In a former gold mine in Lead, S.D., an underground research facility is being renovated for a major experiment that, when completed in two years, would be the most sensitive dark-matter detector ever produced, capable of detecting collisions between galactic dark matter and regular matter within an unprecedented range.
Dark matter accounts for 85% of all matter. It affects the motion of galaxies, bends light, and influences the very structure of the universe. The LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) experiment (which stands for Large Underground Xenon and ZonEd Proportional scintillation in Liquid Noble gases) will be conducted in the Davis Cavern at Sanford Underground Research Facility, or SURF, which is shielded from cosmic background radiation by nearly a mile of rock.
Architects and engineers with LEO A DALY designed the renovations to Davis Cavern at the same time as LZ’s team of 220 scientists finalized the design of the experimental apparatus itself. LZ holds 10 tons of liquid xenon, making it about 30 times larger and 100 times more sensitive than a previous LUX experiment that SURF conducted between 2012 and 2016.
“The level of coordination and flexibility required, in a tight underground space, with parameters constantly evolving, and with extraordinary safety and cleanliness considerations, made this one of the most challenging and exhilarating projects we’ve ever done,” said Steven Andersen, a senior architect and project manager with LEO A DALY in Minneapolis.
LZ was selected by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. National Science Foundation as one of the three G2 (for Generation 2) dark matter experiments. In February 2017, the project passed a DOE review and approval stage known as “Critical Decision 3,” which accepted the final design and formally launched construction.
When this renovation and new installations are completed in 2020, the LZ experiment will be 30 times larger and 100 times more sensitive than a previous dark-matter experiment that took place between 2012-2016. Image: SURF, courtesy of LEO A DALY
The experiment—which will take place on the Davis Campus that’s 4,850 feet below ground level—is a collaboration among scientists and engineers from 37 institutions in the U.S., United Kingdom, Portugal, Russia, and Korea. It is one of the few second-generation projects investigating the theory that dark matter is made up of weakly interactive massive particles (WIMPS). Direct detection of WIMPS would be a major discovery in this field.
John Keefner, underground operations engineer with SURF, said in a prepared statement that planning for this experiment started even before LUX was built. “We’re finally at the point where we can begin to refit the cavern and existing infrastructure to all for the installation of LZ.”
The renovation includes removing an existing cleanroom, tearing down a wall between two former low-background counting rooms, installing a new hoist system, building a work deck and modifying the water tank itself to accommodate the larger cryostat. A wall in the lower level of Davis Cavern will be removed to make way for four compressors that will be used for emergency xenon storage recovery. Other renovations include a radon reduction room and a xenon storage room.
This renovation work is being handled by Ainsworth Benning Construction, and will include updates to the cavern’s plumbing, electrical and ventilations systems, after which the scientists can begin installing the experiment itself. This work is complicated by the fact that on the other side of the cavern is the entrance to the Majorana Demonstrator Project, another sensitive experiment that requires an extremely clean environment.
Related Stories
| Oct 12, 2010
Building 13 Naval Station, Great Lakes, Ill.
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Gold Award. Designed by Chicago architect Jarvis Hunt and constructed in 1903, Building 13 is one of 39 structures within the Great Lakes Historic District at Naval Station Great Lakes, Ill.
| Oct 12, 2010
Full Steam Ahead for Sustainable Power Plant
An innovative restoration turns a historic but inoperable coal-burning steam plant into a modern, energy-efficient marvel at Duke University.
| Oct 12, 2010
From ‘Plain Box’ to Community Asset
The Mid-Ohio Foodbank helps provide 55,000 meals a day to the hungry. Who would guess that it was once a nondescript mattress factory?
| Oct 8, 2010
Union Bank’S San Diego HQ awarded LEED Gold
Union Bank’s San Diego headquarters building located at 530 B Street has been awarded LEED Gold certification from the Green Building Certification Institute under the standards established by the U.S. Green Building Council. Gold status was awarded to six buildings across the United States in the most recent certification and Union Bank’s San Diego headquarters building is one of only two in California.
| Oct 6, 2010
From grocery store to culinary school
A former West Philadelphia supermarket is moving up the food chain, transitioning from grocery store to the Center for Culinary Enterprise, a business culinary training school.
| Sep 22, 2010
Michael Van Valkenburg Assoc. wins St. Louis Gateway Arch design competition
Landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh and a multidisciplinary team of experts in “urban renewal, preservation, commemoration, social connections and ecological restoration” have been picked for the planning phase of The City+The Arch+The River 2015 International Design Competition.
| Sep 21, 2010
Forecast: Existing buildings to earn 50% of green building certifications
A new report from Pike Research forecasts that by 2020, nearly half the green building certifications will be for existing buildings—accounting for 25 billion sf. The study, “Green Building Certification Programs,” analyzed current market and regulatory conditions related to green building certification programs, and found that green building remain robust during the recession and that certifications for existing buildings are an increasing area of focus.
| Sep 13, 2010
Second Time Around
A Building Team preserves the historic facade of a Broadway theater en route to creating the first green playhouse on the Great White Way.
| Sep 13, 2010
Palos Community Hospital plans upgrades, expansion
A laboratory, pharmacy, critical care unit, perioperative services, and 192 new patient beds are part of Palos (Ill.) Community Hospital's 617,500-sf expansion and renovation.
