National Deuteration Facility (NDF)

Nuclear Science Facilities (NSF) – Bragg Institute

The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation’s NSF project consists of two sub-projects:

Neutron Beam Instruments Expansion (NBI2), to add to the OPAL research reactor by constructing three instruments colloquially known as EMU, BILBY and DINGO, a split cold guide, and sample environment equipment, and
theCentre for Accelerator Science (CAS) upgrade, to construct a 1 megavolt (MV) and a 6MV accelerator.

The Neutron Beam instruments will enable research in areas such as material behaviour and biological studies. These instruments can produce 3D and video images of the insides of objects from rocks to engines, without having to cut them open. The upgraded CAS will allow very accurate measurement of minute amounts of a particular substance in a much larger volume.

Key facts

State: NSW
Lead institute: Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO)
Project status: in progress
Australian Government contribution:
$12.4 million from the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy 2013 programme
$62 million from the EIF Super Science Initiative

Project deliverables

Under the Super Science component, deliverables are to:

Enhance the research capacity of the OPAL reactor by constructing a new Cold Guide and supporting infrastructure and acquiring three new neutron beam instruments to undertake research in areas such as material behaviour and biological studies.
Upgrade the Centre for Accelerator Science by constructing a new building to house new facilities to allow radiocarbon dating and heavy isotope analysis. This will support research in materials science, climate and environmental science, medical physics and nuclear safeguards work.
Provide merit-based access to this national research infrastructure to Australian and international scientists and increase the number of scientists that are able to use ANSTO facilities by increasing the amount and quality of facilities available.

Under the NCRIS 2013 component, deliverables are generally to continue to operate and maintain the existing NSF infrastructure established under the Super Science Initiative, and covers both the NBI2 and CAS instruments.

Access

Open competitive access to the Neutron Beam Instruments will be available through the Bragg Institute Customer Portal ( Calls occur biannually and close in September and March.

More information

For more information about the NSF project, visit the ANSTO websiteat