Browsing by Author "Smith, R"

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
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    The case for a national medical cyclotron
    (Australian Atomic Energy Commission, 1984-03) Smith, R; Hardy, CJ; Boyd, RE
    It is proposed that a National Medical Cyclotron and associated radioisotope processing facilities be established to provide Australia and the South East Asian and Pacific Regions with the full range of radioisotopes and radiopharmaceuticals vital to the diagnosis and treatment of a wide variety of medical conditions. Specifically a national medical cyclotron would be used to produce those cyclotron-produced radioisotopes which cannot be imported because of their short half-lives (e.g. carbon-11, nitrogen-13, oxygen-15, fluorine-18, iodine-123, rubidium-81, mercury-195m), and also those of long half-life which are imported at substantial cost (about $0.75 million in 1983) on a rather unreliable basis (e.g. gallium-67, thallium-201, indium-111). These cyclotron-produced radioisotopes (with the exception of iodine-123 to replace iodine-131) are complementary to the range of reactor-produced radioisotopes available from the Australian reactor HIFAR. Where feasible in terms of radioisotope lifetime, the products from the cyclotron would be distributed Australia-wide, and also to the immediate geographical region, using the Australia AEC distribution service already available for reactor-produced products. To take full advantage of the potential medical benefits, the cyclotron would be located in NSW at a major teaching hospital, provisionally the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, but it would be owned and operated by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission. Installation could be completed in 1987/88 at a cost of about $10 million. Funding of $200,000 is sought in 1984/85 for the preparation of detailed plans and specifications.
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    The case for a national medical cyclotron facility
    (Australian Atomic Energy Commission, 1984-12) Smith, R
    Since cyclotrons and the associated equipment are complex and costly, it is unrealistic to expect that the Federal Government will fund more than one facility at the present time. Thus it appears obvious that this facility should be designed and used to achieve maximum national benefit. In this context the AAEC proposition is to install a dual-purpose cyclotron.
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    Effective research and development in the government sector.
    (Australian Atomic Energy Commission, 1972-08) Smith, R
    This report is a summary of the keynote address on "Effective Research and Development in the Government Sector" presented to the AIM (Melbourne Branch) Residential Conference on "Effective Research and Development" held at Warburton, Victoria on August 10th and 11th, 1972. The aims of the address were two-fold; first to give a perspective of applied R and D in the government sector in relation to the broad objectives of government research in Australia, and secondly to comment on the factors which need to be considered if applied R and D is to be effective in terms of objectives appropriate to government. In the remainder of the session, a number of case histories were considered and the arguments presented in this address provided a basis for comparison.
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    Initial results on the compatibility of austenitic stainless-steel with carbon-dioxide.
    (Australian Atomic Energy Commission, 1960-08) Draycott, A; Smith, R
    The possibility of selecting stainless-steel as either a canning or structural material in the projected Australian H.T.G.C. reactor has stimulated interest in the compatibility of this material with CO2. The first series of experiments has been carried out on the oxidation behaviour of an 18-8-Ti stabilized steel in CO2 in the temperature range 550-700ºC, under varying conditions of surface preparation, pressure, velocity and impurity content of the gas. The rate of oxidation was followed by measuring the weight increase of specimens as a function of time of exposure in tests of up to 2500 hours of duration. Supporting information on the nature of the oxidation process was obtained from metallographic and x-ray diffraction techniques. It was found that work-hardened surfaces oxidized at a much lower rate than etched surfaces. In the case of work-hardened surfaces a protective film of Cr2O3 formed which persisted throughout the duration of the tests. On etched surfaces, rapid oxidation occurred to give a non-protective multiplayer scale. In many specimens a thin layer of a second austenite formed below the oxide scale. In no case studied was there any evidence of carburisation. Both pressure and velocity of the gas had considerable effects on the rate of attack of the steel. This investigation has shown that in the range of pressure and velocity investigated, the 18-8-Ti austenitic stainless-steel can be used in CO2 at temperatures up to 675ºC.
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    Irradiation of uranium metal tubes and rods in a 4V hole in HIFAR
    (Australian Atomic Energy Commission, 1961-10) Hickman, BS; Smith, R; Hilditch, RJ; Mercer, WL
    This report covers all aspects of the irradiation and post-irradiation examination of the specimens in the first test of metallic G.E.G.B. uranium in the HIFAR materials testing reactor. A preliminary report (NPCC/FEWP/P.667) issued in February, 1961, gave the results of the initial measurements and visual inspection of the specimens. The earlier report divided the specimens into three main groups into which they appeared to fall conveniently at the time. Further detailed examination, including a large amount of metallographic study, has suggested that it is better to divide the specimens into four groups with groups 1 and 2 including all results of direct application to power reactor fuel element operation. Certain sections of the present report repeat some of the information already given in the preliminary report. This Material has been unclassified
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    Numerical FE modelling of occupant injury in soil-vehicle blast interaction
    (DEStech Publications Inc, 2015-03-03) Saleh, M; Smith, R; Shanmugam, DK; Edwards, L
    In ensuring occupant safety, analysis of blasts in soils has become increasingly important in evaluating the influence of the soil properties on the structural integrity of nearby structures. The proliferation of IED’s (improvised explosive devices) and land mines in areas where soil properties are unknown poses a significant threat to the occupants of armoured vehicle. It is therefore important to increase the accuracy of the numerical analysis by incorporating more sophisticated material models whilst maintaining mathematical tractability. The current study aims to incorporate a multi-physics blast FE simulation In LS-DYNA to investigate the interaction of soil blast with an idealised V-Hull vehicle. Using the Hybrid III Anthropomorphic Test Devices model the authors evaluated he dynamic response index (DRIz) and the head injury criterion (HIC), along with the acceleration and forces of the vehicle’s underbody, to assess the suitability of numerical modelling as a tool to optimise hull shape and reduce occupant injury. © The Authors
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    Placental element content assessed via synchrotron-based x-ray fluorescence microscopy identifies low molybdenum concentrations in foetal growth restriction, postdate delivery and stillbirth
    (MDPI, 2024-08-03) Foteva, V; Maiti, K; Fisher, JJ; Qiao, Y; Paterson, DJ; Jones, MWM; Smith, R
    Placental health and foetal development are dependent upon element homeostasis. Analytical techniques such as mass spectroscopy can provide quantitative data on element concentrations in placental tissue but do not show spatial distribution or co-localisation of elements that may affect placental function. The present study used synchrotron-based X-ray fluorescence microscopy to elucidate element content and distribution in healthy and pathological placental tissue. The X-ray fluorescence microscopy (XFM) beamline at the Australian Synchrotron was used to image trace metal content of 19 placental sections from healthy term (n = 5, 37–39 weeks), foetal growth-restricted (n = 3, <32 weeks, birth weight <3rd centile), postdate (n = 7, >41 completed weeks), and stillbirth-complicated pregnancies (n = 4, 37–40 weeks). Samples were cryo-sectioned and freeze-dried. The concentration and distribution of fourteen elements were detected in all samples: arsenic, bromine, calcium, chlorine, copper, iron, molybdenum, phosphorous, potassium, rubidium, selenium, strontium, sulphur, and zinc. The elements zinc, calcium, phosphorous, and strontium were significantly increased in stillbirth placental tissue in comparison to healthy-term controls. Strontium, zinc, and calcium were found to co-localise in stillbirth tissue samples, and calcium and strontium concentrations were correlated in all placental groups. Molybdenum was significantly decreased in stillbirth, foetal growth-restricted, and postdate placental tissue in comparison to healthy-term samples (p < 0.0001). Synchrotron-based XFM reveals elemental distribution within biological samples such as the placenta, allowing for the co-localisation of metal deposits that may have a pathological role. Our pilot study further indicates low concentrations of placental molybdenum in pregnancies complicated by foetal growth restriction, postdate delivery, and stillbirth. © 2024 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).