ANSTO has renewed a Memorandum of Understanding with the renowned large-scale German research organisation, Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) that further advances a program of collaborative scientific research on energy materials.
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| (Left to right) ANSTO CEO Adi Paterson, Group Executive Nuclear Science and Technology and Landmark Infrastucture Simone Richter, HZB Scientific Director Prof Anke Kaysser-Pyzalla and HZB Executive Director of Finance and Administration Thomas Frederking |
“This is a fortuitous development for both our organisations, which operate state-of-the art scientific infrastructure to investigate the structure and function of matter.
We will combine our technology facilities and expertise primarily in the area of complex materials used for a variety of industrial applications,” said Simone Richter, Group Executive, Nuclear Science and Technology and Landmark infrastructure at ANSTO, who signed the agreement on behalf of ANSTO.
The agreement includes an exchange of information and personnel, training and the reciprocal access to scientific instruments at both facilities among other forms of cooperation.
Like ANSTO, HZB operates a nuclear research reactor and synchrotron in Germany to generate neutrons and X-rays for scientific research.
“We have a great deal in common beyond our instruments and this combined capacity is expected to be a powerful alignment at a time when it has never been more important to answer important scientific questions, particularly relating to energy,” said Richter.
Prof Anke Kaysser-Pyzalla, Scientific Director, and Thomas Frederking, Executive Director of Finance and Administration of HZB signed the agreement on behalf of the German institute.
“Although there have been productive collaborations and interactions in the past, we expect to see this expanded considerably and within agreed time frames,” said Richter.
ANSTO’s research mandate encompasses environment, human health and the nuclear fuel cycle with concurrent scientific projects extending to food science, materials science, magnetism, cultural heritage, planetary materials and energy materials.
HZB uses its instruments to provide insights into the structure of materials and processes within complex systems with an important focus on accelerator science, materials and energy research. The HZB research portfolio includes solar cells, solar fuels, thermoelectric, and the materials with which new, energy-efficient information technologies such as spintronics can be constructed.
A small delegation from HZB also toured the facilities at Lucas Heights and met with scientific leaders following the signing of the agreement.
ANSTO successfully negotiated the transfer of a new neutron beam instrument, the BioRef reflectometer from the BER-II Research Reactor at HZB. The transfer is currently taking place, and BioRef will be installed at the end of the CG2B guide, within OPAL’s Neutron Guide Hall. It is anticipated that user operations might commence in 2018.
BioRef can be used to investigate of soft matter and studies at the solid-liquid interface, including constituted layers and layer thickness on a surface or interface in biological systems.
Once operating and commissioned, the new instrument will be named Spatz, or sparrow in German. All of the neutron scattering instruments at ANSTO’s Australian Centre for Neutron Scattering have been named for wildlife.
ANSTO operated the OPAL multi-purpose research reactor, Australian Centre for Neutron Scattering Australian Synchrotron, National Deuteration Facility and the Centre for Accelerator Science among other facilities.
HZB operates the BER II nuclear reactor as a neutron source and BESSY II as a photon source for a suite of instruments.
Published: 18/10/2016