D. Vandeplassche

MYRRHA: A multipurpose accelerator driven system for research & development

SCK CEN, the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, in partnership with IBA s.a., Ion Beam Applications, is designing an ADS prototype, MYRRHA, and is conducting an associated R&D programme. The project focuses primarily on research on structural materials, nuclear fuel, liquid metals and associated aspects, on subcritical reactor physics and subsequently on applications such as nuclear waste transmutation, radioisotope production and safety research on subcritical systems The MYRRHA system is intended to be a multipurpose R&D facility and is expected to become a new major research infrastructure for the European partners presently involved in the ADS Demo development. Ion Beam Applications is performing the accelerator development. Currently the preliminary conceptual design of the MYRRHA system is under way and an intensive R&D programme is assessing the points of greatest risk in the present design. This work will define the final choice of characteristics of the Facility. In this paper, we will report on the status of the predesign study as of June 2000 as well as on the methods and results of the R&D programme

THE SELF-EXTRACTING CYCLOTRON

At IBA a compact 14 MeV H+ cyclotron has been constructed. A special feature of this cyclotron is that there is no electrical deflector installed, i.e. the beam is self-extracted. The goal is to obtain high beam currents with good extraction efficiency without the need of single turn extraction. This is achieved with two ingredients: i) a special shaping of the magnetic field, showing a very steep fall-off near the outer radius of the pole and ii) the creation of a large turn-separation on the last turn. The pole gap has a quasi-elliptical shape, allowing for the steep fall-off of the magnetic field by the machining of a groove in one of the poles at a radius where the gap is small. The large turn separation is obtained by either the use of harmonic coils or by permanent magnet field bumps placed in two opposite valleys. Both methods have been tested and give good results with an extraction efficiency of 80%. The concept and layout of the machine is explained. The status of the project is outlined. First ...

The proton therapy system for the NPTC: Equipment description and progress report

At the beginning of 1994, the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) of the Harvard Medical School in Boston (MA, USA) a pioneer in proton therapy since 1959, selected a team led by Ion Beam Applications SA (IBA) to supply the proton therapy equipment of its new Northeast Proton Therapy Centre (NPTC). The IBA integrated system includes a compact 235 MeV isochronous cyclotron, a short energy selection system transforming the fixed energy beam extracted from the cyclotron into a variable energy beam, one or more isocentric gantries fitted with a nozzle, a system consisting of one or more horizontal beam lines, a global control system including an accelerator control unit and several independent but networked therapy control stations, a global safety management system, and a robotic patient positioning system. The present paper presents the equipment being built for the NPTC.

High-intensity cyclotrons for radioisotope production and accelerator driven systems

IBA recently proposed a new method to extract high-intensity positive ion beams from a cyclotron based on the concept of auto-extraction. We review the design of a 14 MeV, multi-milliampere cyclotron using this new technology. IBA is also involved in the design of the accelerator system foreseen to drive the MYRRHA facility, a multipurpose neutron source developed jointly by SCK-CEN and IBA

Pre‐design of MYRRHA, A Multipurpose Accelerator Driven System for Research and Development

One of the main SCK•CEN research facility, namely BR2, is nowadays arriving at an age of 40 years just like the major materials testing reactors (MTR) in the world and in Europe (i.e. BR2 (B‐Mol), HFR (EU‐Petten), OSIRIS (F‐Saclay), R2 (S‐Studsvik)). The MYRRHA facility in planning has been conceived as potentially replacing BR2 and to be a fast spectrum facility complementary to the thermal spectrum RJH (Reacteur Jules Horowitz) facility, in planning in France. This situation would give Europe a full research capability in terms of nuclear R&D. Furthermore, the disposal of radioactive wastes resulting from industrial nuclear energy production has still to find a fully satisfactory solution, especially in terms of environmental and social acceptability. Scientists are looking for ways to drastically reduce (by a factor of 100 or more) the radio‐toxicity of the High Level Waste (HLW) to be stored in a deep geological repository. This can be achieved via burning of minor actinides (MA) and to a less extent of long‐lived fission products (LLFP) in Accelerator Driven Systems. The MYRRHA project contribution will be in helping to demonstrate the ADS concept at reasonable power level and the demonstration of the technological feasibility of MA and LLFP transmutation under real conditions.One of the main SCK•CEN research facility, namely BR2, is nowadays arriving at an age of 40 years just like the major materials testing reactors (MTR) in the world and in Europe (i.e. BR2 (B‐Mol), HFR (EU‐Petten), OSIRIS (F‐Saclay), R2 (S‐Studsvik)). The MYRRHA facility in planning has been conceived as potentially replacing BR2 and to be a fast spectrum facility complementary to the thermal spectrum RJH (Reacteur Jules Horowitz) facility, in planning in France. This situation would give Europe a full research capability in terms of nuclear R&D. Furthermore, the disposal of radioactive wastes resulting from industrial nuclear energy production has still to find a fully satisfactory solution, especially in terms of environmental and social acceptability. Scientists are looking for ways to drastically reduce (by a factor of 100 or more) the radio‐toxicity of the High Level Waste (HLW) to be stored in a deep geological repository. This can be achieved via burning of minor actinides (MA) and to a less extent ...

Extracted beams from IBA's C235

IBAs proton therapy cyclotron (C235) has produced extracted 235 MeV proton beams and has fulfilled its factory tests. Model calculations have played an important role all along the course of this project: 2D and 3D magnetic fields, closed orbit analyses, particle trackings, beam transport layouts... . These calculations and the corresponding tools are evaluated by a comparison to experiment.