تحقیقات بنیادی در حمایت از طرح سوخت های نوآورانه برای سیستم های GEN IV : پروژه F-BRIDGE

This paper gives an overview of the objectives and the structure of the F-BRIDGE European project as presented at the FISA conference in 2009 one year after its beginning. A quick presentation of the scientific results of the first year is also given. The F-BRIDGE project1, which stands for “Basic Research in support of Innovative Fuels Design for the GEn IV systems”, started in 2008 and will last four years. It seeks to bridge the gap between basic research and technological applications for generation IV nuclear reactor systems. Up to now fuel development and qualification has been a successful but long and expensive process essentially based on an empirical approach. One of the challenges for the next generation of reactors is to significantly increase the efficiency in designing innovative fuels. The object of the F-BRIDGE project is to complement this empirical approach by a physically based description of fuel and cladding materials to enable a rationalization of the design process and a better selection of promising fuel systems. Advanced modelling and separate effects experiments are carried out in order to obtain more exact physical descriptions of ceramic fuels and cladding, at relevant scales from the atomic to the macroscopic scale. Research is also focused on assessing and improving ‘sphere-pac’ fuel, a composite-ceramics concept which has shown promise.

The sustainability and safety demands for nuclear energy have led the Generation IV international forum (GIF) to define requirements for the next generation of nuclear power plants2. The EU joined this effort and is part of the GIF initiative. In addition, the European sustainable nuclear energy technology platform (SNETP), which aims at coordinating research, development, demonstration and deployment (RDD&D) in the field of nuclear fission energy and gathers stakeholders from industry and research organisations, was officially launched in 2007. The vision report3 of the SNETP reflects a consensus on the priorities of RDD&D in the field of nuclear fission, addressing the renaissance of nuclear energy with the deployment of Generation III reactors, and the development of Generation IV systems. To achieve its objectives, the SNETP has elaborated a strategic research agenda (SRA4), which identifies and prioritises the research topics and has been made available for public review before final publication.

Innovative fuels for Gen IV systems will not result from marginal adaptations of the currently used fuels. F-BRIDGE therefore corresponds to a strategic need for basic understanding of the behaviour and performance of potential fuel materials to improve fuel design.