OPAL’s cold neutron source returned to operation, for the first time in over a year, on Thursday 27th June, and the reactor itself resumed full-power operations after a short routine shutdown yesterday.
In the last few months, amongst other improvements, higher capacity heat exchangers have been installed to lower the oil inlet temperature for the main compressors that drive the cryogenic system. This seems to have worked and there is now confidence that we understand the root cause for the successive failures experienced since 2009.
Over the next 2 weeks, spectral and performance testing of the fluxes and spectra of cold neutrons will be made and then our QUOKKA, PLATYPUS, PELICAN and SIKA cold-neutron instruments can resume operations. However, following the advice of our external advisory committee, these instruments will not be made available through the normal peer-reviewed proposal round that closes on 15th September.
We will operate in “friendly-user” mode for quite some time, will try to meet commitments to previously-approved proposals including the two approved programs of research, will give some priority to experiments using specially deuterated materials produced by the National Deuteration Facility, to students and early-career researchers who are dependent on data from OPAL for their career development, and to researchers with a track record of productive use of the relevant instruments.
Again, following the advice of our Advisory Committee, the prioritisation and review will be done internally within the Institute and will be light.
We are very grateful to the staff of Reactor Operations for getting us back to this point, and to all the other players within and outside ANSTO who have helped them achieve this breakthrough.
Published: 01/07/2013