SCK•CEN: A centre of scientific excellence
In September 1951, Pierre Ryckmans, the then
Belgian Commissioner for Atomic Energy and former Governor General
of the Belgian colony Congo, commissioned a group of scientists
to set up a new national organization to study the peaceful applications
of nuclear energy. The founding members of that organisation came
from various areas of the scientific world, as well as from academia,
government and industry. They decided to set up a non-profit-making
association called the “Research Centre for the Applications
of Nuclear Energy”. The choice for this kind of organisation
shows that they wanted to stimulate the peaceful applications
of nuclear energy in the best interests of the public.
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Now, more than
fifty years later, the post-war techno-scientific optimism
that characterised societal thinking is balanced with an
increased sensitivity for ecological and social aspects.
But the aim of the founders of SCK•CEN, which is now
called the “Belgian Nuclear Research Centre”,
remains the same: “Within the context of sustainable
development…”, |
SCK•CEN states, “…our research
aims to study new nuclear technologies, as well as medical and
industrial applications, and to contribute to nuclear safety,
radiation protection and the care for the backend of the nuclear
fuel cycle”.
About six hundred academic researchers and technical
and administrative employees work in the laboratories and offices
in Mol and Brussels, and their areas of expertise range in scope,
quite literally, from the deep underground to outer space. SCK•CEN’s
research activities are concentrated into three main areas: ‘materials
sciences’, ‘advanced reactor systems’ and ‘health
safety and environment’. In addition, the centre also aims
to play a role in the ongoing debate on nuclear issues by serving
as a ‘platform for reflection’ on risk governance
issues and on policy related to the applications of radioactivity
in general. This summary highlights some of those activities.
A full overview and contact details can be found on the Centre’s
website at: www.sckcen.be
Research related to material sciences and advanced
reactor systems
In the broad field of nuclear energy technologies,
SCK•CEN focuses on the development and validation of materials
and advanced fuel designs, for both fission (for present power
reactors up to Generation IV) and fusion applications (ITER, DEMO).
In addition to theoretical research, the Centre runs a variety
of experimental programmes in its test reactors BR1, BR2 and VENUS
in support of safety aspects relating to the present generation
of NPP's. Within the context of the decision to build ITER in
France and the future DEMO plant, the Centre concentrates its
fusion research on the behaviour of materials under representative
irradiation conditions. This entails research on the radiation
resistance of materials for the first wall, the vessel assembly
and the blanket, and on the radiation resistance of instrumentation
components.
SCK•CEN
also pays special attention to the optimisation of the back-end
of the nuclear fuel cycle, in particular to the treatment
of irradiated fuel or the separation of actinides and long-lived
fission products from the residual waste that needs to be
stored. The separated isotopes can then be transmuted into
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short-lived or stable fission products in an
accelerator driven system or a fast reactor. On the request of
the Japanese IRI (Institute for Research and Innovation), SCK•CEN
is testing a revolutionary new treatment project for the separation
of actinides and long-lived fission products from the back-end
fuel flows that are suitable for geological disposal.
MYRRHA, an Accelerator Driven System and a sub-critical
installation that has to be fed with an outside source to produce
neutrons in support of the nuclear reaction, is a demonstration
machine operating within the framework of the European research
programme EUROTRANS (EUROpean Research Programme for the TRANSmutation
of High-Level Nuclear Waste in an Accelerator Driven System).
The aim of this particular research project is to demonstrate
that it is technically possible to transmute high-level and long-lived
radioactive waste with an accelerator driven system.
Research related to health, safety and environment.
Meanwhile, the Centre is about to finish the
dismantling of the BR3 reactor. This reactor was the first ever
pressurised water reactor (PWR) in operation on the European mainland,
and its dismantling can be considered as a reference ‘test
case’ for developing the necessary experience for the future
dismantling of commercial PWRs.
Last years, the PRACLAY experiments at Mol attracted
wide attention from the scientific community and from politicians.
They fit in well with the research currently going on into the
suitability of Boom clay as a host formation for the secure storage
of high-level, medium-level and long-lived radioactive waste.
Tests with a source of heat that simulates the radiant heat of
the waste will continue for more than 10 years and contribute
to gaining a better idea of the impact that this heat has on the
characteristic features of Boom clay.
As one of the world’s first ever nuclear
research institutes dedicated to the peaceful use of nuclear energy,
the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre was officially recognised
this year as an "IAEA Collaborating Centre" by the International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). This reflects the close collaboration
that exists between SCK•CEN and the Agency in the field
of radioecology.
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Materials and
instruments are also tested for their cosmic radiation resistance
qualities as part of space research. In addition, research
on the stability of micro-organisms under extreme circumstances
is still ongoing. Scientists at SCK•CEN examine whether
the organisms that have been selected for the bioreactor
– which has to transform human waste products into
food and oxygen during long space missions – could
mutate under the influence of cosmic radiation and, thus,
put the bioreactor out of action. In the near future, SCK•CEN
will study the effect of space on the behaviour of bacteria
and will perform advanced biochemical and molecular tests
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on blood samples of astronauts working at the
International Space Station. Radiobiology research is also performed
‘on the ground’: the Laboratory of Radiobiology is
world famous for its studies on the effects of low-dose ionising
radiation on the development of organisms. It has a special focus
on female germ cells, the pre- and early post-implantation stages,
and the embryonic developing brain.
Communication, education and the study of the
social dimension.
When it comes to studying the human brain, research
at SCK•CEN naturally goes hand-in-hand with education and
training. In addition to its own education and training activities
with regard to radiological protection, SCK•CEN also co-ordinates
two education and training projects within the EURATOM Research
Programme of the European Commission (Sixth Framework Programme,
FP6). The ENETRAP project (European Network for Education and
Training in Radiological Protection) aims at harmonising and integrating
national education and training programmes in the domain of radiation
protection. This will contribute to develop a European policy
on radiation protection and a common safety culture. The FP6-BNEN
project developed an evaluation methodology for the assessment
of education and training programmes. This methodology is implemented
in Belgium by a consortium of six Belgian universities and SCK•CEN,
which is called the BNEN (Belgian Nuclear higher Education Network).
BNEN has been organising a common education programme for nuclear
engineers since 2002. The programme’s aim is to share its
accumulated experience with Belgium’s European neighbours
and to contribute to the realisation of the "European Research
Area". Moreover, SCK•CEN grants on a yearly basis several
PhD and post-doctoral projects to international researchers -
in collaboration with Belgian universities.
Understanding the benefits and risks of radioactivity
and its applications not only requires technical insight and training,
but also an understanding of the context and a sensitivity for
the social and philosophical aspects of a particular context.
At SCK•CEN, societal aspects related to policy and decision-making
in nuclear issues, such as risk perception and governance, and
the involvement of local communities in the location of waste
management facilities, are investigated in close collaboration
with universities. The observations that can be made from these
studies give nuclear researchers more insight into the complex
social and ethical aspects associated with nuclear applications
and also shed new light on how to organise - in a more effective
way - dialogue and interaction with civil society.
Challenges and opportunities
Like most nuclear institutes and companies, SCK•CEN
has to keep up with growing competition in what is a small but
specific (research) market. At the same time, it has to respond
to shifting public and political perceptions on nuclear by showing
its openness to answer questions on hot topics such as energy
policy, climate change and radioactive waste management. According
to Eric van Walle, the new General Manager, the recent re-organisation
of SCK•CEN will enable the Centre to fulfil, better than
ever, its mission.
ENS NEWS recently interviewed Eric
and here is what he had to say about the work, aims and future
of SCK-CEN.
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