Conference Publications

This community mainly contains citations, yet where permitted, the full text, of the conference papers, presentations, posters and abstracts written by ANSTO authors.

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15th International Conference on Accelerator Mass Spectrometry
(Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, 2021-11-15) Bertuch, F; Child, DP; Fink, D; Fülöp, RH; Hotchkis, MAC; Hua, Q; Jacobsen, GE; Jenkinson, A; Levchenko, VA; Simon, KJ; Smith, AM; Wilcken, KM; Williams, AA; Williams, ML; Yang, B; Fallon, SJ; Wallner, T
On behalf of the AMS-15 Organising committee, we would like to thank you for attending the 15th International Conference on Accelerator Mass Spectrometry. Held as an online event for the first time, the 2021 conference attracted over 300 attendees with presentations delivered by colleagues and professionals from around the globe.Applications of AMS to the world’s most pressing problems/questions: A-1 : Earth’s dynamic climate palaeoclimate studies, human impacts on climate, data for climate modelling. A-2 : Water resource sustainability groundwater dating, hydrology, water quality and management A-3 : Living landscapes soil production, carbon storage, erosion, sediment transport, geomorphology. A-4 : Catastrophic natural events volcanoes, cyclones, earthquakes, tsunamis, space weather, mass extinctions. A-5 : Advancing human health metabolic and bio-kinetic studies, bomb-pulse dating, diagnostics and bio-tracing. A-6 : Challenges of the nuclear age nuclear safeguards, nuclear forensics, nuclear waste management, nuclear site monitoring, impacts of nuclear accidents. A-7 :Understanding the human story archaeology, human evolution and migration, history, art and cultural heritage A-8 : Understanding the cosmos fundamental physics, nuclear astrophysics, nuclear physics AMS Research and Development: T-1 : Novel AMS systems, components and techniques T-2 : Suppression of isobars and other interferences T-3 : Ion sourcery T-4 : New AMS isotopes T-5 : Advances in sample preparation T-6 : Data quality and management T-7 : Facility Reports (Poster Presentation only)
Accelerator mass spectrometry on SIRIUS: new 6MV spectrometer at ANSTO
(University of Jyväskylä, Finland, 2016-07-03) Wilcken, KM; Fink, D; Hotchkis, MAC; Garton, DB; Button, DT; Mann, M; Kitchen, R
As a part of Australian Federal Government funding in 2009 to establish a centre for accelerator science a new 6 MV state of the art accelerator – SIRIUS – was purchased. The system is now commissioned and comprises ion sources and beam lines to cater for a wide variety of both IBA and AMS applications. The ion source used for AMS (MC-SNICS) is the latest incarnation followed by 45 degree spherical ESA(R=0.3 m) and double focusing injection magnet (R=1 m, ME=20) prior the accelerator. At the terminal we have a choice of 2 stripper gasses and/or stripper foils. The high-energy spectrometer for AMS consists of a 1.27 m radius analyzing magnet with ME=176, 45 degree ESA (R=3.81m), followed by a switching magnet and 3 beam lines: one with a standard multianode ionization chamber; one with an absorber cell in front of the detector; whereas the third beam line has a time-of- ight detector. Details of the instrument design and performance data for 10Be, 26Al and 36Cl will be presented. © The Authors
Accelerator mass spectrometry: revealing subtle signals in ice sheets
(Past Global Changes, 2013-02-13) Smith, AM
Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) determines the ratio of a rare isotope, normally radioactive and of intermediate half-life, to a stable isotope. AMS permits the detection of individual atoms in a sample and so is an inherently sensitive analytical technique. A well-known example is radiocarbon dating (14C, t1/2 = 5730 a), where measurement of the 14C/12C ratio permits determination of the age of an artifact. Such AMS measurements can be performed rapidly (~ 20 min), at good precision (~ 0.3 ‰), with high sensitivity (< 10-15) and on very small samples (as little a few μg of carbon). Radiometric measurements, by contrast, require much larger sample masses and much longer measurement times in order to obtain good precision. Besides its use as a chronometer, 14C is increasingly used as a tracer in geophysical studies as the amount of carbon required for a measurement has decreased.At ANSTO we routinely measure 14C, 10Be, 26Al and the Actinides by AMS and in 2010 we added 7Be to the list. Here I give some examples from the ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica of palaeoclimate research I have been involved in. In each case AMS has provided the unique key to unlock these important climate archives. I will discuss 14C studies of atmospheric gases from firn air and ice core bubbles, with the objective of learning more about the natural and anthropogenic sources of the important greenhouse gas methane. Additionally, I will discuss studies of the beryllium isotopes, 7Be (t1/2 = 53 d) and 10Be (t1/2 = 1.4 _ 106 a) in snow and ice, with the objective of improving the use of 10Be as a proxy for Solar variability.
Anomalous tree-ring identification facilitated by AMS 14C analysis in subtropical and tropical Australian Araucariaceae samples enables development of a long-term, high-resolution climate reconstruction
(Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, 2021-11-17) Haines, HA; Palmer, JG; Hua, Q; English, NB; Hiscock, W; Turney, CSM; Marjo, CE; Gadd, PS; Kemp, J; Olley, JM
In Australia the majority of tropical and subtropical regions lack long-term instrumental climate records. Paleoclimate reconstructions from tree rings provide one alternative but very few dendrochronological investigations have so far been undertaken. Early assessments of mainland Australian tree species were discouraging due to the high prevalence of anomalous ring boundaries. Some species, however, were seen as more favourable than others including those in the Araucariaceae family which is common along the subtropical-tropical Australian east coast. These trees are longer lived than many other species in the region and contain growth rings known to be annual in nature and responsive to climatic conditions. There is however, a heavy prevalence of anomalous ring boundaries in species from this family which must be accounted for when dating these species. Here we describe the tree-ring characteristics and growth response from two stands of Hoop pine (Araucaria cunninghamii) trees located in subtropical and tropical Queensland, Australia (regions known for experiencing extreme hydroclimatic events). Confirmation of annual growth driven by moisture sensitivity was determined using radius dendrometers on four trees in Lamington National Park (c. 28º S). Tree cores were collected from both the Lamington stand as well as a stand at Hidden Valley near Paluma, Queensland (c. 19º S). Ring-width assessment showed the presence of false, faint, locally absent, and wedging rings in both sites. Results of bomb-pulse radiocarbon dating of selected single tree rings demonstrated that trees from this species can fall into one of three categories: A – those with locally-absent rings around the circumference of the trees, B – those where false rings were observed, and C – those with many wedging and locally-absent rings. Only trees in the first two categories were able to be included in the master chronologies. Traditional dendrochronological analysis with age validation by bomb-pulse radiocarbon dating allowed for a robust ring-width chronology from 1805-2014 CE to be developed for the Lamington National Park site. Growth-climate analysis of the master tree-ring chronology determined that the strongest environmental correlation was to wet season drought conditions. The strength of this response was compared to local and regional drought indices as well as to a long-term drought reconstruction. The combined analysis led to the development of a 200-year drought reconstruction for the region which shows influences from both the El Niño Southern Oscillation and the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation. © The Authors
ANSTO AMS facility sample processing and target preparation: an update
(20th International Radiocarbon Conference, 2009-06-01) Jacobsen, GE; Barry, LA; Bertuch, F; Hua, Q; Mifsud, C; Pratap, P; Reilly, N; Varley, S; Williams, AG
The ANSTO AMS Facility has been operating for the past 17 years, and comprises two accelerators complemented with a suite of chemistry laboratories dedicated to the processing of samples for carbon, beryllium, aluminium, iodine, and actinide analyses. The facility performs and supports a wide range of research in the areas of paleoclimate change, water resource sustainability, archaeology, geomorphology, and nuclear safeguards. As a result, the chemistry laboratories are called upon to process a large variety of sample types and increasing numbers of samples. The radiocarbon laboratories process charcoal, wood, sediments, pollen, carbonates, waters, textiles, and bone though the pretreatment stages, combustion or hydrolysis, and graphitization. Over the years, we have continually worked to improve pretreatment methods, reduce sample size, and reduce background. Construction of a dedicated low-background combustion and graphitization system is underway. The cosmogenic laboratories process quartz-bearing rocks and sediments through cleaning, dissolution, separation, and purification of Be and Al and preparation of targets as oxides. In this poster, we will summarize the current methods and developments in the radiocarbon and cosmogenic chemistry laboratories.
ANSTO Radiocarbon Laboratory: developments to meet the needs of our community
(Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, 2021-11-17) Bertuch, F; Williams, AA; Yang, B; Nguyen, TH; Varley, S; Jacobsen, GE; Hua, Q
The radiocarbon chemistry laboratories in the Centre for Accelerator Science at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) have a role providing support to AMS measurements for government organisations, industry, and academia in Australia and overseas. Over recent years the radiocarbon laboratories at ANSTO have expanded to support projects that address unique challenges which include environmental issues, the sustainable management of water resources, climate variability, ecological studies, and research into Indigenous heritage. The increase of work in these areas has seen a growing demand for processing samples of groundwater, rock art, ice cores, tree rings and Antarctic mosses. Here we will present an update of our procedures for processing a diverse range of sample types. We will also describe developments such as an automated dissolved organic carbon (DIC) extraction system for water samples, and our automated AAA pretreatment system. We will also outline our range of graphitisation systems which include a set of 24 Fe/H2 graphitisation units, 6 microconventional furnace (MCF) Fe/H2 graphitisation lines, a laser heated furnace (LHF) graphitisation system, and an Ionplus AGE-3 graphitisation system (owned by UNSW). Our MCF and conventional graphitisation lines have been designed to handle and reliably produce graphite targets containing as little as 5 μg and 10ugC of carbon respectively), making the graphitisation of minute carbon samples from rock art and ice cores possible.
ANSTO's centre for accelerator science a progress update
(Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, 2013-09-30) Garton, DB; Evans, O; Downes, A; Mann, M; Mowbray, T
In 2009 the Australian Government announced that ANSTO would receive capital funding to develop a centre for accelerator science. • Provide assurance that ANSTO can meet it’s AMS and IBA commitments for the Australian research community. • Complements existing accelerator facilities at ANSTO and other accelerator labs in Australia.
ANSTO’s accelerators
(Australian Institute of Physics, 2005-01-31) Zoppi, U; Cohen, DD; Garton, DB
Throughout its history, ANSTO demonstrated sustained excellence in accelerator-based science and technology. The 40 years old KN3000 Van de Graaff accelerator provided more than 110 000 running hours. The 10 MV ANTARES Tandem Accelerator is delivering leading edge Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) and Ion Beam Analysis (IBA) services. An additional HVEE 2 MV Tandetron accelerator has been recently commissioned and is expected to be applied across a very wide range of applications utilising IBA and AMS techniques. After a short review of the technical aspect of the 3 ANSTO accelerators, we will present a summary of the most exciting accelerator applications across a wide variety of scientific fields including air pollution, radiocarbon dating of precious artefacts and global climate change studies. © (2005) Australian Institute of Physics.
The ANTARES AMS facility at ANSTO
(Elsevier, 2004-08) Fink, D; Hotchkis, MAC; Hua, Q; Jacobsen, GE; Smith, AM; Zoppi, U; Child, DP; Mifsud, C; van der Gaast, H; Williams, A; Williams, M
This paper presents an overview of ANTARES operations, describing (1) technical upgrades that now allow routine 0.3–0.4% 14C precision for 1 mg carbon samples and 1% precision for 100 micrograms, (2) proficiency at 236U measurements in environmental samples, (3) new developments in AMS of platinum group elements and (4), some major application projects undertaken over the period of the past three years. Importantly, the facility is poised to enter into a new phase of expansion with the recent delivery of a 2 MV 14C tandem accelerator system from High Voltage Engineering (HVE) and a stable isotope ratio mass spectrometer from Micromass Inc. for combustion of organic samples and isotopic analysis. © 2004 Elsevier B.V.
Antimicrobial and anti-Inflammatory gallium Implanted ‘trojan Horse’ surfaces for implantable devices
(Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, 2021-11-23) Divakarla, SK; Das, T; Chatterjee, C; Ionescu, M; Pastuovic, Z; Jang, JH; Alkhoury, H; Loppnow, H; Yamaguchi, S; Groth, T; Chrzanowski, W
A rapidly aging population, high incidence of osteoporosis and trauma-related fractures, and better health care access explain rapid surge in utilisation of orthopedic implantable devices. Unfortunately, many implants fail without strategies that synergistically prevent infections and enhance the implant’s integration with host tissues. Here, we propose a solution that builds on our pioneering work on gallium (Ga)-enhanced biomaterials, which show exceptional antimicrobial activity, and combined it with defensin (De, hBD-1), which has potent anti-microbial activity in vivo as part of the innate immune system. Our aim was to simultaneously impart antimicrobial activity and anti-inflammatory properties to polymer-based implantable devices through the modification of the surfaces with Ga ions and immobilisation of De. Poly-lactic acid (PLA) films were modified using Ga implantation using the Surface Engineering Beamline of the 6MV SIRIUS tandem accelerator at ANSTO Australia, and subsequently functionalised with De. Ga ion implantation increased surface roughness and increased stiffness of treated PLA surfaces and led to the reduction in foreign body giant cell formation and expression of pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-1β. Ga implantation and defensin immobilization both independently and synergistically introduced antimicrobial activity to the surfaces, significantly reducing total live biomass. We demonstrated, for the first time, that antimicrobial effects of De were enhanced by its surface immobilization. Cumulatively, the Ga-De surfaces were able to kill bacteria and reduce inflammation in comparison to the untreated control. These innovative surfaces have the potential to prevent biofilm formation without inducing cellular toxicity or inflammation, which is essential in enhancing integration of implantable devices with host tissues and hence, ensure their longevity. © The Authors
The Australian National Tandem for Applied Research- ANTARES, it's 20 years old
(Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering (AINSE), 2009-11-25) Cohen, DD
The 10MV ANTARES Tandem accelerator at ANSTO has now been in Australia for 20 years. It arrived from Rutgers University at the Sydney container terminal on 12 September 1089 and was brought to Lucas Heights and loaded, by two cranes, onto four stanchions already in place on a concrete slab on 14 September 1989. The building was then completed around the accelerator. The tank on ANTARES was part of the FN1, the first FN series accelerator built by High Voltage Engineering in the mid 1960s. The accelerator and several beamlines were purchased from Rutgers for the meagre sum of US$250,000. Since September 1989, the accelerator has been completely revamped and brought into the 21st century with 3 ion sources, 3 state of the art accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) beamlines, a heavy ion recoil time of flight (RToF) beamline and a world class high energy heavy ion microprobe. The current replacement value of the accelerator is over $12M. This talk will review the technical and scientific achievements over the past 20 tears, current programs and future directions of this key piece of ANSTO capital equipment and acknowledge many of its past users and contributors. © 2009 AINSE
The Centre for Accelerator Science at ANSTO
(International Atomic Energy Agency, 2014-01-14) Hotchkis, MAC; Child, DP; Cohen, DD; Dodson, JR; Fink, D; Fujioka, T; Garton, DB; Hua, Q; Ionescu, M; Jacobsen, GE; Levchenko, VA; Mifsud, C; Pastuovic, Z; Siegele, R; Smith, AM; Wilcken, KM; Williams, AG
In 2009, the Federal government provided funding of $25m to ANSTO through the Education Investment Fund, to build state-of-the-art applied accelerator science facilities, with the primary aim of providing world-leading accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) and ion beam analysis (IBA) facilities. New buildings are now under construction and Building plans are now well advanced, and two new accelerators are on order with National Electrostatics Corporation, USA. The 1MV AMS accelerator system is designed with the capability to perform high efficiency, high precision AMS analysis across the full mass range. Large beam-optical acceptance will ensure high quality and high throughput radiocarbon measurements. High mass resolution analyzers, at low and high energy, coupled to a novel fast isotope switching system, will enable high quality analysis of actinide radioisotopes. The 6MV tandem accelerator will be instrumented with a wide range of AMS, IBA and ion irradiation facilities. The three ion sources include hydrogen and helium sources, and a MCSNICS sputter source for solid materials. The AMS facility has end stations for (i) a gasabsorber detector for 10Be analysis, (ii) a time-of-flight detector, (iii) a gas-filled magnet and(iv) a general use ionization detector suited to 36Cl and other analyses. Initially, there will be four IBA beamlines, including a new ion beam microprobe currently on order with Oxford Microbeams. The other beamlines will include an on-line ion implanter, nuclear reaction analysis and elastic recoil detection analysis facilities. The beam hall layout allows for future expansion, including the possibility of porting the beam to the existing ANTARES beam hall for simultaneous irradiation experiments.Two buildings are currently under construction, one for the new accelerators and the other for new chemistry laboratories for AMS and mass spectrometry facilities. The AMS chemistry labs are planned in two stages, with the new radiocarbon labs to come in the second phase of work.
Characterization of MOSFET sensors for dosimetry in alpha particle therapy
(Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, 2021-11-24) Su, FY; Biasi, G; Tran, LT; Pan, VA; Hill, D; Lielkajis, M; Cutajar, D; Petasecca, M; Lerch, MLF; Pastuovic, Z; Poder, J; Joseph, B; Jackson, M; Anatoly, RB
Alpha particle therapy, such as diffusing alpha-emitters radiation therapy (DaRT) and targeted alpha-particle therapy (TAT), exploits the short-range and high linear energy transfer (LET) of alpha particles to destroy cancer cells locally with minimal damage to surrounding healthy cells. Dosimetry for DaRT and TAT is challenging, as their radiation sources produce mixed radiation fields of α particles, β particles, and γ rays. There is currently no dosimeter for real-time in vivo dosimetry of DaRT or TAT. Metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) have features that are ideal for this scenario. Owing to their compactness, MOSFETs can fit into fine-gauge needle applicators, such as those used to carry the radioactive seeds into the tumour. This study characterized the response of MOSFETs designed at the Centre for Medical and Ra diation Physics, University of Wollongong. MOSFETs with three different gate oxide thicknesses (0.55 µm, 0.68 µm, and 1.0 µm) were irradiated with a 5.5 MeV mono-energetic helium ion beam (He2+) using SIRIUS 6MV accelerator tandem at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization (ANSTO) and an Americium-241 (241Am) source. The sensitivity and dose-response linearity were assessed by analysing the spatially resolved median energy maps of each device and their corresponding voltage shift values. The re sults showed that the response of the MOSFET detectors was linear with alpha dose up to 25.68 Gy. Also, it was found that a gate bias of between 15 V and 60 V would optimize the sensitivity of the detectors to alpha particles with energy of 5.5 MeV. © The Authors.
Chemical removal of sulphur from AgCl and AgBr for 36Cl measurements at ANSTO
(Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, 2021-11-17) Simon, KJ; Wilcken, KM; Amatya Joshi, A
Measurements of 36Cl on the 6MV tandem accelerator (SIRIUS) at ANSTO began in 2016, and since then over 1000 groundwater and rock samples have been processed and measured. The challenge with the sample preparation for 36Cl is to keep the 36S rates consistently low to minimise the impact to the 36Cl ion detection. This is generally achieved by precipitating sulphate as BaSO4 before a final precipitation as AgCl. We tested a range of methods for their efficacy, ease of use and consistency in keeping the 36S rates low. For measurement, the AgCl is backed in a bed of AgBr, but the sulphur rate of commercially available AgBr can vary significantly between batches. Preparing AgBr in house can produce very low sulphur rates [1,2]. Alternatively, we have achieved similarly low 36S rates by treating commercially available AgBr in 1M HNO3 for >24 hours.
A cold finger cooling system for the efficient graphitisation of microgram-sized carbon samples
(12th International Conference on Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS-12), 2011-03-24) Yang, B; Smith, AM; Hua, Q
At ANSTO we use the Bosch reaction to convert sample CO2 to graphite for production of our radiocarbon AMS targets. Key to the efficient graphitisation of ultra-small samples is the type of iron catalyst and the effective trapping of water vapour in a ‘cold finger’ during the reaction. We have developed a simple liquid nitrogen cooling system that enables us to rapidly adjust the cold finger temperature in our laser-heated ‘microfurnace’, optimised for the graphitisation of microgram-sized carbon samples. This system is used to firstly transfer the CO2 into the microfurnace, to maintain the cold finger at -80°C for ~ 5 minutes while the CO2 is converted to CO and then at -160°C for ~ 25 minutes for the remainder of the reaction as the CO is converted to graphite. It comprises a machined aluminium cylinder mounted in the insulated cap of a 600 ml Dewar. The lower end is submerged in liquid nitrogen (LN2). The upper end has a smaller diameter which is wound with an electric heating element and is provided with a thermocouple and a central hole into which the cold finger is inserted. Electrical power to the heater is adjusted by PID control, permitting the cold finger temperature to be adjusted over the range -50°C to -160°C at rates of up to 40°C/min. This simple system uses modest amounts of LN2 (typically < 0.2 L/hr during graphitisation) and is compact and reliable. We have used it to produce over 120 AMS targets containing between 5 and 20 μg of carbon, with conversion efficiencies for 5 μg targets of typically 90-100%. We are currently modifying this cooling system for use with our conventional graphitisation reactors. Copyright (c) 2011 AMS12
A cold finger cooling system for the efficient graphitisation of microgram-sized carbon samples
(Elsevier Science BV, 2013-01-01) Yang, B; Smith, AM; Hua, Q
At ANSTO, we use the Bosch reaction to convert sample CO2 to graphite for production of our radiocarbon AMS targets. Key to the efficient graphitisation of ultra-small samples are the type of iron catalyst used and the effective trapping of water vapour during the reaction. Here we report a simple liquid nitrogen cooling system that enables us to rapidly adjust the temperature of the cold finger in our laser-heated microfurnace. This has led to an improvement in the graphitisation of microgram-sized carbon samples. This simple system uses modest amounts of liquid nitrogen (typically <200 mL/h during graphitisation) and is compact and reliable. We have used it to produce over 120 AMS targets containing between 5 and 20 mu g of carbon, with conversion efficiencies for 5 mu g targets ranging from 80% to 100%. In addition, this cooling system has been adapted for use with our conventional graphitisation reactors and has also improved their performance. © 2013, Elsevier Ltd.
Counting atoms for a living – tales of accelerator mass spectrometry
(Royal Society of New South Wales, 2012-03-07) Smith, AM
Not available
Curious case of 26Al accelerator mass spectrometry
(Australian National University, 2019-09-09) Wilcken, KM; Rood, DH
Accelerator mass spectrometry measurement of 26Al suffers from low negative ionisation yield that often becomes the limiting factor. To counter the low Al− yield it has been recognised that AlO− produces negative ions much more efficiently and is a potential avenue to improve the measurement precision. When using AlO− for the measurement there is an additional challenge to separate the interfering isobar 26Mg and 26Al, but this can be achieved effectively with gas-filled magnet. However, this seemingly neat solution of using AlO− instead Al− for the measurement does not necessarily yield as clear cut improvements in precision as one would hope. To illustrate this point, data from conventional measurement method at ANSTO is presented and benchmarked against published data using AlO− method
Custom electronics design a methodology for success
(Australian Synchrotron, 2013-04-14) Mowbray, T
Not available.
Facility report : ANSTO’s 6 MV NEC SIRIUS accelerator – an update since AMS 14 Ottawa
(Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, 2021-11-17) Fink, D; Fülöp, RH; Fujioka, T; Kotevski, S; Simon, KJ; Wilcken, KM
ANSTO’s SIRIUS tandem accelerator is a customised 6 MV tandem accelerator manufactured by NEC and commissioned in 2015. It is a shared AMS and IBA instrument described in detail in Pastuovic et al (2015). Initial AMS performance data for cosmogenic isotopes 10Be, 26Al and 36Cl was presented at the Ottawa AMS14 Conference (Wilcken et al 2019). The AMS spectrometer consists of a 134 sample-wheel MC-SNICS Cs sputter source, a 45-degree spherical ESA (R=300 mm) and a double focusing insulated injection magnet (R=1000 mm, ME=20, vacuum gap = 70 mm). Two stripper gases (typically Ar and He) and thin foils are selectable in the terminal, and the selected charge state is focussed by an in tank electrostatic quadruple triplet positioned in the high energy column section. The high-energy section consists of two identical ME=176 analysing magnets (R=1270 mm) feeding two independent beam line transport systems, one for AMS and the other IBA. The AMS setup includes a post-stripper or energy degrader ladder, a 45-degree spherical ESA (R=3810 mm, gap = 30mm) and two magnetic quadrupoles. A choice of 3 AMS beam lines selectable by a ±30 degree switcher magnet provides options for dedicated radionuclide detection of 10Be (absorber cell), 36Cl and 26Al (multi-anode ionization counter), and an 8 m long TOF setup for future 129I and U-isotope measurements. A suite of sample geochemistry preparation laboratories, including a dedicated laboratory for preparation of in-situ 14C samples ( Fulop et al 2019) and an ice-core storage facility, provide AMS targets of 10Be (meteoric), 10Be, 26Al 14C and 36Cl (in-situ). The cosmogenic chemistry extraction laboratories host many visiting students and researchers to prepare samples and participate in AMS measurements. A wide variety of earth science applications in landscape evolution, sediment transport, tectonics, polar ice sheet stability, Quaternary geochronology supporting paleoclimate research change, solar variability and archaeology are supported. Ancillary facilities at ANSTO provide high precision elemental analyses (eg 9Be and 27Al) using a variety of techniques (ICP-OES, ICP-MS, AA, SEM, and XRF). We present details of recent data on routine AMS accelerator performance, reproducibility and linearity with various AMS standards, transmission, sample throughput, background reduction, and some improvements in sample chemistry methods.

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