The European Commission (EC) has just announced the results of the first call for projects of the Horizon 2020 programme (the 8th Euratom Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development), for research and training activities in nuclear fission and radiation protection. IRSN participates in 11 projects out of the 14 selected in the topics relevant to the Institute (8 topics out of 16 in the call for projects).

This result reflects IRSN dynamism in the proposals made for Horizon 2020 and its contribution to collective action for research at the European level. Of these 11 projects, 3 are intended to structure European research in their field in a sustainable manner. For 2 other projects, IRSN led the construction of a collective response around a core of key competencies corresponding to the major issues of safety.

IRSN sees these results as a double recognition: it both acknowledges the place given to safety and radiation protection issues in a growing share of the selected projects, and recognizes IRSN involvement in structuring research activities in nuclear energy and radiation protection at European level.

This involvement is part of a fundamental shift in European R&D structuring, which aims to establish cooperation between all the actors in a field, to define a common and consistent vision, structure priorities and coordinate programs within European thematic platforms [1] such as the European associations MELODI, which studies the effects of low radiation doses, or NUGENIA in the field of pressurized water nuclear power reactors. These platforms’ production includes Strategic Research Agendas helping to structure optimally successive calls for projects. IRSN has been committed for years in these platforms where it specifically addresses the scientific issues for safety and radiation protection.

Note:

1. Research platforms are associative structures, involving stakeholders - research institutions, industry, universities – in a given field of research. They aim to define a common and consistent vision, structure R&D priorities, coordinate programmes and calls for projects, and gradually set up a joint programming.

​The 11 projects involving IRSN

Three projects which intend to sustainably structure European research in their field

• Concert (European Joint Programme for the Integration of Radiation Protection Research), on the governance of radiation protection; it aims to sustainably integrate national and European research projects in a European joint programming in radiation protection. IRSN is one of the organizations designated by the French authorities, alongside the National Research Agency (ANR) and the CEA, as project manager for France.
  Project presentation 
• Sitex 2 (Sustainable network for independent technical expertise of radioactive waste disposal – interactions and implementation), led by IRSN and following the Sitex project (2012-2013) on the management of nuclear waste; it develops a network of expertise to establish safety organizations’ joint priorities in the field of deep geological disposal of radioactive waste. 
  Project presentation
• Joprad (Towards a joint programming on geological disposal for high activity long lived radioactive waste), also on the management of nuclear waste; the aim of this project is to prepare the setting up of a joint programming on radioactive waste geological disposal to coordinate research at the European level. 
  Project presentation

Two projects for which IRSN led the construction of a collective response around a core of key competencies corresponding to the major issues of safety

• IVMR (In vessel melt retention), on power reactors safety; the project objective is an analysis of the feasibility and technical limits of In-Vessel Melt Retention (IVMR) as a safety strategy to manage severe accidents with core meltdown. 
  Project presentation
• Fastnet (Tool for the fast and reliable prediction of severe accident progression and anticipation of the source term of a nuclear accident), in the field of emergency preparedness and response management; at the crossroads of safety and radiation protection, the project aims to develop analytical tools in emergency preparedness, response management and drills, especially software for the rapid assessment of source terms for all types of severe accidents on European PWRs.
  Project presentation

Six other projects

• Soteria (Safe long term operation of light water reactors). Project presentation
• Sesame (Safety assessment of thermal hydraulics in metal cooled). Project presentation
• Incefa Plus (Covering gaps in fatigue assessment light water reactor environments). Project presentation
• Samofar (Reactor safety of molten salt fast reactor). Project presentation
• Modern2020 (Development and demonstration of monitoring strategies and technologies for geological disposal). Project presentation
• Cebama (Cement-based materials for geological disposal). Project presentation

The ERMSAR (European Review Meeting on Severe Accident Research) conference organized by IRSN in Avignon (France) in October 2013 gave a broad view of four years of R&D relating to major nuclear reactor accidents. This event was the opportunity to promote the decision taken by the SARNET network of excellence to continue its activities in the framework of the NUGENIA association (Nuclear Generation II & III Association).

The SARNET network of excellence reached a special milestone with the 6th ERMSAR conference, attended by 137 participants from 61 organizations and 25 countries, confirming its status as a leading international event on major nuclear reactor accidents. Among other things, the ERMSAR conference defined the highest priority areas for future research, considering the first feedback of the Fukushima Daiichi accident. The future research topics will notably focus on developing technology systems aiming to limit the consequences of such accidents.

It was officially announced that, after operating for eight years under the European Commission’s supervision, SARNET will continue to run as one Technical Area of the NUGENIA association, of which IRSN is a founding member, and which is recognized as the key European vector for research on the safety of generation II and III reactors. IRSN will continue to coordinate the network, confirming its leadership position with regard to this crucial safety research issues.

More information:

Presentation of SARNET

NUGENIA website

On 5 December 2013, the european research platforms MELODI, European Radioecology Alliance (ALLIANCE), NERIS and EURADOS have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to confirm their joint commitment towards the consolidation and implementation of a strategic vision of radiation protection research in Europe. This ceremony took place at the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, in presence of Bruno Schmitz, Head of Unit K4 “Fission” at the Directorate General for Research and Innovation.

Over the last few years, the idea has slowly grown of forming networks and stable associations between European research partners, to promote joint research needs, establish strategic priorities, and develop cooperation in the implementation of research, in particular through a better integration of national R&D programmes within such a holistic European approach.

The aim is to resolve major scientific questions which condition the further enhancement of radiation protection practice in Europe and beyond, such as for example better understanding individual radio-sensitivity, or the nature of dose/effects relationships for low dose exposures, which requires the enhancement of radiobiology and radio-toxicology knowledge in particular. This knowledge then needs to be transferred and developed into doctrines and operational tools to manage issues such as those related to the presence of radioactive contaminants in the environment, or to the management of radiological emergencies and the remediation of the contaminated sites.

For this reason, MELODI, ALLIANCE, NERIS and EURADOS were established, each grouping specific research areas:

• MELODI focuses on low dose ionising radiation research,
• ALLIANCE groups research initiatives on radioecology,
• NERIS is about emergency preparedness and response as well as governance of post-accidental situations,
• EURADOS specialises in dosimetry.

The intention to establish a joint research agenda was then taken to the next level, not in the least by initiatives from the European Commission, but also by leading European research institutes, resulting in the signature of this MoU.

The cooperation between MELODI, ALLIANCE, NERIS and EURADOS was initiated under the EU’s Seventh Framework Programme for Research (FP7) and more in particular in the form of a project called “OPERRA” (Open Project for the European Radiation Research Area). OPERRA aims at establishing the necessary structures for managing long-term European research programmes in radiation protection.

The signatory organisations decided to establish a Joint Radiation Protection Research Roadmap Committee, with the aim to coordinate as necessary their respective strategic research agendas and priority roadmaps. Further joint working groups will be set up in areas of common concern, for the benefit of European radiation protection research. MELODI will be responsible for the administration of the coordination.

The Memorandum of Understanding is open to adhesion for other European organisations with interests in radiation protection research.

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More information:

MELODI website

European Radioecology Alliance website

NERIS website

EURADOS website

IRSN and GRS are jointly developing the ASTEC software system dedicated to nuclear meltdowns in the different types of reactors currently in operation. A January 2013 meeting of the ASTEC Users Club in Aix-en-Provence in southeastern France bolstered its position as an international reference and consolidated its scope of applications, which has progressively been extended to include most types of reactors, existing and future.

Over the past decade, ASTEC has earned its status as an international reference in the simulation of core meltdown accidents in pressurized water reactors – including the Russian-designed VVER – with the help of the SARNET network [1] in particular.

Today, no fewer than 36 organizations use ASTEC, and three major events have just strengthened its position as the leading reference in this type of software:

• the selection of ASTEC by JRC/IET [2] for use in its core meltdown accident research laboratory,
• China Nuclear Power Engineering’s decision to acquire a five-year commercial user license for ASTEC,
• the beginning of the Code for European Severe Accident Management [3] project of the 7th FRDP.

The modular nature of ASTEC allows its scope of application to be extended to a wide range of reactors such as boiling water reactors, to enable a detailed analysis of the Fukushima Daiichi accidents and of the IPHWR [4] for collaboration with India’s BARC [5]. ASTEC is already being applied to naval propulsion reactors, but will benefit from certain improvements following IRSN-led development work as part of an agreement with the CEA/DAM [6].

For accidents in other types of reactors, ASTEC is being used to model accidents involving the ingress of air or water into the vacuum vessel of fusion facilities such as the ITER and is being adapted for sodium-cooled fast reactors as part of the 7th FRDP project entitled "Joint Advanced Severe Accidents Modelling and Integration for Na-Cooled Fast Neutron Reactors" coordinated by IRSN.

Notes:

1. Excellence network specialized in research on severe nuclear reactor accidents.
2. Institute for Energy and Transport of the Joint Research Centre of the European Union, located in Petten (the Netherlands).
3. Coordinated by GRS working closely with IRSN, this project brings 17 partners together to improve the modeling and functionality  of the ASTEC software for severe accident management.
4. Indian Pressurized Heavy Water Reactors (developed by India).
5. Bhabha Atomic Research Centre.
6. Military applications division of the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission.

For several years, IRSN has been conducting researches on the economical costs of nuclear accidents involving radioactive releases in the environment. A short presentation of these studies took place during the Eurosafe Forum in November 2012.

Preparing for a nuclear accident implies understanding potential consequences. While many specialized experts have been working on different particular aspects, surprisingly little effort has been dedicated to establishing the big picture and providing a global and balanced image of all major consequences.

IRSN has been working on the cost of nuclear accidents, an exercise which must strive to be as comprehensive as possible since any omission obviously underestimates the cost. It therefore provides (ideally) an estimate of all cost components, thus revealing the structure of accident costs, and hence sketching a global picture.

On a French PWR, it appears that controlled releases would cause an “economical” accident with limited radiological consequences when compared to other costs; in contrast, massive releases would trigger a major crisis with strong radiological consequences. The two types of crises would confront managers with different types of challenges.

More information:

Download the paper by Patrick Momal and Ludivine Pascucci-Cahen presented during the Eurosafe Forum: Massive radiological releases profoundly differ from controlled releases (pdf)