Specific research programmes (Euratom) to be implemented by the Joint Research Centre - Reactor safety -, 1992-1994

Part of the third Framework programme for Community activities in the field of research and technological development (1990 to 1994) under subactivity II.5.: "Energy", the programme continues and builds on the work carried out in the previous JRC programme in the field of reactor safety.

The activities concentrate on:
- accident prevention studies;
- Severe accident studies, in connection with risk assessment and concentrating on the study of phenomena, by using the existing JRC experimental installation FARO and by sharing the PHEBUS research facility at Cadarache (France).
To increase the safety of nuclear fission technology through accident modelling and risk assessment, the evaluation of reactor reliability, the inspection of plant structures, the observation of operating behaviour and the study of cooling systems as well as to increase industrial competitivity by accelerating the transfer of technology to industry.
Six research areas:

- Reliability and risk evaluation (Institute for Systems Engineering and Informatics, Ispra):
To develop a conceptual framework and methodology for monitoring and controlling the level of safety of an ageing nuclear power plant;

- Severe accidents - EUREF (Institute for Safety Technology, Ispra):
To develop, validate and distribute to the EC Institutions the European accident Code-2 for the improved best estimate calculation of unprotected loss-of-flow;

- Severe accidents - Source term (Institute for Safety Technology, Ispra):
To improve the data on fission products released from a degraded core, on the physico-chemical behaviour off fission products and aerosols in the primary system and reactor containment in case of severe accidents, and to use these data for the development and validation of codes for the estimation of the source term;

- Severe accidents - the FARO test programme (Institute for Safety Technology, Ispra):
To obtain experimental data on the formation of molten fuel pools, on the quenching of fuel jets in the reactor coolant and on the interaction of molten reactor fuel for geometries and conditions simulating in-vessel and ex-vessel severe accident situation;

- Fuel behaviour under accident conditions (Institute for Transuranium Elements, Karlsruhe):
To contribute to the understanding of severe reactor accident mechanisms by providing support to code development and application, by specifying and characterizing fission products to be released from fuel in a particular accident scheme and by developing and applying specialized instrumentation for in-pile tests.

- LWR cooling systems performance and accident modelling - code assessment (Institute for Safety Technology, Ispra):
Exploitation of the experimental information acquired in the LOBI installation to enhance prevention and/or mitigation of accidents in water cooled reactors of current and advanced design, maintenance of the LOBI database and Users Service, and assessment and improvement of LWR safety code CATHARE 2 in the framework of a collaboration contract with the CEA in France.
The Commission, assisted by the Board of Governors of the Joint Research Centre (JRC), is responsible for carrying out the programme by means of the services of the JRC and in parallel with other relevant specific programmes of the third Framework programme (1990-1994).

The programme comprises research and technological development (RTD) projects and accompanying measures. The RTD projects are carried out in collaboration and in concert, whenever feasible, with national research bodies in the Member States, taking into account as far as possible regional development aspects of RTD activities and their potential socio-economic effects. Particular attention will be paid to associations with industry, notably with SMEs, in collaborative schemes around the projects.

The research is carried out by the Institute for Transuranium Elements (ITE) at Karlsruhe, the Institute for Safety Technology (IST) at Ispra and the Institute for Systems Engineering and Informatics (ISEI) at Ispra.

The Commission is authorized to negotiate international agreements with third country members of COST, in particular member countries of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and Central and Eastern European countries, with a view to associating them with the programme. However, no contracting body based outside the Community may benefit from the Community financing granted to the programme. Such a body shall contribute to the general administrative costs.

Research projects open to international cooperation shall include cooperation measures with international research laboratories and make provision for the exchange of researchers. Supplementary measures should allow cooperation with research laboratories and institutions located in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe.

The total funds estimated as necessary for the execution of the JRC's nuclear fission safety programmes (Reactor safety, Safeguards and fissile materials management, Radioactive waste management, and Safety of actinides and the nuclear fuels cycle) amount to ECU 161.37 million, 6% of which may be used for exploratory research. A sum representing 1% of the total JRC budget for 1992-1994 is reserved as a contribution from the JRC's specific programmes to the centralized action on dissemination and exploitation of results (VALUE II).

Knowledge gained through the realization of the projects will be disseminated by the programme itself as well as by the centralized action.

The Commission shall each year before 31 March present to the European Parliament, the Council and the Economic and Social Committee a report on the implementation of the programme, together with the observations of the Board of Governors. At the end of the programme an evaluation of the research shall be conducted by a group of independent external experts and a report on the evaluation, accompanied by the opinion of the Board of Governors, shall be forwarded to these same bodies.