Project description
Ensuring safety and operability of nuclear systems by using smaller testing specimens
By 2050, the EU aims to have more than 80 % of its energy coming from renewable sources, with electricity providing for half of the final energy demand. To achieve this ambitious goal, the energy mix will include nuclear power – existing nuclear power plants and future nuclear systems. The EU-funded FRACTESUS project will address the safety and operability of nuclear systems. Since this relies on the integrity of structural material, the project will work to establish the foundation of small specimen fracture toughness validation and demonstration. The project’s goal is to join European and international efforts to achieve a change in code and standards and address the various national regulatory authority concerns.
Objective
Fracture mechanics testing of irradiated RPV steels by means of sub-sized specimens (FRACTESUS).
The European Union has defined clear short and long term objectives to achieve its energy transition towards sustainable energy and climate neutral economy by 2050. The success of this transition relies on the combination of energy efficiency and low carbon energy in all sectors of the economy. In particular, the industry and transport sector will need to rely more heavily on electricity to achieve this goal. In all electricity mix scenarios up to 2050, one needs to rely on one or a combination of existing nuclear power plants, long term operation, new nuclear build and future nuclear systems. Safety and operability of any nuclear systems heavily relies on a defense in depth strategy where the integrity of structural material plays an essential role. Due to material availability and/or irradiation constraints, the use of small size specimen to obtain reliable measurement of the resistance to fracture is needed by the nuclear industry to comply with the amended Nuclear Safety Directive. Small size specimen fracture toughness measurement has already been shown possible. However, some effort is still requested to achieve European regulatory acceptance of this approach. The goal of this project is to join European and International effort to establish the foundation of small specimen fracture toughness validation and demonstration to achieve change in code and standards allowing to address the various national regulatory authority concerns. FRACTESUS is involving in a very early stage regulatory bodies, code and standardization committee, the industry and the international community in order for the consortium to optimize available resources and expertise.
Fields of science
Keywords
Programme(s)
- H2020-Euratom - Euratom Main Programme
- H2020-Euratom-1. - Indirect actions
Funding Scheme
IA - Innovation actionCoordinator
1160 Bruxelles / Brussel
Belgium
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Participants (21)
Legal entity established in a non-associated third country that is not eligible for funding under Article 10 of the Regulation (EU) No 1290/2013 laying down the rules for participation and dissemination in Horizon 2020.
37831 6265 Oak Ridge Tennessee
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250 68 Husinec Rez
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02150 Espoo
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75015 PARIS 15
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92260 Fontenay Aux Roses
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91052 Erlangen
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01328 Dresden
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76131 Karlsruhe
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1116 Budapest
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1121 Budapest
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LT-44029 Kaunas
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1755 LE Petten
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81243 Bratislava
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28040 MADRID
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39005 Santander
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5232 Villigen Psi
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WA3 6AE Warrington
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B15 2TT Birmingham
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OX14 3DB Abingdon
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100 8126 Chiyoda Ku Tokyo
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K0J1J0 Chalk River
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