A GBP9.4 million ($12.2m) research programme will link experts from the nuclear industry with UK academics and PhD students to tackle challenges in dealing with radioactive waste, the UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) announced on 24 September jointly with Sellafield Ltd, and Low Level Waste Repository Ltd. Integrated waste management is one of the NDA's key themes and the research will encompass 40 projects each lasting up to four years, which will help to build the next generation of nuclear experts and to develop technical solutions, the announcement said.
Building on a core grant of GBP4.6 million from the Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), AWE, Cavendish Nuclear, Low Level Waste Repository Ltd, National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL), Radioactive Waste Management (RWM) Ltd, Sellafield Ltd and TUV SUD Nuclear Technologies are all supporting the programme through direct funding and/or supervisory expertise, use of facilities and researcher training, resulting in total funding of more than GBP9 million.
Those working on the projects will include PhD students and Post-Doctoral Researchers, each with academic and industrial supervisors, the latter being technical experts from within industry to ensure maximum two-way knowledge transfer. The work, known as TRANSCEND (Transformative Science and Engineering for Nuclear Decommissioning), builds on two previous programmes, DIAMOND, which ended in 2013, and DISTINCTIVE, due to finish in early 2019.
The consortium of 11 universities will be led by the University of Leeds and includes: Imperial College London, Lancaster University, Queen’s University Belfast, University of Birmingham, University of Bristol, University of Leeds, University of Manchester, University of Sheffield, University of Southampton, University of Strathclyde, and University of Surrey. The research areas will include integrated waste management site decommissioning and remediation, used fuel, and nuclear materials.
NDA Research Manager Dr Rick Short said: “Our industry benefits hugely when high-level academic research is focused at some of the challenges we face in decommissioning our nuclear legacy.” Jon Martin, Head of Research at RWM, believes research is critical to exploring and understanding all aspects of the science associated with a future geological disposal facility that will be required to keep radioactive waste safe for many thousands of years. As a national research lab, NNL will provide the key integrating interface between those carrying out the research and those needing solutions, to ensure they are aligned.
“This is primarily through the provision of industrial supervision and access to the world-leading facilities in our Central Laboratory on the Sellafield site,” said NNL’s Science Ambassador, Gareth Headdock. According to Geoff Randall, Senior Scientist at Sellafield Ltd, the previous programmes have led directly to the development of new equipment such as Acoustic Back Scattering technology that is being installed in a settling tank for Pile Fuel Storage Pond sludge removal. “We’ve also been able to accelerate hazard reduction, partly as a result of fundamental research into Magnox Swarf Storage Silo materials, and prepare the next generation of engineers and scientist to face our challenges.”
