IAEA TM-47154
IAEA Technical Meeting on
Enhanced Utilization of Zero Power Reactors and Subcritical
Assemblies
Bariloche, Argentina
17–21 November 2014
Announcement and Call for Abstracts
BACKGROUND
For more than 60 years research reactors (RRs) have played an important role in the
development of nuclear science and technology: the valuable generation of radioisotopes for
medical and industrial applications, neutron transmutation doping of silicon, multi-elemental
analysis of various samples, materials research and non-destructive testing of various objects
using neutron beams and in the development of human resources and skills. According to the
IAEA Research Reactor Database (RRDB), as of January 2014, from more than 740 RRs
(including critical facilities) constructed around the world, 245 are currently operating, 5 are
under construction, and 20 are under the status of "temporarily shut down." Of the RRs that
are not operating, some plan to resume operation in the future, and some are undergoing
decommissioning or waiting to be decommissioned, but others are in an extended shutdown
state with no clear plans for their future. Although the number of RRs is steadily decreasing,
more than 50% of operational RRs are still heavily underutilized and, in most cases,
underfunded.
More than one third of all presently operating RRs are classified as critical or subcritical
assemblies with thermal fission power below a few kW. Historically neutrons generated in
such low power facilities were used to perform pioneering experiments in support of designs
of nuclear power reactors and the validation/qualification of various associated modelling
tools. In this respect critical mockups were fully or partially representative of the core
configurations to be studied. Recently, the use of low power RRs has become more diverse,
ranging from measurements of cross-sections to calibration of various detectors, development
of innovative measurement techniques and education and training of both staff and students.
In order to continue their key role in the further development of peaceful uses of nuclear
technology, the decreasing and rather old fleet of low power RRs needs to ensure the
provision of useful services to the community; when possible, with adequate revenue
generation for reliable, safe and secure facility management and operations. While many old
facilities are scheduled to be shut down, considerable efforts need to be made so that the most
flexible, best instrumented and well utilized facilities associated with each generic type of
reactor is upgraded and retained. On the other hand, new and replacement critical assemblies
corresponding to new types of reactor concepts and fuel-cycle facilities proposed for
development will be needed. The need for subcritical assemblies also remains justified due to
continuous interest in important R&D programmes on accelerator driven systems (ADS), as
this discipline developments have already appeared in the scientific programmes of a few
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Members Sates such as China, Belgium, India, Russian Federation and Ukraine. In addition,
many good practices have resulted from the use of low power reactors for education and
training purposes. Finally, a considerable number of low power facilities have recently
converted or are scheduled for conversion from HEU to LEU fuel. In such cases, facility
operating organizations need to define clear and consistent utilization strategies for
continuous operation of these converted reactors.
Sharing project experiences, good practices and utilization strategies as well as the technical
details of the involved work during the Technical Meeting will allow other organizations
contemplating similar work to consider and better understand their own challenges. Such
understanding can help optimise future planning (budget, schedule and resource expectations)
and provide for informed decision making, including action plans. Thus, the IAEA is working
to systematically collect existing knowledge on RR utilization and applications, among other
RR related topics, to share within the community of RR owners, operators, regulators, users,
industrial partners and other facility stakeholders.
OBJECTIVES
The Technical Meeting will span five full days and bring together owners, operators,
regulators, designers and users of critical and subcritical assemblies under the status
“operational,” “temporarily shut down,” “under construction” or “planned”. Participants are
expected to report on their existing experience, good practices, lessons learned and challenges
in the enhancement of utilization of low power RRs within the following specific topics:
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Mockups of power, prototype, naval propulsion, space and even research reactors;
Validation of neutronics codes used to design and improve the operation of these and
other reactors;
Measurement of neutron cross-sections or specific core parameters;
Development of neutron instruments and validation of measurement techniques;
Establishment of criticality safe designs for fissile material processing and storage
facilities, including transport containers;
Education and training of nuclear engineers, reactor operators and technicians as well
as university students from various disciplines in sciences;
Other uses/issues of low power RRs, including core conversion projects and
licensing.
EXPECTED OUTPUT
The principal output of the meeting will be a meeting report presenting the current status,
issues and challenges of critical and subcritical low power RR facilities worldwide, including
conclusions and recommendations. Subject to the sufficient volume of valuable material
presented, a dedicated IAEA publication could be prepared.
MEETING FORMAT
The format of the meeting will be oral presentations presented in sessions devoted to areas of
concern for low power RRs, with subsequent discussions and breakout sessions. The
presentations will be selected and grouped into sessions after the evaluation of the submitted
abstracts — see (2) Abstract Submission. An electronic projector with a computer capable of
reading CDs and memory sticks will be available (Power Point or Acrobat recommended).
The official language of the meeting is English. No simultaneous translation will be provided.
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The meeting will start at 09:30 on 17 November 2014 and will be concluded by 17:00 on 21
November 2014.
PARTICIPATION
In order to participate in the meeting, the following three steps must be completed:
(1) Participation in the IAEA technical meeting
A request for participation will only be accepted if the Participation Form (Form A) is
transmitted through the appropriate governmental representative authority (i.e. Ministry
of Foreign Affairs or National Atomic Energy Authority) requesting nomination and if the
IAEA receives the nomination by 1 September 2013. Persons from IAEA Member States or
invited international organizations are eligible to attend. Participants should be actively
involved in the subject matter of the technical meeting. All persons wishing to participate in
the work of this technical meeting are requested to complete a Participation Form (Form A)
and send it as soon as possible to the IAEA. Participants whose nominations have been
received by the IAEA will receive further details approximately seven weeks before the
meeting.
(2) Abstract Submission
Participants are asked to submit an abstract devoted to areas of concern of low power research
reactors (maximum one page in total length and in electronic format) directly to the Scientific
Secretary, Mr Danas Ridikas (Email: [email protected]). The abstract must be text only
and must contain the author’s name, affiliation and email address. The acceptable file format
is Microsoft Word. The authors should make sure that the files do not include copyrighted
fonts or other impediments to reproduction. The abstract template can be requested from the
Scientific Secretary. The one page abstract must be received by 1 September 2014 at the
latest. The abstracts will be evaluated by the Technical Programme Committee, and authors
will be informed of the acceptance of their contributions via email by 1 October 2014. The
technical meeting agenda and a book of abstracts will be prepared and sent via email to all
selected participants in PDF format before the technical meeting.
Important: Contributors of material to be included in the IAEA’s proceedings are required to
assign all copyrights or rights to publish to the IAEA (Form B).
(3) Paper Submission
Accepted authors are requested to submit their papers prior to the meeting. The paper
template can be requested also from the Scientific Secretary. Deadline of paper submission is
1 November 2014.
PRESENTATIONS
The presentations should be prepared either as a PowerPoint file or a PDF file, complete with
all text, figures and tables. All presentations will be converted as received to a PDF file and
placed on memory sticks for distribution to all participants at the end of the technical meeting.
EXPENDITURES AND FINANCIAL SUPPORT
The costs for the organization of the technical meeting are borne by the IAEA. No
registration fee is charged to participants. As a general rule, the IAEA does not pay for
participants’ travel and living expenses. However, limited financial support is available to
facilitate the attendance of selected participants who will make a presentation,
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principally those from developing Member States. Usually only one grant for financial
support is awarded per Member State. If participants or governments wish to apply for a grant
on behalf of one of their participants, they should ensure that applications for grants are:
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Received by the IAEA Scientific Secretary by 1 September 2014;
Accompanied by a duly completed and signed Grant Application Form (Form C);
Accompanied by an abstract relevant to one of the promoted topics of the technical
meeting.
Applications that do not comply with these requirements will not be considered. The grants
awarded will be in the form of lump sums and will be paid prior to the meeting. Grants for
financial support will be announced around 1 October 2014.
VISAS
The IAEA will send official invitation letters to designated participants which are intended to
assist with visa arrangements, if needed, approximately seven weeks before the technical
meeting. Participants requiring a visa to enter Argentina should submit the necessary
application to the nearest diplomatic or consular representative of Argentina in their country
as soon as they receive the official invitation letter.
ACCOMMODATION
It is the responsibility of the participants to arrange their accommodation. A list of hotels and
other lodging possibilities for reference as well as detailed information on transport
arrangements to/from Bariloche and other organizational items will be sent to all designated
participants approximately seven weeks before the technical meeting.
DEADLINES (2014) and PROCEDURES
1 September: Deadline for submission of abstracts (should also include Forms A and B)
and, when applicable, grant applications (should include Form C)
1 October:
Participants informed on the acceptance of their contributions, and when
applicable, on the attribution of grants
1 November: Deadline for submission of full papers
17 November: Start of meeting
21 November: End of meeting
SCIENTIFIC SECRETARIES
Mr Danas Ridikas
Physics Section, Division of Physical and Chemical Sciences
Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications
International Atomic Energy Agency
Email: [email protected]; Tel.: +43 1 2600 21751
Mr Sandor Tozser
Research reactor Section, Division of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology
Department of Nuclear Energy
International Atomic Energy Agency
Email: [email protected]; Tel.: +43-1-2600-25807
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ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANCE
Ms Rozanne Bojdo
Physics Section, Division of Physical and Chemical Sciences
Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications
International Atomic Energy Agency
Vienna International Centre
PO Box 100
1400 VIENNA, AUSTRIA
Email: [email protected]; Tel.: +43 1 2600 21754; Fax: +43 1 26007
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