Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT) at Indore in Madhya Pradesh came into existence after a formal order issued by the eminent physicist and then director general of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Padma Vibhushan Dr Raja Ramanna in 1983. RRCAT, a premier R&D facility engaged in non-nuclear frontline research areas of lasers, particle accelerators and related technologies, is a unit of the Department of Atomic Energy, government of India.
THE CENTRE
The centre’s foundation stone was laid by the President of India, Gyani Zail Singh on February 19, 1984. At the time, it was named the Centre for Advanced Technology (CAT). Former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh renamed the centre as Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT) on December 17, 2005.
RRCAT is a delivery-oriented R&D organization conducting research and development in non-nuclear, front-line research areas. These areas include light sources like lasers and particle accelerators, their applications, and related technologies such as plasma, ultra-high vacuum, charged particle dynamics, electromagnetics, radio-frequency engineering, precision manufacturing, material joining, and cryogenics. The centre’s motto is: “Photons serving mankind through science and technology.”
One of the centre’s most significant achievements is the indigenous development of particle accelerators at a significantly lower cost compared to similar international facilities. Despite this cost advantage, the performance of these technologically complex machines remains at par with international facilities in terms of uptime, research papers published, and beam characteristics.
The centre has successfully designed and built two electron accelerator-based synchrotron radiation sources: Indus-1 (450 MeV, 125 mA) and Indus-2 (2.5 GeV, 200 mA). These national facilities serve researchers from across the country.
The Indian pharmaceutical industry routinely conducts experiments at Indus beamlines to validate their drug development processes and obtain crucial data for licensing purposes. The synchrotron beamlines of Indus facilities have also played a vital role in calibrating software and detectors for ISRO’s Chandrayaan-I and Chandrayaan-II missions, as well as characterizing X-ray optics for its Astrosat mission. Additionally, the nuclear industry has benefited from Indus-2 beamlines through stress analysis of critical welded components used in reactors.
The centre has mastered the technology of building indigenous 10 MeV linear electron accelerator for medical sterilization and various other applications like agro-produce preservation, irradiation of research samples for the development of new crop varieties, colour modification of gemstones, development of novel materials and modification of semiconductor properties. An ISO 9001-certified 6 kW electron beam radiation processing facility is fully functional and is operating commercially at Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar Fruit and Vegetable Mandi Complex, Indore.
HOME-GROWN ELECTRON BEAM PROCESSING EXPERTISE
RRCAT has also developed fully home-grown electron beam processing expertise in strict compliance of ISO 11137 as well as AERB and FDA regulations. The radiation processing facility has been providing electron beam radiation processing services for the sterilization of medical devices on a commercial basis. More than 2.5 million medical devices have been sterilized in this facility. Another 10 MeV, 10 kW industrial linear accelerator has been installed at an industry in Bangalore for industrial scale process operations for medical device sterilization. The RRCAT team carried out intensive activities with the industry for installation, beam commissioning and performance qualification of this critical, large-scale system at Bangalore. Further activities for equipment, plant, process and product regulatory approvals are to be carried out in the coming weeks. RRCAT has already embarked on its efforts to increase the beam power to 15 kW in the coming times.
It is significant to note that the whole of the 27 km Large Hadron Collider (LHC) of CERN, Geneva is standing on RRCAT’s six thousand eight hundred ultraprecision alignment jacks. These jacks were conceptualised and designed at RRCAT and were manufactured by the Indian industries under the quality surveillance of RRCAT. The jacks are capable of positioning a 15-meter-long magnet, weighing 32 tonnes, with an accuracy of less than 50 micrometres, i.e. less than the breadth of human hair. RRCAT also made several other contributions in LHC like manufacturing of superconducting corrector magnets and performing characterisation of huge superconducting magnets.
ACE MANUFACTURER OF SENSITIVE COMPONENTS
Manufacturing technology plays a crucial role in delivering complex and technically challenging products. One of the early challenges faced by the centre was in the manufacturing of precision and dimensionally sensitive components in materials like pure copper, stainless steel and aluminium and its alloys that must meet additional requirements of ultra-high vacuum compatibility. This required cutting-edge research in material joining as these complicated machines need a variety of metals and ceramics for their specific properties. These joints must be of the highest quality due to the compulsion of achieving ultra-high vacuum. This requirement was foreseen by great visionaries of DAE and a small workshop building was inaugurated only after three years of laying of foundation stone. Today, this facility has state-of-the-art design, manufacturing and measurement tools powered by a very committed and dynamic team of about 100 technocrats who work tirelessly to convert dreams into reality.
The 1.8-meter-long linear electron accelerators of radiation processing facilities, made of ultrapure copper, are manufactured in RRCAT’s facility starting from raw material to the end product. Engineering marvels like radiofrequency cavities of Microtron, Booster Synchrotron, Indus-1 and Indus-2 are some of the shining examples of the competence of the facility. This facility has equipped RRCAT to develop recipes for dissimilar bi-material joining of materials like tantalum, niobium, alumina, stainless steel, titanium and its alloys, copper, aluminium and its alloys, molybdenum, aluminium nitride and silicon carbide. It has also developed novel processes in fusion welding of austenitic stainless steels and some non-ferrous metals to meet the design goals emanating from the requirements of particle accelerators.
Recently, RRCAT conducted a one-of-a-kind theme meeting on recent advances in TIG welding of stainless steels, aluminium alloys and titanium alloys with the participation of 150 delegates from academia, research labs and industry on one platform. It has also demonstrated the ability to make vacuum-cast thread-filled tubular joints between aluminium alloy and austenitic stainless steel for a prospective application in an isotope production reactor. It is always working towards developing novel joining technologies much before their need appears in projects.
CONTRIBUTING TO NUCLEAR POWER REACTORS
RRCAT has also developed the capability of manufacturing superconducting radiofrequency cavities made of niobium which are crucial for the development of accelerator-driven sub-critical nuclear power reactors fuelled by thorium. India has enormous reserves of thorium; therefore, this capability will assist in the development of thorium fuelled nuclear power reactors.
The manufacturing technologies developed at RRCAT are also resolving challenges on various other fronts. RRCAT has developed high-power long pulse Nd:YAG lasers of up to 1 kW average power and 20 kW peak power. Laser cutting and welding technology has the advantage of non-contact nature, remote operation, lower heat affected zone, distortion and shrinkage as compared to conventional technologies. Remotely operable laser cutting technology has been developed & deployed successfully for various in-situ operations such as cutting of bellow lips during en masse coolant channel replacement (EMCCR) campaign, removal of single selected coolant channels for post-irradiation examination for life enhancement studies, cutting of up to 30 mm thick pipelines, etc. for refurbishing and maintenance of Indian nuclear power plants. The use of laser-based technology has resulted in enormous reduction in maintenance shutdown time of reactors as compared to conventional mechanical methods. For societal applications, laser micro-welding technology for I-125 and Ir-192 brachytherapy capsules for cancer treatment and heart pacemaker fabrication have also been developed. Towards the front end of the fuel cycle, laser welding technology for fuel pins has also been successfully developed and deployed.
RRCAT has developed machine vision-based inspection systems to assist fabrication of nuclear fuel. Machine vision system refers to the human-like ability of an intelligent machine with the capability to capture the visual information; decode, analyse it and make interpretations. The machine vision-based system has replaced the human intensive inspection procedures leading to a substantial reduction of radiation exposure. This accurate, non-contact, fast, 24×7, industrial-grade, customized inspection system is a perfect fit for integration into the existing production cycle.
RRCAT’s laser additive manufacturing (LAM) technology for building metallic components stands at the forefront of innovation. RRCAT’s additive manufacturing endeavours have led to the development of cutting-edge LAM systems and metallic components for in-house and industrial applications. The technology is now being commercialized through industry and startups. The centre has also built unique products using cold additive manufacturing technologies like electroforming by electrochemical deposition on removable mandrill or conductivised wax.
TRANSFERRING TECH TO INDUSTRY AND MARKET
The technologies and products developed at RRCAT for specific applications are transferred to the Indian industries and startups under its incubation programme. AIC RRCAT PI-HUB FOUNDATION (also known as AIC π-Hub) is a Section-8 company incorporated under the Companies Act 2013 with 100% equity holding by the Centre and is supported by Atal Innovation Mission. It is mandated to translate technologies, know-how, and expertise developed at RRCAT into products or processes for the Indian industries or startups with the seamless handholding of RRCAT scientists and engineers. Many of the technologies and products developed at RRCAT have been transferred to the Indian industry through various modes of incubation.
RRCAT has been making consistent efforts to take its technological strength to serve the nation in as many ways as possible. Trade Apprenticeship Scheme at RRCAT, popularly known as TASAR, is one such unique initiative in which ITI-passed young boys and girls are trained in their respective trades for one-year. They not only learn during their training but also make a substantial contribution to the overall physical output of the centre. The skill enhancement of these apprentices is so phenomenal that they are readily absorbed in top institutes and business firms. Some of the top recruiters of these apprentices are BARC, NFC, RRCAT, IGCAR, ISRO, DRDO, NISER, NPCI and Indian Railways. So far, RRCAT has trained more than 200 apprentices in various trades.
RRCAT’s enviable journey from its inception to the present shows its commitment to deliver mandated products and associated technologies. The knowledgeable and enthusiastic scientists and technologists of the centre are ready to take up challenging assignments and are always looking forward to exceeding the expectations of the nation through exemplary work.
THE CAMPUS
RRCAT is situated on a sprawling 680 hectare-area campus on the southwest outskirts of Indore city. Currently, the campus covers over 255 hectares, including about 40 hectares of the scenic Sukhniwas Lake. This campus includes laboratories, offices, and a staff housing colony, as well as basic amenities such as schools, sports facilities, a shopping complex, a medical dispensary, a bank, a post office, a conference center, two community centers, three hostels, two guesthouses, and several beautifully landscaped parks.
*The writer is Associate Professor, DY Patil International University, Akurdi, Pune.
