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ANSTO Publications Online

Welcome to the ANSTO Institutional Repository known as APO.

The APO database has been migrated to version 8.3. The functionality has changed, but the content remains the same.

ANSTO Publications Online is a digital repository for publications authored by ANSTO staff since 2007. The Repository also contains ANSTO Publications, such as Reports and Promotional Material. ANSTO publications prior to 2007 continue to be added progressively as they are in identified in the library. ANSTO authors can be identified under a single point of entry within the database. The citation is as it appears on the item, even with incorrect spelling, which is marked by (sic) or with additional notes in the description field.

If items are only held in hardcopy in the ANSTO Library collection notes are being added to the item to identify the Dewey Call number: as DDC followed by the number.

APO will be integrated with the Research Information System which is currently being implemented at ANSTO. The flow on effect will be permission to publish, which should allow pre-prints and post prints to be added where content is locked behind a paywall. To determine which version can be added to APO authors should check Sherpa Romeo. ANSTO research is increasingly being published in open access due mainly to the Council of Australian University Librarians read and publish agreements, and some direct publisher agreements with our organisation. In addition, open access items are also facilitated through collaboration and open access agreements with overseas authors such as Plan S.

ANSTO authors are encouraged to use a CC-BY licence when publishing open access. Statistics have been returned to the database and are now visible to users to show item usage and where this usage is coming from.

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    The incorporation of Nd or Ce in CaZrTi2O7 zirconolite: ceramic versus glass-ceramic
    (Elsevier, 2021-01) Kong, LG; Karatchevtseva, I; Zhang, YJ; Wei, T
    Three sets of the zirconolite ceramic and glass-ceramic systems have been investigated including Ca1−xZr1−xNd2xTi2O7, Ca1−xNdxZrTi2-xAlxO7 and CaZr1−xCexTi2O7 (x = 0 − 0.5). The zirconolite formation is compared between ceramics sintered at 1300 °C for 12 h and glass-ceramics sintered at 1250 °C for 3 h. Powder X-ray diffraction, Raman and scanning electron microscopy techniques are used to analyze the crystal structure, morphologies and composition distribution. Ca1−xNdxZrTi2-xAlxO7 can incorporate 0.5 formula unit of Nd in dominant zirconolite in both ceramic and glass-ceramic samples with baddeleyite as minor phase and slight amount of sphene in glass-ceramics, with more than 86% of the Nd initially introduced staying in zirconolite phase. Less Nd can be doped in zirconolite dominated Ca1−xZr1−xNd2xTi2O7 system with perovskite as a minor phase in ceramics and sphene as a minor phase in glass-ceramics. Only small amounts of Ce (x ≤ 0.1) can be incorporated in CaZr1−xCexTi2O7 zirconolite ceramic and glass-ceramics without obvious minor phases. © 2020 Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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    Structural and spectroscopic insights into the cation mediated phase transitions in samarium zirconates Sm2Zr2–x O7–2x (x = 0 to 1)
    (Elsevier, 2025-10) Kong, LG; Wang, ZY; Aughterson, RD; Karatchevtseva, I; Zhang, YJ
    Lanthanide zirconates have attracted recent attention as energy materials due to their desirable physical-chemical properties and excellent chemical stability. In this work, a series of Sm2Zr2–x O7–2x (x = 0–1, step = 0.125) compounds have been synthesized using a solution route and sintered at 1400 °C for 24 h. High-resolution synchrotron X-ray diffraction (SXRD) results indicate that Sm2Zr2–x O7–2x samples transform from highly ordered pyrochlore (x = 0), to disordered pyrochlores (x = 0.125, 0.25, 0.375, 0.5, 0.625) and defect fluorites (x = 0.75, 0.875, 1). The SXRD patterns show that pyrochlore superlattice peaks are present in samples (x = 0–0.625) with SmO1.5 50–59.3 mol.%, but are absent in samples (x = 0.75–1) with SmO1.5 61.5–66.7 mol.%, indicating a loss of long-range pyrochlore order. The short-range structural study by Raman spectroscopy reveals that with gradually increasing Sm mol.%, the structure transforms from ordered pyrochlore (x = 0) to disordered pyrochlore (x = 0.125–0.625) containing both pyrochlore and fluorite (x = 0.5 and 0.625), then to defect fluorite (x = 0.75–1). While SEM analysis shows the high compositional homogeneity, TEM-SAED results concur the SXRD data. In addition, diffuse reflectance spectroscopy reveals the absorption features reflecting the presence of Sm(III) ion. Overall, this work highlights the structural flexibility of lanthanide zirconates in terms of compositional variations and has important implications for energy applications such as solid-oxide fuel cells and nuclear waste management including waste forms for minor actinides. Crown Copyright © 2025 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Open Access CC-BY.
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    Developments and prospects of carbon anode materials in potassium-ion batteries
    (Springer Nature, 2024-09-19) Liu, ZM; Gong, ZQ; He, KY; Qiu, P; Wang, XC; Zhao, LK; Gu, QF; Gao, XW; Luo, WB
    Potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) have garnered significant interest due to their abundant resources, wide distribution and low price, emerging as an ideal alternative to lithium-ion batteries for energy storage systems. As one of the key components, anode materials act as a crucial role in the specific capacity, energy density, power density and service life of PIBs, so it is highly significant to conduct a comprehensive investigation on them. Carbon materials are widely employed as the anode for PIBs because of their advantages of environmental friendliness, abundant raw materials and diverse structures. According to the structural differences, carbon materials are mainly distinguished as crystalline carbon represented by graphite and graphene, and soft carbon and hard carbon existing in amorphous state. Different types of carbon materials have special ion storage mechanisms, storage capacity and cycling stability. Herein, it is meaningful to summarize and discuss the characteristics and research progress in carbon anode materials for PIBs in recent years. Firstly, according to the development status and application prospect of graphite, graphene, soft carbon, and hard carbon, we deeply generalize the electrochemical performance and potassium storage mechanism. Then we dig out the key problems faced by different carbon materials and arrange various modification design and solving strategies of novel carbon anodes. Finally, we expound the importance of carbon anode materials as the anode and PIBs, explore the application potential of current and emerging carbon anode materials, and put forward some suggestions and prospects for the future development of carbon materials. © 2019 Springer
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    The pollen record from marine core MD03-2607 from offshore Kangaroo Island spanning the last 125 ka; implications for vegetation changes across the Murray-Darling Basin
    (Taylor & Francis, 2021-03-28) De Deckker, P; van der Kaars, S; Haberle, SG; Hua, Q; Stuut, JBW
    A palynological record spanning the last glacial–interglacial period was derived from high-resolution, deep-sea core MD03-2607, located near Kangaroo Island in South Australia. The core site lies opposite the mouth of the River Murray that, together with the Darling River, drains the extensive (∼1.6 × 106 km2) Murray-Darling Basin (MDB). The record comprises 120 samples and is compared with detailed records of sea-surface temperature (SST), the C3/C4 plant ratio obtained from the δ13C of n-alkanes from leaf waxes, the fluvial clay fraction and its neodymium isotopic composition, airborne dust and the biomass-burning component levuglosan. The chronology of the core is robust; it is built on 24 radiocarbon dates derived from planktic foraminifera, 16 optically stimulated luminescence dates, plus 12 tie points linked to the astronomically tuned marine isotopic record. Algal remains are found in nearly all samples supporting our postulation that the palynoflora is predominantly waterborne. Major findings are that the gymnosperm Callitris, together with high percentages of herb pollen (mostly C3 plants), is predominant during cold, arid phases, whereas Eucalyptus, is predominant during warmer and wetter periods. High charcoal concentration coincides with high percentages of Eucalyptus, mostly during wet and warm periods. Using the geochemistry of the core’s fluvial sediments, it has been possible to identify when water-transported palynoflora and charcoal originated from the Murray sub-basin (consisting of the River Murray and its main tributaries but not from central or western South Australia). During those periods, rainfall principally originated from the southeastern Indian Ocean. When the Darling sub-basin was the main source of the palynoflora, rainfall must have instead originated from northern Australia. The eolian dust record from the core shows that the dust signal generally coincides with the increased values in herb pollen, in particular during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) when, in addition to high herb percentages, Callitris representation also increased. This dry landscape taxon likely colonised the then-exposed Lacepede Shelf during this period of extreme low sea-level. There is a good correspondence between SST and mean annual precipitation reconstructed from the pollen counts. During warm phases in the ocean, Eucalyptus was the dominant tree taxon, especially for the entirety of Marine Isotope Stages (MIS) 5, plus MIS 3 and MIS 1. Charcoal levels were particularly low during the dry phases MIS 4 and 2, and even more so during the LGM. KEY POINTS We provide a very detailed pollen diagram from a deep-sea core taken offshore from the mouth of the River Murray. This record details vegetation changes in the Murray-Darling Basin spanning the last glacial/interglacial cycle. The pollen record is compared with other proxies obtained from the marine core, such as sea-surface temperature, changes in C3/C4 plants percentages, geochemical analyses of terrigenous sediments that inform on the origin of the sediments reaching the ocean and by implication the origin of the pollen. Charcoal counts obtained from the core are compared with the pollen spectra and clearly indicate the large incidence of fires during wet and warm periods when Eucalyptus pollen was abundant. Low charcoal counts occur during dry and cold phases when Callitris pollen were predominant over Eucalyptus. © 2026 Informa UK Limited.
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    Defect engineering toward binary spinel ZnCo2O4 for boosting electrocatalytic nitrate reduction to ammonia
    (Elsevier, 2025-09-15) Lai, QS; Liu, ZM; Akasa, A; Zhao, XR; Wei, R; Gao, XW; Al Wafi, TM; Gu, QF; Luo, WB
    Electrochemical nitrate reduction reaction (NO3 −RR) has a significant application potential for the electrochemical synthesis of ammonia at ambient temperature. Spinel oxides have garnered an extensive attention as effective electrocatalysts for NO3 −RR due to their flexible ion arrangements multiple oxidation states and high electrical conductivity. A defect-engineering approach using alkaline electrochemical etching on ZnCo2O4 electrocatalyst was employed to creat a mass of Zn vacancies in crystal lattice (VZn-ZnCo2O4). This not only induces lattice distortion, but also reduces the charge transfer resistance and optimizes the internal electron transportation. It achieved a maximum NH3 Faradaic efficiency (FENH3) of 94.5 % and NH3 yield rate of 2.79 mg h−1 cm−2 in 0.1 M NO3 −. Even in a dilute nitrate solution of 0.01 M NO3 −, the FENH3 still reaches a maximum of 91.74 % at −0.5 V, with an NH3 yield rate of 1.62 mg h−1 cm−2. Zn defects can accumulate abundant electrons in the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and shorten the CoO bond length with NO3 − adsorption, thereby promoting NO3 − adsorption. The surface Zn atomic defects suppress the HER and lower the energy barrier of the rate-determining step (RDS) from 0.44 eV to 0.24 eV, significantly enhancing the activity and selectivity of NO3 −RR. © 2025 Elsevier B.V.