On November 27, 2020 at 2PM, Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn traveled to the Thailand Institute of Nuclear Technology (TINT) head office, in Ongkarak district of Nakhon Nayok, to lay the foundation stone for a building that will house and operate a tokamak. The steel reinforced structure is two stories high and is divided into office and operations areas. It is slated for completion in 2021 and will be fitted with a tokamak in 2022. A tokamak is a device for storing plasma using a magnetic field and is integral to the study of nuclear fusion.
The building will be important to Thailand’s study of nuclear fusion technology and will serve as a center for learning in ASEAN. Nuclear fusion research is considered an important field that will benefit Thailand’s economy, society and security, able to create a new industry in the future and enhance the country’s ability to handle technological threats.
TINT has been supporting nuclear fusion technology development and pushing for it to be included in the 2020 to 2027 policy and strategy for higher learning in science, research and innovation. The tokamak was provided to Thailand by the Plasma Physics Institute of the People’s Republic of China.
During her visit to the premises, Her Royal Highness viewed works by TINT, including archaeological projects it has carried out, in collaboration with the Fine Arts Department, starting in 2014 in which the two agencies analyzed samples and shared data on historical sites, such as Ban Bor Cha-om in Chantaburi, where human bones and tools, initially thought to be from the Ayuthaya era, were confirmed to be prehistoric, dating back 2-3,000 years.
Another project Her Royal Highness viewed was food irradiation, a globally accepted process for preserving food. Thailand currently allows the use of gamma, electron and X-Rays to irradiate food. TINT performs the process on fresh and frozen food, rice and herbs, extending its shelf life and nutritional value.
A final project viewed by Her Royal Highness was TINT’s management of nuclear waste. The institute is able to keep and monitor irradiated material, safeguarding the environment from any danger.
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Information and Source:National News Bureau & Public Relations : http://thainews.prd.go.th