and destination.

The “First Announcement” and the Element’s Naming

In January 2010 the first public announcement signaled a major milestone, followed by formal confirmation and the eventual naming in December 2015. The element, Tennnessine, entered the periodic table as a symbol of the collaborative capabilities that Tennessee helped unlock. The episode closes by underscoring Tennessee’s role as a foundational site in the era of making heavy elements, illustrating how a combination of local institutions and international partnerships can shape the long arc of scientific discovery.

Closing Reflections: The Human Element in Element Discovery

The podcast ends with reflections on how national laboratories, universities, and international collaborators come together to extend the limits of human knowledge. The Tennessee story is framed not just as a technical triumph but as a human one, highlighting perseverance, cross‑border cooperation, and the sheer scale of effort required to push the periodic table forward. The host invites listener engagement, underscoring the ongoing nature of science and the value of curiosity in advancing credible, difficult research.

About the Podcast and Next Steps

Listeners are encouraged to share questions and comments with Chemistry World, as the series continues its exploration of heavy, superheavy, and practical chemistry topics. The podcast reinforces the importance of trusted, expert storytelling in the science media landscape.