During the next two years it will lead part of the design modernization for the new European Spallation Source (ESS) for neutrons, based in Lund (Sweden), carrying out projects worth about €4 million.
The Basque technology center is leading at the European level the work that will modernize the design of the accelerator and the underlying systems necessary for it to function properly; this is a critical element of the facility. As a result, Tekniker-IK4 becomes part of the defining nucleus of the largest European scientific facility, at the head of a team that will include the collaboration of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Switzerland, France’s National Institute of Nuclear Physics and Particle Physics (IN2P3), the prestigious German research center for the structure of matter (DESY), the SNS from the United States and leading companies for installations such as Air Liquide, Linde, etc.
The work of the Basque technology center will be focused on modernizing a wide range of technology solutions, including among them the electrical system of the linear accelerator, the system for the generation, maintenance and monitoring of the high vacuum in the beam cavity, the development of the cryogenic floor that will supply the liquid helium to the accelerator’s cavities, and the development and modeling of working prototypes for its components.
The ESS project is in its pre-construction phase, to be finalized at the end of 2012, during which time the design modernization to be performed by Tekniker-IK4 will be carried out. The start date for the Source is expected to be in 2019, and it is hoped the plant will be fully operative in 2025. The total cost of the facility is estimated at €1,480 million. Its varied and significant applications will make the ESS a top level scientific facility on a global scale for research and industrial development. From a scientific point of view, it will open a new world of opportunities for researchers along a broad range of knowledge studies: chemistry, energy, nanotechnologies, environmental engineering, diet and pharmaceutical research.
www.ess-scandinavia.eu