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102-694: The Montreal Laboratory was a program established by the National Research Council of Canada during World War II to undertake nuclear research in collaboration with the United Kingdom , and to absorb some of the scientists and work of the Tube Alloys nuclear project in Britain. It became part of the Manhattan Project , and designed and built some of the world's first nuclear reactors . After

204-685: A cypher clerk at the Soviet Union 's embassy in Ottawa, and his family defected to Canada. He brought with him copies of cables detailing Soviet intelligence (GRU) espionage activities in Canada. Agents included Alan Nunn May , who secretly supplied tiny samples of uranium-233 and uranium-235 to GRU agent Pavel Angelov in July 1945; Fred Rose , a member of parliament ; and NRC scientists Israel Halperin , Edward Mazerall and Durnford Smith. Pontecorvo, who defected to

306-656: A $ 5,000 grant to continue his research. This payment was made by Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) through a Canadian subsidiary. It had the desired side effect of impressing the Canadian authorities with the importance of Laurence's work. Laurence had chosen to use carbon instead of heavy water because it was cheaper and more readily available. A team of scientists in France that included Hans von Halban , Lew Kowarski , and Francis Perrin had been conducting similar experiments since 1939. By 1940, they had decided to use heavy water as

408-586: A French scientist who was already in Canada, ran into Henri Laugier , a French biologist who had been president of the Centre national de la recherche scientifique before the Fall of France, when he had escaped to Canada. Laugier suggested that they acquire some unused wings of a new building at the Université de Montréal , where he was now teaching. These had been earmarked for a medical school, but had never been equipped due to

510-458: A NRC $ 35,750 grant. NRC's fleet of research and test aircraft The NRC has a fleet of nine aircraft for their research purposes: NRC's past fleet of research and test aircraft Former aircraft include other models of the nine listed above and the following: Research aircraft Several Nobel laureates have been associated with the NRC at various points of their careers, including: Under

612-810: A breach of faith. Anglo-American cooperation largely ended in April 1946 when Truman declared that the United States would not assist Britain in the design, construction or operation of a plutonium production reactor. The Americans had agreed that such a facility could be built in Canada, but the British were not willing to be dependent on Canada for the supply of fissile material. 45°30′17″N 73°36′46″W  /  45.50472°N 73.61278°W  / 45.50472; -73.61278 National Research Council (Canada) The Minister of Innovation, Science, and Economic Development (currently, François-Philippe Champagne )

714-463: A change in research focus away from basic research and towards industry-relevant research. This included the development of multiple programs which shifted the research budget out of existing projects and into a number of focused programs. In October 2012, John McDougall and his appointment, Dr. Ian Potter (VP Business Management), served termination notices to all of the NRC's Business Development Officer's (BDOs) across Canada, which ultimately impacted

816-503: A fruitful and successful international venture, although the Canadians had on occasion been resentful of British actions that were perceived as high-handed and insensitive. One such action came in November 1945 when the British government suddenly announced that Cockcroft had been appointed the head of the new Atomic Energy Research Establishment in Britain without any prior consultation and at

918-483: A laboratory with about 30 scientists and 25 laboratory assistants, of whom 22 scientists and 6 laboratory assistants would be sent from Britain. The estimated running cost was £60,000 per annum. He agreed that the costs and salaries would be divided between the British and Canadian governments, but the British share would come from a billion-dollar war gift from Canada. The Canadians found this acceptable. Howe and Mackenzie then travelled to London to finalise arrangements for

1020-617: A lack of funds. The 200-square-metre (2,200 sq ft) space was acquired, but considerable work was required to convert it into a laboratory, and it could not be made ready before mid-February 1943. Ernest Cormier , the university architect, drew up the plans. The first eight staff arrived in Montreal at the end of 1942. These were Goldschmidt and Pierre Auger from France, George Placzek from Czechoslovakia , S. G. Bauer from Switzerland, Friedrich Paneth and Halban from Austria, and R. E. Newell and F. R. Jackson from Britain. The Battle of

1122-633: A means of efficiently producing medical isotopes like phosphorus-32 , research facilities that for a time were superior to those in the United States, and a wealth of technical information related to reactor design and operation. With the passage of the Canadian Atomic Energy Act of 1946, the responsibility for the Chalk River Laboratories passed to the Atomic Energy Control Board . On 5 September 1945, Igor Gouzenko ,

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1224-753: A moderator, and through the French Minister of Armaments obtained about 185 kilograms (408 lb) from the Norsk Hydro hydroelectric station at Vemork in Norway. After the Fall of France , they had escaped to Britain with their stock of heavy water. They were temporarily installed in the Cavendish Laboratory at the University of Cambridge but, believing that Britain would soon fall as well, were eager to relocate to

1326-640: A number of important projects, which included participation with the United States and United Kingdom , in the development of chemical and germ warfare agents, the explosive RDX , the proximity fuse, radar , and submarine detection techniques. A special branch, known as the Examination Unit, was involved with cryptology and the interception of enemy radio communications. According to the Canadian Security Intelligence Service website,

1428-572: A reactor could be used to breed plutonium , which might be used in one. It therefore recommended that they be relocated to the United States, and co-located with the Manhattan Project's reactor effort. Due to American concerns about security (many of the scientists were foreign nationals) and patent claims by the French scientists and Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI), it was decided to relocate them to Canada instead. The Canadian government agreed to

1530-534: A site at Chalk River , Ontario, on the south bank of the Ottawa River some 110 miles (180 km) northwest of Ottawa. The Americans fully supported the reactor project with information and visits. Groves loaned the Montreal Laboratory 19 short tons (17 t) of heavy water and 5 short tons (4.5 t) of pure uranium metal for the reactor, and samples of pure and irradiated uranium and thorium to develop

1632-497: A sudden, three-line email to employees in March 2016 announced that he was going on personal leave. During this time Maria Aubrey, Vice President of the NRC, filled the role as Acting President. Effective August 24, 2016, Iain Stewart became the new President of the NRC. The details regarding McDougall's personal leave were not publicly disclosed. Under Minister of Science Kirsty Duncan ,

1734-532: A time when the NRX reactor was still under construction. Cockcroft did not depart Canada until September 1946, but it was a sure sign of waning British interest in collaboration with Canada. The British suggested he be replaced by the British physicist Bennett Lewis , who was eventually appointed, but only after the Canadian-born Walter Zinn turned the job down. Anglo-American cooperation did not long survive

1836-490: Is a semiconductor commonly used in light-emitting diodes . The GaN Electronics Program supports partner research and development activities with a goal of ensuring that GaN technology will create wealth and a greener future for Canadians. The NRC is the only Canadian foundry for GaN electronics, and offers both normally-on and normally-off devices. The GaN500v2 Foundry Design Kit was released on June 28, 2014. The NRC Industrial Research Assistance Program ( NRC-IRAP )

1938-454: Is a mining area on the eastern shore of Great Bear Lake , Northwest Territories , Canada. It included the settlement of Cameron Bay as well as the Eldorado (also called Port Radium) and Echo Bay mines. The name Port Radium did not come into use until 1936 and at the time it was in reference to the region as a whole. The Eldorado mine site at LaBine Point adopted the name for its settlement in

2040-534: Is at 66°06′N 117°56′W  /  66.100°N 117.933°W  / 66.100; -117.933  ( Port Radium Airport ) between the two to the north and consisted of a gravel airstrip next to Glacier Lake. During a field trip along the east arm of Great Bear Lake in August 1900, James McIntosh Bell of the Geological Survey of Canada noted evidences of iron , copper , uranium and cobalt in

2142-410: Is related to prior interests of NRC President John McDougall , as he previously headed Innoventures, a company involved in lobbying for the development of an algae system to recycle carbon emissions. The NRC was not involved in this area of research prior to the arrival of McDougall. The Canadian Wheat Improvement Program is a "strategic collaboration with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC),

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2244-578: Is responsible for the NRC. NRC is an agency of the Government of Canada , and its mandate is set out in the National Research Council Act . Under the Act, the NRC is responsible for: Over 5,000 people across Canada are employed by the NRC. In addition, the NRC also employs guest workers from universities, companies, and public and private-sector organizations. The National Research Council

2346-442: Is to provide a completely isolated environment that, according to Barton, registers a noise level that is less than 0dB. (0dB is a statistical average of the lowest level of human hearing.) Wedges made from fibreglass are inside the chamber, and they help create the reflection-free environment. No sound gets in, none gets out, and what occurs within gets completely absorbed with nary a bounce. From 2002 to 2006, John R. McDougall , who

2448-687: The Algal Carbon Conversion Pilot Program was to develop of an algae system to recycle carbon emissions from the oil sands . It contained plans for a $ 19-million facility to be constructed in Alberta, in partnership between the NRC, Canadian Natural Resources , and Pond Biofuels. In 2008, researchers from five I-CAN organizations were developing a Carbon Algae Recycling System (CARS) to "feed waste heat and flue gas containing CO 2 from industrial exhaust stacks to micro-algae growing in artificial ponds." The "Algal Carbon Conversion",

2550-598: The Defence Research Board , while inventions with commercial potential were transferred to the newly formed Canadian Patents and Development Limited ; and atomic research went to the newly created Atomic Energy of Canada Limited . Foreign signals intelligence gathering officially remained with the agency when, by Order in Council, the Examination Unit became the Communications Branch of the NRC in 1946. The CBNRC

2652-403: The Fall of France , some French scientists escaped to Britain with their stock of heavy water . They were temporarily installed in the Cavendish Laboratory at the University of Cambridge , where they worked on reactor design. The MAUD Committee was uncertain whether this was relevant to the main task of Tube Alloys, that of building an atomic bomb , although there remained a possibility that

2754-569: The GOSA Act to the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada . Under financial pressure in the 1980s, the federal government produced what popularly became known as the Neilson Report , which recommended across-the-board financial cuts to all federal government organizations, including the NRC. This led to staff and program cutbacks. By 1985, however, two entities emerged from

2856-664: The Metallurgical Laboratory and chemist John R. Huffman from the SAM Laboratories were assigned to it. They were succeeded by George Weil in November 1945. Benbow was succeeded by Major P. Firmin in December 1945, who in turn was replaced by Colonel A. W. Nielson in February 1946. The Chalk River Laboratories opened in 1944, and the Montreal Laboratory was closed in July 1946. ZEEP went critical on 5 September 1945, becoming

2958-481: The Northwest Territories . For a neutron moderator , he used carbon in the form of petroleum coke . This was placed with the bags of uranium oxide in a large wooden bin lined with paraffin wax , another neutron moderator. A neutron source was added and a Geiger counter used to measure radioactivity . The experiments continued in 1942, but were ultimately unsuccessful; the problems posed by impurities in

3060-495: The Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD). Taylor offered a NDRC contract to produce 2,000 pounds (910 kg), for which the NDRC was prepared to pay $ 5 per pound for low-grade and $ 10 for high-grade heavy water. At the time it was selling for up to $ 1,130 per pound. Cominco's president, Selwyn G. Blaylock , was cautious. There might be no post-war demand for heavy water, and

3162-629: The University of Saskatchewan ’s Crop Development Centre and the province of Saskatchewan." With a budget of approximately $ 97 million (2013–2018), the Canadian Wheat Alliance will be conducting research on improving the yield of Canadian wheat crops and on the most efficient use of chemical fertilizers. Working with breeders and scientists at the Crop Development Centre and at AAFC, they will be integrating long-term research with genetic improvement of wheat. Gallium nitride (GaN)

Montreal Laboratory - Misplaced Pages Continue

3264-599: The patent on the process was held by Albert Edgar Knowles, so a profit-sharing agreement would be required. In response, Taylor offered $ 20,000 for plant modifications. There the matter rested until 6 December, when Blaylock had a meeting with the British physicist G. I. Higson, who informed him that Taylor had become discouraged with Cominco, and had decided to find another source of heavy water. Blaylock invited Taylor to visit Trail, which he did from 5 to 8 January 1942. The two soon found common ground. Blaylock agreed to produce heavy water at Trail, and quickly secured approval from

3366-529: The permanent secretary of the British Department of Scientific and Industrial Research , of which the Tube Alloys was a part, managed to persuade them to go. Kowarski remained at Cambridge, where he worked for James Chadwick . Auger became head of the experimental physics division instead. Paneth became head of the chemistry division. Two other scientists that had escaped from France joined the laboratory:

3468-586: The 1930s in this area. Eldorado Mine became the first producing venture and it had its own private camp for its employees. There were also operations at the Elbonanza silver property, at White Eagle on the Camsell River, and at Contact Lake. In 1932 prospectors and businesses settled down in a protective cove off Echo Bay, known as Cameron Bay. By 1933 the Canadian Government had surveyed a townsite. At its peak

3570-542: The 1940s and it has generally stuck. Port Radium is situated at 66°05′11″N 118°02′21″W  /  66.08639°N 118.03917°W  / 66.08639; -118.03917  ( Port Radium post office ) on LaBine Point on the McTavish Arm of Great Bear Lake. Cameron Bay is situated 7.25 km (4.50 mi) southeast at 66°04′01″N 117°52′06″W  /  66.06694°N 117.86833°W  / 66.06694; -117.86833 and Port Radium Airport

3672-545: The 1960s Branson's Lodge built a fishing lodge on the site. The Eldorado Mine became the only remaining operation in the Port Radium area after 1942. Port Radium was occupied from 1942 to 1960 while the Eldorado Mine was producing uranium, then again between 1964 and 1982 when Echo Bay Mines Limited produced silver from the so-called Echo Bay Mine, and the Eldorado Mine. When the mine finally closed in 1982, Echo Bay burned down

3774-601: The Administration of Agency Grants and Awards by Research Institutions, administered by a Secretariat (on the Responsible Conduct of Research). In 2000, there were about 1000 NRC researchers with PhDs conducting research in many areas. Recovery was slow, but the NRC has managed to regain its status as Canada's single most important scientific and engineering research institution among many other Canadian government scientific research organizations . As President of

3876-741: The Americans brought cooperation to a standstill. By June 1943 work at the Montreal Lab had come to a halt. Morale was low and the Canadian Government proposed cancelling the project. The British government seriously considered going it alone on developing nuclear weapons, despite the cost and the expected length of the project. In August 1943, Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King hosted the Quebec Conference , at which Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt came together, and agreed to resume cooperation. The Quebec Agreement subsumed Tube Alloys into

3978-463: The Atlantic was still raging, and men and equipment, which travelled separately, were at risk from German U-boats . The scientists occupied a house at 3470 Simpson Street in downtown Montreal that belonged to McGill University. This soon became so crowded that bathrooms were used for offices, with the bath tubs used to store papers and books. They were relieved to move to the more spacious accommodation at

4080-475: The British announced their intention to build a graphite-moderated nuclear reactor in the United Kingdom. An outraged Howe told Canadian ambassador Lester B. Pearson to inform the committee that nuclear cooperation between Britain and Canada was at an end. The Canadians had been given what they deemed assurances that the Chalk River Laboratories would be a joint enterprise, and regarded the British decision as

4182-448: The British to work it out for themselves. The Americans had already built their own heavy water reactor, Chicago Pile-3 , which went critical in May 1944. The September 1944 Hyde Park Agreement extended both commercial and military cooperation into the post-war period. Hans von Halban had proved to be an unfortunate choice as he was a poor administrator, and did not work well with Mackenzie or

Montreal Laboratory - Misplaced Pages Continue

4284-530: The Cameron Bay settlement had 100 permanent residents, and the Port Radium area as a whole probably boasted 200+ residents. But by 1934 all the important deposits had been staked and activity died down. The Eldorado Mine at LaBine Point entered production in 1933 and the Contact Lake silver mine followed in 1936. At Cameron Bay, the government established a post office, a government office, and a radio station. There

4386-495: The Canadian government has signed a memorandum of understanding with Novavax to pursue manufacturing its NVX-CoV2373 vaccine at the Biologics Manufacturing Centre. In September 2020, President Iain Stewart was shuffled to the troubled Public Health Agency of Canada , and in December 2020 Bains named Mitch Davies to fill the vacancy. In October 2021, Iain Stewart returned to his position as President of

4488-432: The Canadian press have dropped 80 per cent. The union that represents federal scientists and other professionals has, for the first time in its history, abandoned neutrality to campaign against Mr. Harper. The appointment by Harper's Minister of State (Science and Technology) Gary Goodyear of John McDougall as President of the NRC was followed by several controversies: In 2011, President John McDougall began to oversee

4590-524: The Cesium Beam atomic clock in the 1960s. Since 1974, Paul Barton of PSB Speakers used the NRC's world-class measurement facilities, their anechoic chamber. By the 1980s, more companies began to use this resource, develop it further, and tested their loudspeakers at the NRC. Electrical engineer, Floyd E. Toole, who worked at the NRC was at the centre of this research. By the year 2000, most companies had their own sound chambers, but Barton continued to use

4692-700: The Chemistry division when Paneth left. Volkoff eventually succeeded Placzek as head of the Theoretical Physics division. Halban remained as head of the nuclear physics division. After the Liberation of Paris in August 1944, the French scientists wanted to go home. Auger had already returned to London to join the French Scientific Mission in April 1944. Halban returned on a visit to London and Paris in November 1944, where he saw Frédéric Joliot-Curie for

4794-466: The Eldorado Mine's alleged discrimination against First Nations and Inuit workers, such as giving them the last priority when establishing safety services. The Native Sisterhood made it a national political issue in Canada, and sparked the more famous native-rights activism in Alaska during the 1940s. The case faded in Port Radium itself after the closing of the Eldorado Mine, however, and did not return to

4896-492: The French chemist Jules Guéron , who had been working for Free France at Cambridge, and Bruno Pontecorvo , an Italian scientist who had worked with Enrico Fermi in Italy before the war. For the Canadian contingent, Laurence and Mackenzie set out to recruit some top nuclear physicists, of whom there were few in Canada. The first was George Volkoff at the University of British Columbia , who had worked with Robert Oppenheimer on

4998-589: The Manhattan Project ), and Mackenzie negotiated recommendations, which were approved by the Combined Policy Committee on 13 April 1944. A final agreement was spelt out on 20 May. Under it, the Americans would assist with the construction of a heavy water reactor in Canada, and would provide technical assistance with matters such as corrosion and the effects of radiation on materials. They would not provide details about plutonium or plutonium chemistry, although irradiated uranium slugs would be made available for

5100-590: The Manhattan Project, and established the Combined Policy Committee , on which Canada was represented by Howe, to control the Manhattan Project. While some aspects of cooperation resumed quickly, it took longer to finalize the details with respect to the Montreal Laboratory. Brigadier General Leslie Groves (the director of the Manhattan Project), Chadwick (now the head of the British Mission to

5202-589: The NRC (2010–2016) was marked by a number of controversies. His presidency was characterized by a dramatic drop in publications and patents, by significant cuts in scientific staff, and by a 23-month period during which NRC management was aware that the organization was contaminating the water table outside its fire-safety testing facility in Mississippi Mills, Ontario , with perfluorinated chemicals used in firefighting foams and did not inform that community's inhabitants. John McDougall's departure – signalled by

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5304-532: The NRC announced it was building the Biologics Manufacturing Centre , a facility that can produce vaccines and other biologics. The construction of the facility was started as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and Canada's inability to produce COVID-19 Vaccines. The facility is expected to open in July 2021, and will have a vaccine manufacturing capacity of 2 million does per month. In February 2021,

5406-643: The NRC headquarters in Ottawa "was a prime espionage target" during the Cold War . The NRC was also engaged in atomic fission research at the Montreal Laboratory , and later the Chalk River Laboratories in Ontario. Post-WWII, the NRC reverted to its pre-war civilian role, and a number of wartime activities were spun off to newly formed organizations. Military research continued under a new organization,

5508-453: The NRC intended to shorten the gap between early stage research and development and commercialization. During his tenure as president, there was a drop in research publications and new patents from the NRC as the scientific staff was cut significantly. An article published in April 2016 and based on information from the office of the Minister of Science gave the following figures for the period 2011–2015: Port Radium Port Radium

5610-424: The NRC to hire a young graphics design graduate to work on their "CUROS" people management software. Oasys Healthcare, a company that provides "innovative audio and video solutions for the medical marketplace" received a $ 13,000 NRC grant for its new technology for operating rooms. Jeffrey Ross Jewellery's product called Dimples, imprints fingerprints in silver using an innovative process and material, developed through

5712-414: The NRC's facilities. In about 1990, PSB and other Canadian companies worked with the NRC on Athena to evaluate digital signal processing (DSP) for loudspeaker design. The metal walls of the NRC’s anechoic chamber are located about a foot and a half from the internal walls that surround it. The whole chamber is suspended on springs. This makes it a building within the M-37 building. The purpose of all this

5814-453: The NRC. The Americans saw him as a security risk, and objected to the French atomic patents claimed by the Paris Group (in association with ICI). In April 1944 a Combined Policy Committee meeting at Washington agreed that Canada would build a heavy water reactor. Scientists who were not British subjects would leave, and Cockcroft became the new director of the Montreal Laboratory in May 1944. E. W. R. Steacie became assistant director and head of

5916-497: The National Research Council Canada, chemist Arthur Carty revitalized the organization. In 2004, he left the NRC when then prime minister Paul Martin appointed him as independent, non-partisan advisor on science and technology. In April 2010 Mr. John McDougal of Edmonton, Alberta was appointed President of the NRC by the Stephen Harper Government Around June 2014, the NRC was reportedly penetrated by Chinese state-sponsored hackers. The tenure of John McDougall as President of

6018-473: The National Research Council. In January 2024, Mitch Davies was appointed as President of the National Research Council following the retirement of Iain Stewart. Divisions of the NRC include: Areas of research and development at NRC include: At one point in January 2018 the NRC had over 30 approved programs, including the following. The following are the NRC's various research centres and their areas of R&D: Former facilities: The goal of

6120-407: The National Research Council: the Social Science and Humanities Research Council (see SSHRC Act) and the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (See NSERC Act). The emergence of these Councils, for all material reasons, took over funding from the Federal Government and is responsible for relaying that to Academic Institutions, Academic hospitals and Research Institutions under the Agreement on

6222-404: The Quebec Agreement made Canada a full partner. The three leaders agreed that there would be full and effective cooperation, but British hopes for a resumption of cooperation on nuclear weapons were in vain. The Americans soon made it clear that cooperation was restricted to basic scientific research. At the Combined Policy Committee meeting in February 1946, without prior consultation with Canada,

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6324-494: The Soviet Union in 1950, has long been suspected of having been involved in espionage. No evidence that he was a Soviet agent has ever been established, but the GRU obtained samples of uranium and blueprints of the NRX, for which Nunn May could not have been the source, and Pontecorvo remains the prime suspect. When the spy ring became public knowledge in February 1946, the Americans became more cautious about sharing information with Britain and Canada. The Montreal Laboratory had been

6426-478: The Trudeau government changed the focus of the NRC, to develop partnerships with private and public-sector technology companies, both nationally and internationally. Under the previous federal Minister of State (Science and Technology) , Gary Goodyear , the NRC became in the words of one wag a "toolbox for industry" and dented basic-research infrastructure. In August 2020 under Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Navdeep Bains and President Iain Stewart,

6528-425: The United States or Canada. Canada was an alternative source of heavy water. Cominco had been involved in heavy water research since 1934, and produced it at its smelting plant in Trail, British Columbia . On 26 February 1941, the NRC inquired about its ability to produce heavy water. This was followed on 23 July by a letter from Hugh Taylor , a British-born scientist working at Princeton University , on behalf of

6630-513: The Université de Montréal in March. The laboratory grew to over 300 staff, about half of whom were Canadians recruited by Laurence. Placzek became head of the theoretical physics division. Kowarski was designated to be the head of the experimental physics division, but there was a personality clash with Halban, and Kowarski did not wish to accept what he saw as a subordinate position under Halban. At this point, many other scientists said that they would not go without Kowarski, but Sir Edward Appleton ,

6732-461: The chairman of the board, Sir Edward Beatty . A contract was signed on 1 August 1942. The heavy water project became known as the P-9 Project in October 1942. The French scientists made good progress on the design of an aqueous homogeneous reactor , but there were doubts that their work was relevant to the main task of the British Tube Alloys project, that of building an atomic bomb , and resources were tightly controlled in wartime Britain. There

6834-425: The closure of the Eldorado Mine in June 1940, and the general lack of activity, the government closed up the offices at Cameron Bay, and except for a few native families that occupied the abandoned buildings, Port Radium was empty. When the Eldorado Mine reopened in 1942 to supply uranium ores for the effort of World War II , the mine settlement adopted the name Port Radium. Cameron Bay remained abandoned, but later in

6936-406: The coke and uranium oxide had not been fully appreciated, and as a result too many neutrons were captured. But Laurence's efforts attracted some attention, and in the summer of 1940 he was visited by R. H. Fowler , the British scientific liaison officer in Canada. This was followed by a visit from John Cockcroft of the British Tizard Mission to the United States in the autumn. They brought news of

7038-412: The creation of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research [ and the initial withdrawal from the National Reserve in 1997 (see Budget Implementation Act 1997), which was invested for three years and became life, along with CIHR in 2000 (see CIHR Act). On 1 May 1978, with the rapid post-war growth of Canadian universities, the NRC's role in university research funding in the natural sciences was passed under

7140-428: The director of Tube Alloys, met with C. J. Mackenzie , the president of the NRC, who enthusiastically supported the proposal. The following day he took them to see C. D. Howe , the Minister of Munitions and Supply . Howe cabled Anderson expressing the Canadian government's agreement in principle, but requesting a more detailed appraisal of the cost of the proposed laboratory. Sir John Anderson replied that he envisaged

7242-443: The end of 1945. Goldschmidt was willing to stay longer, and Cockcroft wanted to keep him, but Groves insisted that he should go, and, in the interest of Allied harmony, he did. All the French scientists had left by January 1946. On 24 August 1944, the decision was taken to build a small reactor to test the group's calculations relating to such matters as lattice dimensions, sheathing materials, and control rods , before proceeding with

7344-551: The extraction process. The irradiated materials came from the Manhattan Project's X-10 Graphite Reactor at the Clinton Engineer Works at Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Some 10 short tons (9.1 t) of machined pure uranium rods was sold outright to Canada. He also supplied instruments, drawings and technical information, provided expertise from American scientists, and opened a liaison office in Montreal headed by Major H. S. Benbow. The American physicist William Weldon Watson from

7446-448: The first operating nuclear reactor outside the United States. Using 5 short tons (4.5 t) of heavy water and 3.5 short tons (3.2 t) of uranium metal, it could operate continuously at 3.5 W, or for brief periods at 30 to 50 W. The larger NRX followed on 21 July 1947. With five times the neutron flux of any other reactor, it was the most powerful research reactor in the world. Originally designed in July 1944 with an output of 8 MW,

7548-540: The first time since leaving France. While he maintained that he did not divulge any nuclear secrets to his previous boss (although he had discussed patent rights), Halban was not allowed to work or to leave North America for a year, although he left the Montreal Laboratory in April 1945. In 1946 he settled in England. B. W. Sargent then became head of the nuclear physics division. Cockcroft arranged for Goldschmidt, Guéron and Kowarski to remain until June 1945, later extended until

7650-443: The forefront until the 1980s, when some former mine workers developed health problems that were said to have been due to radium toxicity , a result of their failure to receive radioactivity protection coats containing lead. The government finally settled the case by providing treatment for the patients, and working with mine policy to ensure that similar injustices were not happening at the present and would not be allowed to happen in

7752-417: The full-scale NRX reactor. With Halban gone, Kowarski joined the laboratory, and was given responsibility for the small reactor, which he named ZEEP , for Zero Energy Experimental Pile. He was assisted in the design by Charles Watson-Munro from New Zealand, and George Klein and Don Nazzer from Canada. Building reactors in downtown Montreal was out of the question; the Canadians selected, and Groves approved,

7854-507: The future. A report was released in 2005 challenging the link between uranium mining and cancer at Port Radium. Dr. Douglas Chambers told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that "The potential risk of cancer associated with transporting the ore concentrate is extremely small, and in fact so small it would not be detectable in the variability of natural cancers and factors of effect cancers such as smoking." Port Radium

7956-570: The laboratory's governance. It was agreed that it would be run by a Policy Committee consisting of Howe and MacDonald and be administered by and funded through the NRC, with research directed by a Technical Committee chaired by Halban. The Canadians decided that the new laboratory should be located in Montreal, where housing accommodation was easier to find than in wartime Ottawa. They hoped to have everything ready by 1 January 1943, but negotiations for laboratory space fell through. A search then commenced for an alternative location. Bertrand Goldschmidt ,

8058-676: The majority of the NRC's intellectual property management, patenting, and business development activities conducted at the various NRC's research centres in Canada. The transformation of the NRC into a research and technology organization that focuses on "business-led research" was part of the Harper government's Economic Action Plan . On 7 May 2013, the NRC launched its new "business approach" in which it offered four business lines: strategic research and development, technical services, management of science and technology infrastructure and NRC-Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP). With these services,

8160-437: The new director of the Montreal Laboratory in May 1944. The Chalk River Laboratories opened in 1944, and the Montreal Laboratory was closed in July 1946. Two reactors were built at Chalk River. The small ZEEP went critical on 5 September 1945, and the larger NRX on 21 July 1947. NRX was for a time the most powerful research reactor in the world. Canada has a long history of involvement with nuclear research, dating back to

8262-456: The other hand, American officials had concerns about security, since only one of the six senior scientists in the Cambridge group was British, and about French patent claims. These included patents on controlling nuclear chain reactions, enriching uranium, and using deuterium as a neutron moderator. There were also two patent applications in conjunction with Egon Bretscher and Norman Feather on

8364-669: The physics of neutron stars . They also tried to recruit Harry Thode from McMaster University , but found that Harold Urey from the Manhattan Project 's SAM Laboratories was also interested in Thode's expertise in testing heavy water with mass spectrography , and had made a more attractive offer. A compromise was reached whereby Thode did work for the Montreal Laboratory, but remained at McMaster University. Promising young Canadian scientists were also recruited, including J. Carson Mark , Phil Wallace and Leo Yaffe . The Montreal Laboratory investigated multiple avenues of reactor development. One

8466-532: The pioneering work of Ernest Rutherford at McGill University in 1899. In 1940, George Laurence of the National Research Council (NRC) began experiments in Ottawa to measure neutron capture and nuclear fission in uranium to demonstrate the feasibility of a nuclear reactor . For that purpose, he obtained 450 kilograms (990 lb) of uranium dioxide in paper bags from the Eldorado Mine at Port Radium in

8568-440: The power was raised to 10 MW through design changes such as replacing uranium rods clad in stainless steel and cooled by heavy water with aluminium-clad rods cooled by light water. By the end of 1946, the Montreal Laboratory was estimated to have cost US$ 22,232,000, excluding the cost of the heavy water. The NRX reactor provided Britain, the United States and Canada with a source of fissile plutonium and uranium-233. It also provided

8670-759: The production and use of plutonium. George Thomson , the chairman of the MAUD Committee, suggested a compromise: relocating the team to Canada. The next step was to broach the matter with the Canadians. The Lord President , Sir John Anderson , as the minister responsible for Tube Alloys, wrote to the British High Commissioner to Canada, Malcolm MacDonald , who had been involved in Tube Alloys negotiations with Canada regarding Eldorado 's uranium mine at Port Radium and its refinery in Port Hope, Ontario . On 19 February 1942, MacDonald, Thomson and Wallace Akers,

8772-569: The progress in development was at the cost of the environment. In 2012, the federal government moved "to defund government research centres in the High Arctic." In the same year National Research Council environmental scientists "were barred from discussing their work on snowfall with the media. "Scientists for the governmental agency Environment Canada, under threat of losing their jobs, were banned from discussing their research without political approval. Mentions of federal climate change research in

8874-713: The proposal, and the Montreal Laboratory was established in a house belonging to McGill University ; it moved to permanent accommodation at the Université de Montréal in March 1943. The first eight laboratory staff arrived in Montreal at the end of 1942. These were Bertrand Goldschmidt and Pierre Auger from France, George Placzek from Czechoslovakia , S. G. Bauer from Switzerland, Friedrich Paneth and Hans von Halban from Austria, and R. E. Newell and F. R. Jackson from Britain. The Canadian contingent included George Volkoff , Bernice Weldon Sargent and George Laurence , and promising young Canadian scientists such as J. Carson Mark , Phil Wallace and Leo Yaffe . Although Canada

8976-583: The remaining buildings with few exceptions. In 2007, the Canadian Federal government completed the remediation at Port Radium by removing all remaining infrastructure. A cairn and plaque at Labine Point are the only remains of Port Radium. The old RCMP log cabin post was dismantled log by log in 2007, and rebuilt in Norman Wells by Rick Muyres. An early case in the Aboriginal rights movement involved

9078-663: The similar research being carried out under the supervision of the MAUD Committee in Britain and the National Defense Research Committee (NDRC) in the United States. Fowler became the channel of communication between the NDRC and its counterparts in Britain and Canada. Through him, Laurence obtained an introduction to Lyman J. Briggs , the chairman of the NDRC's S-1 Uranium Committee , who supplied copies of American studies. On returning to England, Cockcroft arranged through Lord Melchett for Laurence to receive

9180-439: The tenure of Prime Minister Stephen Harper , Canadian Government research organizations began to restrict the ability of government scientists to communicate with the public. This includes restricting scientists within the NRC to communicate with the public through non-scientist communications personnel. Harper's focus as an economist was on his action plan: creating jobs and building the economy. There were widespread concerns that

9282-431: The vicinity of Echo Bay. Thirty years later, a prospector Gilbert LaBine discovered high-grade pitchblende and silver . His company was Eldorado Mining and Refining Limited , then known as Eldorado Gold Mines Limited. Radium ores were highly valued at the time because the price of radium salts , used in cancer treatment, and which was monopolized by Belgium , was $ 70,000 per gram. Several settlements popped up in

9384-652: The war. Roosevelt died on 12 April 1945, and the Hyde Park Agreement was not binding on subsequent administrations. The Special Relationship between Britain and the United States "became very much less special". The British government had trusted that America would share nuclear technology, which the British considered a joint discovery. On 9 November 1945, Mackenzie King and British Prime Minister Clement Attlee went to Washington, D.C., to confer with President Harry Truman about future cooperation in nuclear weapons and nuclear power. A Memorandum of Intention that replaced

9486-458: Was a homogeneous reactor, in which a uranium compound was dissolved in heavy water to form a slurry , or a "mayonnaise" as the Montreal team called it. This offered various advantages for cooling, control and the ability to draw off plutonium that was produced. Paneth, Goldschmidt and others experimented with methods of preparing such a uranium compound, but none could be found with the required density. They considered using enriched uranium , but it

9588-568: Was a major source of uranium ore and heavy water, these were controlled by the Americans. Anglo-American cooperation broke down, denying the Montreal Laboratory scientists access to the materials they needed to build a reactor. In 1943, the Quebec Agreement merged Tube Alloys with the American Manhattan Project. The Americans agreed to help build the reactor. Scientists who were not British subjects left, and John Cockcroft became

9690-428: Was a possibility that a reactor could be used to breed plutonium , but its use in a bomb seemed a remote possibility. The MAUD Committee therefore felt that they should relocate to America. It made sense to pool resources, and America had advantages, notably access to materials such as heavy water. American scientists such as Henry D. Smyth , Harold Urey and Hugh Taylor urged that the Cambridge team be sent to America. On

9792-400: Was also a Royal Canadian Mounted Police post and a Hudson's Bay Company post. In 1936, the government facilities were rechristened Port Radium to glorify the nature of the nearby mining operations. The Cameron Bay area was officially renamed Port Radium in 1937. At that time, Cameron Bay had a population of 30. In the 1930s, Port Radium was home to an annual arctic dogsled race. With

9894-524: Was appointed President of the NRC in 2010, was a member of the NRC-IRAP Advisory Board. In 2011, Bev Oda , the Minister of International Cooperation , and Gary Goodyear , Minister of State (Science and Technology) , announced the grant recipients. These included small to medium-sized businesses, such as, Nortek Solutions a privately owned Canadian software company. They received a $ 30,000 grant from

9996-411: Was believed that uranium was scarce. A process was devised for separating the uranium from thorium. To build a working nuclear reactor, the Montreal Laboratory depended on the Americans for heavy water from Trail, which was under American contract, but this was not forthcoming. An American request for Halban to come to New York to discuss heavy water with Fermi and Urey was turned down by the British, and

10098-530: Was established in 1916, under the pressure of World War I , to advise the government on matters of science and industrial research. In 1932, laboratories were built on Sussex Drive in Ottawa and the Medical Research Committee was formed with Dr. Frederick Banting as the inaugural Chair. With the impetus of World War II , the NRC grew rapidly and for all practical purposes, became a military science and weapons research organization. It undertook

10200-469: Was introduced in the 1950s to support product developments in small to medium-sized businesses. The NRC provides grants and financial support to business' looking to bring new and innovative technologies to the market. Some of the many innovations by NRC personnel included the artificial pacemaker , development of canola (rapeseed) in the 1940s, the Crash Position Indicator in the 1950s, and

10302-693: Was transferred to the Department of National Defence in 1975, and renamed the Communications Security Establishment . During the 1950s, the medical research funding activities of the NRC were handed over to the newly formed Medical Research Council of Canada . By 1960, the Medical Research Committee had separated from the National Research Council, forming the Medical Research Council of Canada (which dissolved upon

10404-425: Was unavailable. Attention then turned to a heterogeneous reactor, in which a lattice of uranium metal rods were immersed in heavy water. While much less heavy water would be required, there was a danger that the water would decompose into deuterium and oxygen—a potentially explosive combination. There was great interest in breeder reactors , which could breed plutonium from uranium or uranium-233 from thorium , as it

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