The Ohio State University Nuclear Reactor Laboratory Receives 3 Rapid Turnaround Experiment Awards

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The U.S. Department of Energy - Office of Nuclear Energy Nuclear Science User Facilities (NSUF) has selected 24 new Rapid Turnaround Experiment (RTE) projects for funding, totaling approximately $1.42 million, to support the advancement of nuclear science and technology. The Ohio State University Nuclear Reactor Laboratory (NRL), an NSUF partner facility, is the place of performance for 3 of the 24.

“All three of the funded proposals have investigators and team members who have previously relied on the unique and exceptional capabilities available at Ohio State for their research,” said Dr. Raymond Cao, Director of the NRL. “Our staff and facility have made valuable contributions to the nuclear engineering field through the NSUF collaboration. We are pleased to have that recognized by the researchers who chose us and our facility for additional investigations, and the agencies who fund their proposals.”

This year’s NRL awards are:

•     “Measurement of 254-eV Nuclear Recoils in Germanium” – Igor Jovanovich (University of Michigan)

•     “Neutron Irradiation of Updated In-Pile Steady State, Extreme Temperature Experiment” – Emily Hutchins (University of Tennessee)

•     “Irradiation of Radiation-hard GaN Transistors for Mixed Gamma and Neutron Field Under High Temperature” – Jack Lanza (The Ohio State University)

NSUF competitively selects projects from a pool of high-quality RTE proposals. Each proposal is evaluated based on a variety of factors, including technical approach, mission relevance, and scientific-technical merit. NSUF recipients receive access to state-of-the-art experimental irradiation testing, post irradiation examination, and technical assistance for the design and execution of projects at no cost to the user. Through previous RTE awards, the NRL has collaborated with researchers from across the country to continue to advance the understanding of irradiation effects in sensor and sensor materials in support of the mission of the DOE Office of Nuclear Energy.

As the only operating research reactor currently in the State of Ohio, the NRL is a unique teaching and research laboratory that delivers high quality service to its customers and excellent instruction and research opportunities to nuclear engineering students. In 2017, the DOE designated the NRL as a partner facility of the Nuclear Science User Facilities (NSUF) program, allowing awarded researchers, often in collaboration with other laboratories and industry, to perform DOE mission-supporting research at the NRL at no cost to users.

The NSUF has opened the next RTE call. More information is available here. Experimenters interested in utilizing NRL facilities should e-mail reactor@osu.edu.

NSUF announcement