JRC-IE's Research on Gen IV Systems

Abstract

The Institute for Energy (IE), one of the seven scientific Institutes of the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission, has the mission to provide scientific and technical support for the conception, development, implementation and monitoring of community policies related to energy. To accomplish its mission, IE performs research in the areas of renewable energies, safety and sustainability of nuclear energy for current & future reactor systems, energy techno/economic assessment, and security of energy supply. The Generation IV International Forum (GIF) is a cooperative international endeavour organized to carry out R&D needed to establish the feasibility and performance capabilities of the next generation nuclear energy systems and support the progress towards their realization. The EU, represented by EURATOM and with the JRC as implementing agent, is working together with other GIF partners to perform pre-competitive R&D on key technologies to be implemented in future nuclear systems. IE is engaged in experimental research, simulation and modeling, scientific, feasibility and engineering studies on innovative nuclear reactor systems needed to support the EURATOM contribution to GEN IV initiative, in particular in assessment of innovative fuels and materials, development of new reactor core concepts and safety solutions and knowledge management and preservation. IE¿s research activities on Generation IV reactor systems are focused on the assessment of the potential of such systems to meet long term EU energy needs with respect to economical advantages, enhanced safety, sustainability, and proliferation resistance. IE participates in international collaborations and has bilateral research cooperation both with European and non-European partners. This paper gives an overview of IE's current research activities on the Gen IV reactor systems related to safety.