Babcock Noell supplies the heart of the new DESY research system in Hamburg

Würzburg, 04. Dec. 2009

Know-how transfer from south to north

Babcock Noell GmbH supplied the most important innovation for the research system of the superlative PETRA III in Hamburg whose opening ceremony was held last week. The Würzburg-based company, a subsidiary of the Bilfinger Berger Power Services Group, produced twelve of the so-called undulator magnets in record time and thus made sure that everything was ready for the start of the most modern synchrotronic radiation source in the world based on a ring accelerator and located at the DESY Research Center

Scientists hope that the PETRA III ring accelerator will provide new insights into the structure of the material, and PETRA III also opens up new possibilities in the field of structural biology, for example for research into protein molecules. The magnets supplied by Babcock Noell guide the particles which have been accelerated in the ring to a defined orbit and thus generate a particularly intense X-ray beam for measurements. In 2007 Babcock Noell manufactured a five meter long undulator, and in 2008 it supplied a further eleven units to DESY in record time.

The German Electron Synchrotron (DESY) is one of the leading accelerator centers in the world for researching this subject. The center develops, builds and uses accelerators and detectors for research involving photons and particle physics. It is a national research center financed from the public purse and also a member of the Helmholtz Association. DESY has a total workforce of 1,900 people, around 600 of whom are scientists.

The existing PETRA accelerator was modernized to the state of the art in order to create the system. In addition a 280 meter long experiment hall was built in which research is carried out simultaneously at 30 measurement stations. The investment volume for the modernization of PETRA and for the construction of the new experiment hall for PETRA III amounted to some 233 million euros.

About Babcock Noell GmbH:

Babcock Noell is a global player in the areas of nuclear service, nuclear technology, magnetic systems, and environmental engineering and has been very successful in leveraging the experience it has acquired in the last four decades. The company operates as part of the Bilfinger Berger AG group through Bilfinger Berger Power Services GmbH in Oberhausen.

With a staff of 300, most of which are qualified engineers, core competencies range from development, planning, delivery, and commissioning to on-site operation of plants and facilities.

Particularly noteworthy and technologically challenging projects include delivery of the containment liner and other complex components for the new OL 3 nuclear power station in Finland, construction of the pilot conditioning plant for final storage of spent fuel elements in Gorleben, engineering of superconducting magnets for the international research center in Geneva and of superconducting coils for the Max Planck Institute's nuclear fusion reactor experiment (Wendelstein 7 X) in Garching and Greifswald, and delivery of a flue gas desulfurization plant for the world's first pilot installation with CO₂ extractor and form the basis for future growth.

For further Information please contact:
Babcock Noell GmbH
Geschäftsführung
Alfred-Nobel-Str. 20
97080 Würzburg
Telefon: +49 931 9030
Fax: +49 931 9036000
Email: info@babcocknoell.de
Web: www.babcocknoell.de

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