The Reactor Top Plate
Provenance
- Paper
- Ilford Galerie Smooth Cotton Rag 310 gsm
The reactor top plate at HIFAR, Lucas Heights. Middle plugs at the centre cover the 25 fuel-element positions. Six cadmium coarse control arms surround them, each on its own gearbox, used to regulate the nuclear reaction during operation. The red silicon flask sits to the right.
Open edition
Printed to order, no fixed quantity. Each print is hand-signed by the photographer.
Limited edition
A fixed number of prints exist. Once sold, the edition closes permanently. Each print is individually numbered and signed.
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In situ
Print datasheet
- Title
- The Reactor Top Plate
- Series
- ANSTO HIFAR
- Catalogue
- AHF-048
- Process
- Giclée
- Paper
- Ilford Galerie Smooth Cotton Rag 310 gsm
- Paper size
- 290 × 200 mm
- Location
- Lucas Heights, New South Wales, Australia
- Recognised by
- Highly Commended in Multimedia at the 2016 National Trust of Australia (NSW) Heritage Awards
About this print
The red silicon flask on the right of the top plate was designed to safely lower silicon billets into the reactor for irradiation. Positioned directly over the silicon facility, it ensured precise handling of materials during reactor operation.
Brett Patman
The series
ANSTO HIFAR
At 11:15 pm on Sunday 26 January 1958, Australia Day, the High Flux Australian Reactor went critical for the first time with 11 of 25 fuel elements loaded. The men in the control room had come from Oak Ridge, Chalk River and Harwell. HIFAR was Australia's first nuclear reactor.
Print sizes
The anatomy view shows what this finish is as a physical object: paper margin, mat band, frame depth, acrylic profile. The comparison strip shows how each size sits relative to the others at true scale. Click a size or a finish to update both.
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