United Kingdom National Nuclear Laboratory

Project lead: Prof Jonathan Hyde
The United Kingdom National Nuclear Laboratory operates some of the world’s most advanced nuclear facilities across the UK, delivering scientific innovation to our customers and collaborating with academia.

 

NNUF and EPSRC funding has enabled UKNNL to procure a range of scientific equipment for characterising irradiated materials:

•    A high-resolution FIB-SEM (available for academic research)
•    A high-resolution X-ray CT capability (available for academic research)
•    A 200 kV (S)TEM with EELS capability (available for academic research)
•    A 200 kV aberration-corrected FEG-TEM (expected to be available from late 2021).

In addition, UKNNL are procuring state‐of‐the‐art robotic equipment which will enhance UKNNL’s current in-house robotic capabilities to support Robotics and Artificial Intelligence (RAI) technical programmes. This capability will be located at our Workington Facility.

FIB-SEM at UKNNL’s Central Laboratory, Sellafield - FEI Helios 600i Nanolab with EDS & EBSD with TKD

Helios Nanolab 600i

FEI Helios 600i Nanolab

© NNL

 

A high-resolution FIB-SEM with a full complement of analytical capability is available for use at UKNNL’s Central Laboratory (Sellafield). 

Installed in the active area of Central Laboratory on Sellafield site, the instrument combines a UHR electron microscope with energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) and electron back-scatter diffraction (EBSD) analysis, as well as an ion column for sputtering materials and preparing size-reduced specimens for TEM analysis.

Previously the instrument has been involved in examining AGR fuel cladding, vitrified waste, uranium powders and precipitates, and preparing atom probe tomography needles. 

Technical contact: Dr Tamsin O’Reilly (tamsin.i.oreilly@uknnl.com) & Dr Jamie Nanson (jamie.nanson@uknnl.com).

 

 

200 kV (S)TEM with EELS capability at UKNNL’s Central Laboratory, Sellafield - JEOL 2100

 

200 kV (S)TEM with EELS capability

JEOL JEM-2100

© NNL

 

A 200 kV (S)TEM with EELS capability is available for use at UKNNL’s Central Laboratory (Sellafield site). The instrument combines the high spatial resolution of a transmission electron microscope with chemical analysis by EDS, and EELS. 

The instrument is further supported by UKNNL’s FIB and PFIB instruments, as well as ion mill and electropolishing equipment for TEM sample preparation.

Previously the instrument has been involved in examining AGR fuel cladding, zirconium cladding, MTR fuel, and wasteforms.

Technical contact: Dr Simon Dumbill (simon.dumbill@uknnl.com) & Dr Tamsin O’Reilly (tamsin.i.oreilly@uknnl.com)

 

200 kV aberration-corrected FEG-TEM - JEOL ARM-200F with EDS and Gatan GIF Quantum

 

FEG-TEM

JEOL ARM-200F

© Copyright 2020 by JEOLCO (UK) Limited

Due to maintenance and high demand this equipment is not available in NNUF3 Call 4. It is hoped it will be back for the next call in Spring 2027 

A 200 kV aberration-corrected FEG-TEM with EELS capability is available for use at UKNNL’s Central Laboratory.

Installed in the active area of Central Laboratory on Sellafield site, the instrument is capable of sub-Angstrom imaging resolution, and atomic resolution chemical analysis by EDS (0.98 Sr Oxford Instruments X-Max 100 TLE detector), and Gatan GIF Quantum 965 ER with Dual EELS and EFTEM capabilities.

The instrument is further supported by UKNNL’s FIB and PFIB instruments, as well as ion mill and electropolishing equipment for TEM sample preparation.

Technical contact: Dr Simon Dumbill (simon.dumbill@uknnl.com) & Dr Tamsin O’Reilly (tamsin.i.oreilly@uknnl.com)

 

Hot Robotics Capability – UKNNL’s rig hall at Workington, Cumbria

NNL’s Workington laboratory

NNL Robotics Centre at Workington

© National Nuclear Laboratory

The facility provides flexible space and equipment that acts as a link between the small‐scale, low TRL (1‐4) robotics research, and the full‐scale demonstrator facilities being set up by NNL to progress technology up to TRL 9. Facilities include:

•    Robot laser cutting 
•    Sort and segregation capability
•    A flexible decommissioning cell
•    Flexible operating enclosures for development and testing of ROVs.

This is an integral part of the Hot Robotics NNUF2 capability involving University of Bristol, University of Manchester and RACE.

Technical contact: Dr Darren Potter (darren.potter@uknnl.com).

 

 

 

 

Text © NNL.