The European Council for Nuclear Research (CERN) has contracted GTT to design the containment system of a 12,500 cbm onshore storage tank intended to contain liquid argon for experimental purposes.
Philippe Berterottière, Chairman and CEO of GTT declared: “Our cooperation with CERN demonstrates GTT’s capacity to offer the membrane technology for the containment of other liquefied gases such as the argon which must be kept at -186°C. We are proud to contribute our technologies to serve a major European scientific initiative”.
This project was preceded by the construction of two small storage tanks dedicated to a series of tests performed by CERN, on behalf of LBNF-DUNE1 which includes the CERN and several other research institutes in Europe, Asia and America.
The scientific project aims to study the physics of neutrinos, fundamental components of matter and the forces which act between them. In this context, the tank outfitted with GTT’s membrane containment system will host the liquid argon. It is, so far, the only system allowing the preservation of the purity of the argon required for the good realisation of the experiment. The 12,500 cbm reservoir will be installed 1,500m underground in South Dakota (United States); its construction will begin in early 2020.
For more information, visit: www.gtt.fr
