Elettra designated an IAEA collaborating centerNuclear NewsResearch & ApplicationsMay 27, 2020, 7:48AM|Nuclear News StaffA collaborating center agreement was signed by Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste and the International Atomic Energy Agency in May. The agreement focuses on advanced light sources and will support countries in research, development, and capacity building in the application of advanced and innovative radiation technologies.The Elettra-Sincrotrone research facility, located in Trieste, Italy, in May became the 44th member of the IAEA Collaborating Centers network. Photo: Elettra-Sincrotrone TriesteElettra info: Elettra is a multidisciplinary international research organization based in Trieste, Italy, that has worked with the IAEA for more than 15 years. It specializes in generating synchrotron and free-electron laser light and applying it in a wide range of research fields, including materials and life science.More details: The agreement has a much broader scope than past partnerships between the entities. It includes the design of light sources, beamlines, and optics. Elettra will provide assistance to developing countries planning to build or improve their own synchrotron facilities by training scientists and technologists in key areas.Elettra is also contributing to COVID-19 research, giving priority to experiments related to SARS-CoV-2 viral proteins and studies of possible drugs for viral infection treatment. Researchers from around the globe will be able to obtain remote access to Elettra/FERMI beamlines and perform experiments on a priority basis on the topic.Previous partnership agreements have focused primarily on the XRF beamline, developing new hardware and analytical methods, and have supported training and access to that facility.They said it: “Elettra has a long history of collaboration with the IAEA and has already produced excellent results in fields ranging from air pollution to ovarian tumors,” said IAEA Deputy Director General Najat Mokhtar, head of the Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications. “This new agreement will benefit developing member states through its broad focus on advanced light sources, including the free electron laser, FERMI.”Tags:advanced light sourcescollaborating centerscovid-19elettra sincrotronefermiiaearadiationShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
The year in review 2020: Research and ApplicationsHere is a look back at the top stories of 2020 from our Research and Applications section in Newswire and Nuclear News magazine. Remember to check back to Newswire soon for more top stories from 2020.Research and Applications sectionARDP picks divergent technologies in Natrium, Xe-100: Is nuclear’s future taking shape? The Department of Energy has put two reactor designs—TerraPower’s Natrium and X-energy’s Xe-100—on a fast track to commercialization, each with an initial $80 million in 50-50 cost-shared funds awarded through the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program. Read more.Go to Article
Report finds uranium resources sufficient for foreseeable futureAdequate uranium resources exist to support the long-term, sustainable use of nuclear energy for low-carbon electricity generation, as well as for other applications, including hydrogen production. That assessment is contained in the latest (28th) edition of Uranium—Resources, Production and Demand, a global, biennial reference prepared jointly by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency and the International Atomic Energy Agency.The publication adds, however, that the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and recent reductions in uranium production and exploration could affect available supplies, suggesting that timely investment in innovative mining and processing techniques would help assure that uranium resources are brought to market when needed.Go to Article
IAEA confirms Iran working on uranium metal for reactor fuelIran has started work on uranium metal-based fuel for a research reactor, the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog and Tehran said on Wednesday. Kazem Gharib Abadi, Iran’s representative at the International Atomic Energy Agency, confirmed that the country has started working on the fuel, saying that everything has been reported to the agency.Iran's action is the latest breach of its nuclear deal with six significant powers as it presses for a lifting of U.S. sanctions.Go to Article
More adjustments to Vogtle milestone dates likelyThe initial shipment of nuclear fuel for Unit 3 arrives at the Vogtle site in December. Photo: Georgia PowerLargely as a result of the continuing COVID-19 crisis, the Vogtle reactor-construction project team expects to further adjust dates for achieving key project milestones, including the start of hot functional testing and fuel load for Unit 3, Southern Company subsidiary Georgia Power announced on January 11.The company added, however, that it continues to expect to bring Unit 3 into service this November and Unit 4 into service in November 2022. Additional updates on the project will be provided during Southern’s quarterly earnings call next month.Go to Article
Nuclear Education and COVID-19The COVID-19 pandemic hit the United States on a wide basis in March of this year, and life as we knew it changed. “Social distancing” and “essential workers” entered the jargon and working from home for many became the norm.The number of remote meetings skyrocketed, and various companies have seen that business can be conducted without having employees in the office. For universities, distance learning has been common for a while now, but with COVID it has become essential.Nuclear News asked some nuclear engineering professors about how their programs have been dealing with the pandemic. We posed three questions and asked for responses to any or all of them:How has COVID affected your NE program, and what have you learned from the experience?Has your NE program been able to contribute to your university’s broader COVID response (e.g., through research or volunteer programs)?What opportunities or challenges do you foresee in the next year for your program and your students?The following are responses received by NN.Go to Article
Report: Nuclear and other low-carbon generation becoming cost-competitiveThe levelized costs of electricity generation from low-carbon technologies, including nuclear, are dropping and are increasingly below that of conventional fossil fuel generation, concludes a new report from the International Energy Agency and the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA).The 223-page report, Projected Costs of Generating Electricity—2020 Edition, the ninth such jointly produced analysis, includes plant-level cost data on power generation from nuclear, natural gas, coal, and a variety of renewable sources, including wind, solar, hydro, and biofuels. The report provides data from 243 plants in 24 countries.Go to Article
IAEA, IEA partner to enhance nuclear’s role in clean energy transitionIAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi signs a memorandum of understanding with the International Energy Agency during an online event. Photo: IAEATo help speed the transition to clean energy that many experts say will be required to achieve global climate goals by mid-century, the International Atomic Energy Agency and International Energy Agency (IEA) have agreed to strengthen cooperation on activities involving nuclear power.IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi and IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol on November 30 signed a memorandum of understanding, under which the two organizations will share data, statistics, energy modeling tools, policy analysis, and research, according to the IAEA on December 3. The agencies will also collaborate on publications, seminars, workshops, and webinars and increase participation in each other’s conferences and meetings of mutual interest.Go to Article
IAEA awards fellowships to 100 female students in nuclearThe International Atomic Energy Agency has awarded fellowships to the first group of 100 female students from around the world under a new initiative to help close the gender gap in nuclear science and technology.The Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellowship Program, named after the pioneering physicist, was launched by IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi in March to support women pursuing nuclear-related careers.Go to Article
LA Times asks, “How safe is the water off SONGS?”A California surfer. Photo: Brocken Inaglory/WikicommonsThe Los Angeles Times published an article on December 1 about a recent collaboration between the Surfrider Foundation and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution to determine how safe the water is off the coast of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS).Go to Article
Finland’s Onkalo repository a “game changer,” says IAEA’s GrossiOnkalo, Finland’s deep geologic repository for spent nuclear fuel, has been characterized as a game changer for the long-term sustainability of nuclear energy by Rafael Mariano Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency.“Finland has had the determination to move forward with the project and to bring it to fruition,” Grossi said during a November 26 visit to Olkiluoto, Finland, where the repository is under construction. “Waste management has always been at the center of many debates about nuclear energy and the sustainability of nuclear activity around the world. Everybody knew of the idea of a geological repository for high-level radioactive nuclear waste, but Finland did it.”Posiva Oy, the Finnish company tasked with researching and creating a method for the permanent disposal of spent fuel from Finland’s Olkiluoto and Loviisa nuclear power plants, obtained a license to construct the Onkalo repository in 2015, marking the first time that a construction license for a geological disposal facility was issued anywhere in the world. The site near the Olkiluoto plant was chosen following several years of screening a number of potential sites.Go to Article