EMU is the high-resolution neutron spectrometer installed at the OPAL reactor, ANSTO, which delivers 1 µeV FWHM energy transfer resolution for an accessible ±31 µeV energy transfer range. The spectral resolution is achieved by neutron backscattering from Si (111) on the primary and secondary flight paths, allowing up to 1.95 Å^-1 momentum transfer range. The spectrometer is well for suited...
Over the past decades, efforts have been made to increase the nutrition value of staple food crops including wheat grain. Recently, we were able to produce a metabolic engineered wheat variety capable to increase the accumulation of iron (Fe) in grain (Beasley et al., 2019). In order to determine the distribution of elevated Fe levels and other elements in this grain, we performed elemental...
Space exploration is currently aiming to reach further destinations, increasing astronauts’ exposure to hazardous radiation. Although at the altitude of the International Space Station, the main radiation source is protons, heavy ions (e.g. C, O, Si, Fe) cover a wide energy range up to hundreds of GeV/n. Their high LET makes them strong contributors for radiobiological effects on humans, also...
A postre setting out the parameters around the KOALA instrument will be displayed. The instrument scientists will be available to discuss any aspects of the instrument or the science it can be applied to .
The ability to precisely control molecules with external stimuli is an important tool for various chemical systems such as catalysts, bio-active probes and host-guest systems. 1, An attractive approach to preparing materials that can be systematically controlled is the integration of tuneable “switches” into compounds, thus allowing the reversible conversion between two or...
The double-crystal ultra-small-angle neutron scattering (USANS) diffractometer KOOKABURRA at ANSTO was made available for user experiments in 2014. KOOKABURRA allows the characterization of microstructures covering length scales in the range of 0.1–10 µm. Use of the first- and second-order reflections coming off a doubly curved highly oriented mosaic pyrolytic graphite pre-monochromator at a...
Many methodologies have been developed to separate metal ions from water for the purpose of mining or decontamination. Most of these approaches are based on amidoxime-based polymers, hydrogels, microspheres, fibres and metal-organic frameworks [1-3]. However, such approaches are typically inefficient with low selectivity. Recently Zhou et al. [4] have reported a super uranyl binding protein...
Mineral porosity contributes to rock permeability and hence influences the movement of hydrothermal fluids in the crust and the formation of mineral deposits. Porosity is an important factor for in-situ recovery of base metals from ore deposit without traditional mining. Mineral porosity can be generated during fluid-mineral reactions yet the evolution of such reaction-induced porosity is...
The process of ligand recognition can significantly alter the physical morphology of macromolecules, as a part of their in-vivo function. These changes can be quantified via solution small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), a technique that provides structural information as a distribution of distances between all solute atoms. Measurements can be sufficiently precise to detect small yet global...
This poster will highlight some of the recent upgrades to the Kowari detector shroud and detail potential future upgrades to increase the accuracy and speed of sample positioning on the instrument.
Deuterated cholesterol is a classic example of nature providing an elegant alternative to chemical synthesis. The humble yeast used in bread and beer making has been engineered to produce pure cholesterol, which can be deuterated to varying degrees by growth on the appropriate substrates. This complements our existing capability to synthesise a specific tail-deuterated form of cholesterol for...
The photo-induced transfer of electrons (PET) forms the basis for biological and environmental processes fundamental to life, including photosynthesis and atmospheric ozone generation.[1] It also underpins a range of vital technologies[2] such as photocatalysis,[3] which has key applications in environmentally sustainable chemical manufacturing, and a global market expected to reach AU $ 6.64...
BILBY [1] is a time-of-flight (ToF) small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) instrument operated by the Australian Centre for Neutron Scattering (ACNS) at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organsation (ANSTO). It entered the user program in 2016 and complements the established SANS capability at the ACNS - the monochromatic pin-hole SANS instrument QUOKKA [2] and the USANS instrument...
Bornite (Cu5FeS4) is the second most abundant Cu-bearing ore mineral, and is found in a wide range of ore deposits. It is often altered in hydrothermal fluids by mineral replacement reactions, forming complex intergrowth textures with chalcopyrite (CuFeS2), digenite (Cu1.8S), covellite (CuS), and chalcocite (Cu2S). Yet, the mechanism and kinetics of the chemical reactions responsible for the...
The aim of this work was to study the applicability of silicon microdosimeters for high LET ion measurements. The response and radiation damage of two silicon on insulator (SOI) 3D microdosimeters developed by the Centre for Medical Radiation Physics (CMRP) were investigated with a range of different low energy ions, with high linear energy transfer (LET). The two microdosimeters n-SOI and...
Transition-metal catalysis is ubiquitous in synthetic chemistry and among the most important processes in the chemical industry. Surface immobilised transition metal catalysts, known as hybrid catalysts, combine the efficiency of heterogeneous- and the selectivity of homogenous catalysts. Advantages of hybrid catalysts over traditional homogeneous analogues are stability and simplified removal...
Radiotherapy based treatment involving a linear accelerator (LINAC) is one of the most widely used treatment modalities for cancer patients. LINACs utilize a high energy photon beam to penetrate the body and deliver a pre-determined dose to the tumour. However when LINAC energies greater than 10MV are used during treatment, photo neutrons are produced through nuclear interactions within the...
SIKA, the new cold-neutron triple-axis spectrometer was built on the CG4 beam port at the OPAL reactor, ANSTO. We report the capabilities and current status of SIKA in this users meeting. A versatile instrument, SIKA provides sample environments with temperature capacities from dilution temperatures below 50 mK up to 750 K, and magnetic fields of up to 12 T, using the well-developed control...
Wombat is a high intensity neutron diffractometer located in the OPAL Neutron Guide Hall. It is primarily used as a high-speed powder diffractometer, but has also expanded into texture characterisation and single-crystal measurement, particularly diffuse scattering. The high performance comes from the combination of the best area detector ever constructed for neutron diffraction with the...
Crystallisation of lipids at the oil/water interface plays a significant role in the stability of emulsion systems [1, 2]. This is regardless of whether the emulsion is composed of lipids in the continuous or dispersed phase. Interfacial crystallisation is of particular interest for dairy products, as emulsified lipids undergo crystallisation upon cooling during production and storage. Lipid...
Iron oxides make up a large proportion of mineral processing residues and play an important role in hosting trace elements through either surface adsorption or isomorphous substitution. Mineral processing residues can contain elevated concentrations of trace metals such as As, Cr, Mo, V and Zn, most likely associated with iron oxides, and which pose challenges to successful remediation....
QUOKKA was the first SANS instrument to be in operation at the Australian research reactor, OPAL [1]. It is a 40 m pinhole instrument operating with a neutron velocity selector, an adjustable collimation system providing source-sample distances of up to 20 m and a two dimensional 1 m2 position-sensitive detector, capable of measuring neutrons scattered from the sample over a secondary flight...
In recent years, the family of layered sodium-containing transition metal oxides, NaxMO2, where M=Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni (or mixture of 2-3 of these elements), have attracted a great deal of attention due to their fascinating electronic, chemical and mechanical properties.[1, 2] Notably, NaxMn1-yMyO2, where M=Fe, Ni, Mg, Ti, are amongst the leading cathode materials for sodium-ion...
β-lactoglobulin, a globular protein, is a major constituent of whey obtained from milk. It has been used as one of the model proteins for the synthesis and study of amyloid structures [1]. Proteins undergo structural modifications and aggregate into amyloid configurations that are rich in β-sheet elements in the secondary structure composition. Controlled synthesis has helped in study and...
Amidopropyl betaines are zwitterionic surfactants that exhibit viscoelastic properties, due to their ability to self-assemble into wormlike micelles and other extended micellar geometries. A range of amidopropyl betaine surfactant molecules containing C18 hydrocarbon tails, with differing levels of unsaturation and branching, were synthesised and analysed. The fatty acids used as targets for...
Current applications of X-ray Absorption Fine Structure to low absorbing samples such as ultra-thin films in semiconductor and nano-devices have been limited. This is not the case for the phase component of the fine structure as it is generally orders of magnitude larger than the absorption component in the x-ray regime. We will present a technical methodology to retrieve the phase and...
Transition-metal-doped oxides offer a potential route towards magnetic semiconductors which would pave the way for spintronic applications. Although much of the research work has been conducted on Co-doped TiO2, the room temperature magnetic properties of the system are still not well understood [1]. In this study, titanium dioxide (TiO2) thin films were deposited on a silicon substrate and...
In accordance with the Paris Climate Agreement, Australia will reduce its carbon emissions to 28% of its 2005 levels by 2030, with 24% of Australia’s electricity production to come from renewable sources. Two technologies being developed in Australia to assist with this transition include next-generation oxygen ion conductors and long-term storage for radioactive waste. The former is an...
Quokka is the 40m pinhole Small Angle Neutron Scattering instrument (SANS) located at the OPAL research reactor at ANSTO, serving the needs of both domestic and international users [1]. Calibrated absolute scattering intensity measurements in a standard setup may be made over a range of wavelengths between 4 x 10-3 Å-1 and 0.7 Å-1.
Outputs from Quokka have been published in diverse fields...
Presented work was focused on odd-even effects in polysaccharide polyelectrolyte multilayers, that may influence their hydration content and the chemical environment of the water within them. Experiments were performed using polysaccharide polyelectrolyte multilayers (PEMs) composed of pharmaceutical grade fucoidan and chitosan. PEMs were studied under confinement using synchrotron FTIR...
The study of magnetic materials using inelastic neutron scattering (INS) has a long history, dating back to some of the first INS experiments. The Pelican spectrometer is well suited to magnetic studies as the high flux, low background and non-magnetic construction provide ideal conditions for such experiments. Further the instrument is designed for polarisation analysis, a key technique in...
Neutron reflectometry is a powerful technique for studying the structure of surfaces and interfaces at the nanometer. The useful properties of neutrons allows for isotopic contrast variation in multi-component systems and being able to investigate phenomena under a wide variety of sample environments. At the OPAL Research Reactor there is currently one operating neutron reflectometer –...
We are developing phase-contrast computed tomography (PCT) using synchrotron sources that will be applied for medical breast imaging in the near future. This study is conducted in hutch 3B of the Imaging and Medical beamline (IMBL) of the Australian synchrotron. Currently, we are using two large-area flat-panel imaging detectors. The first detector is Hamamatsu CMOS Flat Panel Sensor C10900D,...
The PELCIAN instrument is a cold-neutron time-of-flight spectrometer located at the Australian Centre for Neutron Scattering. The spectrometer has been in continuous user operation for the past five years. The instrument capabilities range from the study of quasi-elastic neutron scattering with a best resolution of 65 µeV, to the rapid measurement of phonon density of states. The instrument...
A strategic scientific research project Cultural Heritage has been initiated at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO). The project aims to promote the access to the suite of nuclear methods available across the organisation, and the use of a non-invasive analytical approach in the field of cultural-heritage, archaeology, and conservation science. The latest...
At IMBL inline phase-contrast imaging is typically used for imaging and tomography. This utilises Paganin's phase-retrival algorithm (Paganin et al. 2002) for boosting the signal to noise of the resultant images. However, this single-image algorithm does not permit the independent extraction of absorption and phase shift arising from a sample, nor can the dark-field signal be obtained.
A...
The small-angle scattering (SAS) facilities and personnel at ANSTO’s Centre for Neutron Scattering and Synchrotron are part of an international project aimed at generating a set of SAS data sets from well-characterized biomolecules that can be used to benchmark different approaches to predicting SAS profiles from atomic coordinates (project description can be found at...
Bicontinuous cubic phases are of widespread interest as they are thought to play an important role in nature, and have found a large variety of applications in fields including drug delivery, contrast agents, food science, biosensors, and nanomedicine.
Here we present bicontinuous cubic phases in which the hydrophobic membrane is locally de-mixed into hydrocarbon and fluorocarbon domains [1],...
The National Deuteration Facility (NDF) at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) provides deuteration for a diversity of molecules and applications, including the deuteration of proteins for solvent contrast variation of multi-subunit biological assemblies.
Many of the macromolecular functions of life and disease involve dynamic protein interactions. Observing,...
The OPAL research reactor at ANSTO has several instruments available for materials science and engineering applications. The KOWARI instrument has a unique non-destructive ability to measure stresses locked-in due to manufacturing processes in various materials such as metals, ceramics, and composites. Often residual stresses can be greater than stresses generated by applied load, therefore...
Titania (TiO2) is one of the most widely used photocatalysts with applications in water splitting, air purification and dye sensitised solar cells. However, its wide band gap (3.0–3.2 eV) makes it inefficient under visible light. There is potential to lower the band gap and improve photocatalytic efficiency through codoping and ion implantation by transition metal ions.
In...
Wormlike micelles (WLMs) are elongated, thread--like surfactant aggregates that form thermodynamically under certain conditions. At sufficiently high concentrations, WLMs overlap and entangle with each other and this change in microstructure causes a rapid increase in viscoelasticity and zero--shear viscosity. Moreover, it provides significant shear--thinning character, a type of...
Accurate simulation of the solar spectrum is a prerequisite for research into photovoltaic stability and efficiency. Organic photovoltaics (OPV) have gained popularity in recent years due to their low cost of production, physical flexibility, high tunability and light weight. As interest in OPV continues to grow, the need arises for solar simulation to be employed in increasingly diverse...
The development of efficient and cost-effective solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) will allow hydrogen or other low-carbon fuels to replace hydrocarbon fuels in commercial energy-generation applications. A wide variety of oxide structure classes are being explored in an effort to discover SOFC electrolyte and electrode materials with competitive ionic conductivity in the “intermediate” temperature...
A common approach to the immobilisation of nuclear wastes produced in the nuclear fuel cycle is to incorporate them in a borosilicate glass and dispose this “wasteform” within a geological repository. These glass-based wasteforms are known to corrode in groundwater in the repository over thousands of years and thus research has focused on investigating the mechanisms of glass dissolution and...
Manganese melilites and related compositions1-8 with chemical formula of A2MnC'2O7 (A1+: Na, K, Rb, Cs; C’5+: As, V, P and A2+: Ca, Sr, Ba; C’4+: Si, Ge) were studied theoretically using ab initio density function theory. The relative stability of different phases was approximated by comparing relaxed...
Rechargeable lithium ion batteries have been in commercial use for almost three decades now. They are ubiquitous in our society and we can hardly imagine a life without them. Given the challenges ahead, such batteries might help to slow down the rate at which our planet warms. Two large scale approaches that can help here are the storage of sustainably produced renewable energy and the use of...
Amorphous metals, also called metallic glasses, are metallic alloys with a disordered non-crystalline atomic structure. There is a high level of interest in metallic glasses as consequence of their particular structure, lacking of medium and long range order leading to interesting physical properties such as high mechanical strength, great wear and corrosion resistance, and high elasticity...
The artefact in study is an ancient lead scroll with an inscriptions inside, however, its purpose and origin are unknown. Many ancient cultures used metal tablets as a writing media for various purposes - prayers of protection, ballots, contracts, and curses for example. Once inscribed, these tablets were rolled or folded and placed in a variety of places determined by their purpose ie....
Materials used in nuclear applications are exposed to radiation which causes changes to their properties, most significantly with regard to the hardness and microstructure. The present work investigates the changes in hardness resulting from heavy ion irradiation damage in aluminium alloy AA6061-T6 after irradiation with 12 MeV Au ions and contrasts it with the changes in the hardness of...
Fungal colonisation of different indoor and outdoor substrata is one of the common issues that causes damage and degradation of metallic surfaces. It can be a source of infection for immunocompromised and/or sensitive individuals. In this study, we investigated the initial conidia attachment dynamics of three fungal strains, including Aspergillus niger ATCC 9642, Aureobasidium pullulans ATCC...
