Projects

 

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High Voltage Vacuum Beakdown, Research and Consultancy. 2015 – Present.

High Voltage.

Clients:

Front End Test Stand Project, Ion Source Specialist. 2004 – Present.

High power proton accelerators with beam powers in the several megawatt range have many applications including drivers for spallation neutron sources, neutrino factories, waste transmuters and tritium production facilities. The aim of the FETS project is to demonstrate that chopped low energy beams of high quality can be produced and is intended to allow generic experiments exploring a variety of operational conditions.

Collaboration between:

Siemens ONIAC, Project Manager, 2011 - 2016

The ONIAC project is to develop a novel new accelerator design. A prototype is being tested and developed at RAL.

Collaboration between: 

SLHC-pp WP7, Finite Element Modeller 2008 - 2011

The Large Hadron Collider upgrade (SLHC) is the project with highest priority in “The European strategy for particle physics” document, unanimously approved by the CERN Council in July 2006. The SLHC, with expected 1 B€ budget, includes the upgrade of specific elements of the LHC accelerator, major upgrades in the accelerator injector complex, as well as upgrades to the two high-luminosity experiments ATLAS and CMS. It will result in a tenfold increase of the LHC luminosity. Thus the SLHC will remain the most powerful particle accelerator in the world in the next two decades. To develop a test bed for a high duty factor for the plasma generator of an H- RF ion source, to guide the design of the operational source. To elaborate the architecture, to specify the components and to demonstrate the performance of an RF system that will properly stabilize the accelerating field in the SPL and achieve the characteristics required for LHC in the following synchrotron (“PS2”).

Collaboration between: 

ESS-Bilbao, ITUR, Ion Source Specialist 2007 – 2012.

The European Spallation Source (ESS) is Europe’s next flagship facility for materials research. Spain has presented a very strong candidature to build the ESS in Bilbao in northern Spain.
The rationale behind the ITUR project is to perform a comparison between different kinds of hydrogen ion sources using the same beam diagnostics setup. In particular, a direct comparison will be made in terms of the emittance characteristics of Penning Type sources such as those currently in use in the injector for the ISIS (UK) Pulsed Neutron Source and those of volumetric type such as that driving the injector for the ORNL Spallation Neutron Source (TN, U.S.A.). The endeavour here pursued is thus to build an Ion Source Test Stand
where virtually any type of source can be tested and its features measured and, thus compared to the results of other sources under the same gauge. It would be possible then to establish a common ground for effectively comparing different ion sources. The long term objectives are thus to contribute towards building compact sources of minimum emittance, maximum performance, high reliability-availability, high percentage of desired particle production, stability and high brightness. The project consortium is coordinated by ESS-Bilbao
Consortium and composed by Tekniker-IK4 (research centre), Elytt Energy, Jema Group (industrial companies), the CSIC- Spanish Scientific Research Council and the University of the Basque Country (Spanish scientific institutions).
The technical viability is guaranteed by the collaboration between the project consortium and several scientific institutions such as ISIS (STFC-UK), SNS (ORNL-USA) and CEA in Saclay (France).

Collaboration between: 

CSNC, Ion Source Specialist 2006 – 2012.

The China Spallation Neutron Source (CSNS) is an accelerator-based project currently at its R&D stage under the direction of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). The complex is based on an H- linear accelerator, a rapid cycling proton synchrotron accelerating the beam to 1.6 GeV, a solid tungsten target station, and five initial instruments for spallation neutron applications. The facility will operate at 25 Hz repetition rate with a phase-I beam power of about 120 kW. Upon completion, the facility will compliment existing synchrotron light sources and research reactors in China to meet the demand of multidiscipline users. The major challenge during project construction is to build a robust and reliable user's facility with sufficient upgrade potential at a fractional of "world standard'' cost.

Collaboration between:

Ion Source Research and Development at ISIS, Head of Ion Source Section 2002 – 2014.

The development of H- ion sources with performances exceeding those achieved today is a key requirement for the next generation of high power proton accelerators. The ISIS Penning surface plasma source, which routinely produces 35 mA of H- ions during a 200 us pulse at 50 Hz for uninterrupted periods of up to 50 days, is regarded as one of the leading operational sources in the world, and should provide an excellent starting point for a development program.
Collaboration between:

 

UK Neutrino Factory, Ion Source Specialist. 2004 - 2010

The Universe is filled with ghostly particles called neutrinos. They travel vast distances, hardly interacting with anything. Even now, millions of neutrinos are passing harmlessly through you every second. They come from a variety of sources—from radioactivity, the Sun, interstellar space and from the Big Bang itself, the start of the Universe that happened approximately 15 billion years ago. It is believed that the Big Bang produced equal amounts of matter (which make up the stars, planets and life on Earth) and anti-matter, and they would quickly annihilate each other in a flash of light. However, we know that matter exists today. A possible explanation of what happened is that there is a slight imbalance between matter and anti-matter, and neutrinos are thought to be a vital piece in this longstanding puzzle. The Standard Model of particle physics gives a very good description of what matter (and anti-matter) is and how it behaves. There are two fundamental particle types—quarks and leptons. The former make up nuclei in everyday materials, while there are three types (flavours) of leptons—the charged electron (e), muon (µ) and tau (t) particles and their electrically neutral partners, known as neutrinos . There is a slight problem, however. We now know from recent experiments that neutrinos have mass, which is not predicted by the Standard Model! To account for this, the theory has been extended. This has the side effect that, for example, an electron neutrino can change into a muon neutrino as it travels through space. These “oscillations ” between different types allows an imbalance between matter and antimatter that could explain the apparent dominance of matter in the Universe today. Imagine two pendula linked together with a spring. As we move one pendulum it induces movement in the other, transferring energy. Neutrino oscillations behave in an analogous way. If we consider one pendulum to be an electron neutrino and the other a muon neutrino, then the swinging motion represents the transfer of neutrino flavour. The oscillation frequency depends on the energy of the original neutrino, the mass (squared) differences between the flavours and how far the neutrino travels in space. The amplitude also depends on quantities called “mixing angles”, which measure how likely it is for a neutrino of one type to change into another. The fact that neutrinos hardly interact with anything means that we need a lot of them to pass through a very large detector to get enough data to study their properties, such as how much mass they have, what are the values of the mixing angles and what role they play in differences between matter and anti-matter. The best way to do this is to use a Neutrino Factory— so called because it will produce a very large number of neutrinos each year. These neutrinos would then travel through the Earth to two or three large underground detectors several thousand kilometres away, where at least several thousand will be captured each year. The design and construction of a Neutrino Factory is very complex because it involves technologies that have not yet been developed. There is an extensive international research and development program to design and build a Neutrino Factory, of which the UK is a major player. Such a facility will offer scientists the opportunity to probe the elusive properties of the neutrino which will have a profound impact on our knowledge of how the Universe came into being and why we are here today.

Collaboration between:

Muon Ionisation Cooling Experiment, Electromagnetic Modeller 2006 – 2008.

A neutrino factory based on a muon storage ring is the ultimate tool for studies of neutrino oscillations, including possibly leptonic CP violation. It is also the first step towards µ+µ- colliders. The performance of this new and promising line of accelerators relies heavily on the concept of ionisation cooling of minimum ionising muons, for which much R&D is required. The concept of a muon ionisation cooling experiment has been extensively studied and first steps are now being taken towards its realisation at an international level.

Collaboration between:

IFMIF, Electromagnetic Modelling. 2006 – 2007.

Environmental acceptability, safety and economic viability will ultimately be the keys to the widespread introduction of Fusion Power. This will entail the development of radiation resistant and low activation materials. These low activation materials must also survive exposure to damage from neutrons having an energy spectrum peaked near 14 MeV with annual doses in the range of 20 dpa (displacement per atoms), and total fluences of about 200 dpa. Testing of candidate materials, therefore, requires a reliable high-flux source of high energy neutrons. The problem is that there is currently no high flux source of high energy neutrons in the range above a few MeV. An accelerator-based neutron source has been established through a number of international studies and workshops as an essential step for material developing and testing (IFMIF). The mission of IFMIF is to provide an accelerator-based, D-Li neutron source to produce high energy neutrons at sufficient intensity and irradiation volume to test samples of candidate materials up to about a full lifetime of anticipated use in fusion energy reactors. IFMIF would also provide calibration and validation of data from fission reactor and other accelerator-based irradiation tests . It would generate an engineering base of material-specific activation and radiological properties data, and support the analysis of materials for use in safety, maintenance, recycling, decommissioning, and waste disposal systems.

Collaboration between:

ISIS Second Target Station Project, Beamline Electromagnetic Engineer 2003 – 2006.

ISIS is the world’s leading spallation neutron source, providing UK and international researchers access to the best scientific facilities of their kind. ISIS has contributed significantly to many of the major breakthroughs in materials science, physics and chemistry since it was commissioned in 1985. Expansion of ISIS through the building of a Second Target Station was announced in April 2003 by the Science Minister, Lord Sainsbury, as a key part of the UK investment strategy in major facilities. Neutron scattering is a unique and powerful way of studying the properties of materials at the atomic level. Neutron scattering experiments reveal where atoms are and what they are doing, enabling the spacing of atoms and the forces between them to be measured. Innovations in technique and improved instrument performance over the last twenty years have made a huge contribution to our understanding of mateials, and the number of disciplines where neutron scattering has made an impact has steadily increased. The ISIS Second Target Station will open up new opportunities in technologically significant areas, particularly in the fields of soft condensed matter, bio-molecular science, advanced materials and nanoscale science. The experimental programme will begin in 2008.

Collaboration between:

 

High Power Negative Ion Sources, ISIS Lead Scientist 2002-2006.

New research areas in the near future will require High Power Proton Accelerators. Among all these projects (ESS, SPL at CERN), some will use negative hydrogen ions produced in a Negative Ion Source (NIS). The increase of the intensity is a great challenge for these machines and the challenge is also important for the ion sources. The ions extracted from the source are then accelerated in a LINAC (linear accelerator) and injected into compressor rings. These machines will need long pulses of negative ions, with intensity and reliability not yet reached simultaneously. The objective of this network is therefore to assemble all the competence in the European Union to respond to this ion sources technical challenge. A by-product of the study is the optimisation of the existing NIS in research infrastructures in the European Union and a better understanding of the relevant physics. Moreover new techniques are now developed. We believe that, due to a better understanding of the source operation, further progress will be possible in Nuclear Fusion where NIS are of importance.

Collaboration between:

 

Transformer Partial Discharge, Research Engineer 2001-2002.

In June 2001 National Grid conducted a controlled back energization test of a large power transformer that was known to have partial discharge problems. The test was conducted using a variable voltage mobile generator connected via a transformer to the 33kv tertiary winding of the transformer. The transformer was a 1000MVA 400/275/33kV unit belonging to Scottish Power at Neilston substation west of Glasgow, Scotland. The transformer had been taken out of service in 1997 following a Buchholz gas alarm. Partial discharge activity had been indicated by raised levels of acetylene and hydrogen in the oil. The experiment was arranged to test a wide variety of partial discharge detection technologies from several different companies and universities worldwide.

Collaboration between:

Intelligent Data Analysis and Manipulation, Project Manager 2000-2002.

This project investigates and applies a combination of leading edge data management systems and techniques with standard technologies to provide appropriate data analysis tools for NGC. Applications are in plant operating and condition monitoring data.

Collaboration between:

Risk to Personnel from Explosive Failure of Porcelain Clad Equipment, Project Manager 2000-2002.

To improve the risk assessment process this project investigates different techniques used to simulate a power arc inside a porcelain insulator. The test’s studied the effect internal pressure has on the porcelain throw distribution and hence the lethality. In collaboration with Cranfield University tests were conducted on the MOD firing range at Salisbury Plain. In a substation the internal pressure reached before porcelain failure depends on the fault level at that part of the system. When fully analysed the data obtained will allow an accurate figure to be used in the risk assessment.

Collaboration between:

 

The Intelligent Substation Initiative, Project Engineer 1999-2001.

 

The Intelligent Substation Initiative involves the installation and trialing of primary plant condition monitoring and assessment systems. Condition monitoring is the acquisition and recording of parameters related to the state of equipment, and generally looks for changes of state or trends in these parameters. Acquisition is achieved through a range of techniques, from periodic inspections to continuous on-line monitoring. Condition assessment can be defined as the activity of considering the available condition information to evaluate the health of an item of equipment, with a view to recommending a particular course of action (maintain, refurbish, repair or replace). Where possible, standard, commercially available solutions are, and will continue to be evaluated and used. Opportunities are also investigated for eliminating duplication of functionality and double handling of data and information.

Collaboration between:

 

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