TRANSCEND: Transformative Science and Engineering for Nuclear Decommissioning
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Leeds
Department Name: Chemical and Process Engineering
Abstract
UK government is committed to nuclear energy having an important role in delivering a secure, low-carbon and affordable energy future, with their aspirations for new build power stations and life extension of the existing fleet described in policy documents. Successful delivery of this policy recognises the need for research and development, skills development and international collaboration as key enablers. A central component is the need to demonstrate our ability to safely manage and dispose of civil nuclear waste. The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority is responsible for the delivery of policy aims with respect to legacy waste, with Radioactive Waste Management charged with the delivery of a geological disposal facility and waste management solutions. EPSRC strategy is to maintain investment in nuclear fission research, recognising nuclear power as having an important role in the future low-carbon energy mix, with a strategic focus being research underpinning the decommissioning, immobilisation and management of nuclear waste. Central components of all these strategies are "a joined-up approach to nuclear R&D across government, industry and academia which...benefit(s) the UK economy" and, of benefit to UK industry, that establishes it "as a global leader in waste management and decommissioning" (see Case for Support).
The successful delivery of decommissioning, immobilisation and management of nuclear waste solutions also impacts on public acceptance of any new build programme. In relation to any geological disposal facility, there is a need to demonstrate an ability to safely manage and dispose of waste from legacy operations, with studies of public attitudes showing that acceptance of such a facility is directly linked to having viable routes for the safe clean-up and disposal of any waste.
These strategies rely on further research and development being delivered over the next 10-20 years. The work of the consortium is part of the response to this need, providing support to an internationally leading group of researchers in this key area. The work will contribute to the health of nuclear fission research, and through developments within specific disciplines, to areas beyond nuclear. It addresses key societal challenges in relation to productive and resilient nation outcomes through the development of next generation technologies and by ensuring effective and affordable solutions for waste treatment. It will also contribute to the building of public confidence in waste management solutions, and assist the acceptance of nuclear power, as well as contributing to UK economic success by maintaining our position as a world leader in waste management research, and in assisting industry to maintain its world leading position.
The consortium comprises key industry partners and leading academic researchers from 11 research intensive universities with significant expertise in nuclear research and development. The research proposed is multi-disciplinary and covers fundamental and applied topics, including 40 research projects clustered into 4 technical themes. The consortium is made up of established researchers from a diverse range of backgrounds, who are all leaders in their field, with a track-record of innovation and problem solving in the nuclear area. It also comprises many early career researchers who, as well as having relevant nuclear-related expertise, are included to provide them with invaluable experience of a large consortium project, and to further develop their profile and influence, as they mature into leaders in the field. The consortium builds upon and consolidates the work of the previous EPSRC-funded project DISTINCTIVE (Decommissioning, Immobilisation and Storage Solutions for Nuclear Waste Inventories, EP/L014041/1), bringing together researchers from a larger group of universities and increasing the multi-disciplinary nature of the group to extend and develop the academic skills base within the UK.
The successful delivery of decommissioning, immobilisation and management of nuclear waste solutions also impacts on public acceptance of any new build programme. In relation to any geological disposal facility, there is a need to demonstrate an ability to safely manage and dispose of waste from legacy operations, with studies of public attitudes showing that acceptance of such a facility is directly linked to having viable routes for the safe clean-up and disposal of any waste.
These strategies rely on further research and development being delivered over the next 10-20 years. The work of the consortium is part of the response to this need, providing support to an internationally leading group of researchers in this key area. The work will contribute to the health of nuclear fission research, and through developments within specific disciplines, to areas beyond nuclear. It addresses key societal challenges in relation to productive and resilient nation outcomes through the development of next generation technologies and by ensuring effective and affordable solutions for waste treatment. It will also contribute to the building of public confidence in waste management solutions, and assist the acceptance of nuclear power, as well as contributing to UK economic success by maintaining our position as a world leader in waste management research, and in assisting industry to maintain its world leading position.
The consortium comprises key industry partners and leading academic researchers from 11 research intensive universities with significant expertise in nuclear research and development. The research proposed is multi-disciplinary and covers fundamental and applied topics, including 40 research projects clustered into 4 technical themes. The consortium is made up of established researchers from a diverse range of backgrounds, who are all leaders in their field, with a track-record of innovation and problem solving in the nuclear area. It also comprises many early career researchers who, as well as having relevant nuclear-related expertise, are included to provide them with invaluable experience of a large consortium project, and to further develop their profile and influence, as they mature into leaders in the field. The consortium builds upon and consolidates the work of the previous EPSRC-funded project DISTINCTIVE (Decommissioning, Immobilisation and Storage Solutions for Nuclear Waste Inventories, EP/L014041/1), bringing together researchers from a larger group of universities and increasing the multi-disciplinary nature of the group to extend and develop the academic skills base within the UK.
Planned Impact
Aside from academia, beneficiaries include site licence companies and their supply chains, government and associated bodies, policy makers and regulators, and the public. All will benefit through: the generation of increased knowledge of underlying science and engineering, and the creation of novel technologies and techniques, to address challenges in waste management, leading to more cost effective and safer routes to nuclear waste disposal; through the training and development of researchers, and potential industry employees, with the requisite skills, knowledge, expertise and appreciation of industry's challenges to support the sector; through the exploitation of research results leading to reductions in the cost of nuclear decommissioning, and strengthening of the competitiveness of the UK civil nuclear sector; and through the consortium's influence in informing national energy, environmental and industrial policies, regulatory regimes, and the public, and its contribution to delivering a low cost, clean and secure energy supply. The consortium's activities will therefore lead to social, environmental, safety, health and security benefits. Economic benefits will ensue through reductions in the financial burden of waste clean-up to UK taxpayers.
To achieve and maximise these impacts, we will pursue activities in five areas:
Relationships and networks - Establishing new, and building on existing, relationships and networks through: a project kick-off meeting for researchers and industry partners; two industry roadshows to promote the consortium, especially with potential new partners; annual research meetings to facilitate the sharing of knowledge; theme meetings enabling in-depth technical discussions; challenge-led meetings to allow the wider consortium to focus on specific industry challenges; strengthening international relationships though existing links and by forging new ones; and forging links to ongoing research through joint or consecutive meetings on areas of mutual interest.
Communication and dissemination - To inform a broad and diverse audience we will engage in: conferences and exhibitions to present our research findings at scientific conferences, including organising special sessions, and relevant stakeholder events; publish papers in high impact scientific journals as well as more industry-orientated magazines and journals; create and maintain a dedicated website; publish an annual newsletter; and create and manage dedicated project accounts on social media for uploading videos and related content.
Public, media and government engagement - Undertaking activities to generate discussion amongst members of the public, and engage media and government bodies, through: attendance at science festivals to discuss our research aims and how outputs will contribute to the safe recovery, treatment and storage of waste; a public outreach activity regarding the social and ethical dimensions of waste management; a documentary and short videos highlighting the challenges arising from the safe management of radioactive waste and how our work aims to address these; providing media interviews and press releases where appropriate; and directly engaging with government through secondments between our researchers and BEIS.
Training and development - We will equip our researchers with the requisite skills to work within the nuclear sector by: providing them with the opportunity to have at least one placement in industry; providing industry mentors that they will meet with on a regular basis; and through summer schools to cover the development and writing of research proposals, and provide training in public, media, industry and government engagement.
Knowledge transfer and commercialisation - IP arising from our research will be appropriately protected and suitable commercialisation strategies developed for exploitation through existing institutional arrangements.
To achieve and maximise these impacts, we will pursue activities in five areas:
Relationships and networks - Establishing new, and building on existing, relationships and networks through: a project kick-off meeting for researchers and industry partners; two industry roadshows to promote the consortium, especially with potential new partners; annual research meetings to facilitate the sharing of knowledge; theme meetings enabling in-depth technical discussions; challenge-led meetings to allow the wider consortium to focus on specific industry challenges; strengthening international relationships though existing links and by forging new ones; and forging links to ongoing research through joint or consecutive meetings on areas of mutual interest.
Communication and dissemination - To inform a broad and diverse audience we will engage in: conferences and exhibitions to present our research findings at scientific conferences, including organising special sessions, and relevant stakeholder events; publish papers in high impact scientific journals as well as more industry-orientated magazines and journals; create and maintain a dedicated website; publish an annual newsletter; and create and manage dedicated project accounts on social media for uploading videos and related content.
Public, media and government engagement - Undertaking activities to generate discussion amongst members of the public, and engage media and government bodies, through: attendance at science festivals to discuss our research aims and how outputs will contribute to the safe recovery, treatment and storage of waste; a public outreach activity regarding the social and ethical dimensions of waste management; a documentary and short videos highlighting the challenges arising from the safe management of radioactive waste and how our work aims to address these; providing media interviews and press releases where appropriate; and directly engaging with government through secondments between our researchers and BEIS.
Training and development - We will equip our researchers with the requisite skills to work within the nuclear sector by: providing them with the opportunity to have at least one placement in industry; providing industry mentors that they will meet with on a regular basis; and through summer schools to cover the development and writing of research proposals, and provide training in public, media, industry and government engagement.
Knowledge transfer and commercialisation - IP arising from our research will be appropriately protected and suitable commercialisation strategies developed for exploitation through existing institutional arrangements.
Organisations
- University of Leeds (Lead Research Organisation)
- University of St Andrews (Collaboration)
- Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres (Collaboration)
- Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) (Collaboration)
- University of Huddersfield (Collaboration)
- National Nuclear Laboratory (Collaboration)
- SELLAFIELD LTD (Collaboration)
- U.S. Department of Energy (Collaboration)
- Low Level Waste Repository Ltd (Project Partner)
- Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (Project Partner)
- TUV SUD (UK) (Project Partner)
- Sellafield Ltd (Project Partner)
- Cavendish Nuclear (Project Partner)
- National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) (Project Partner)
- AWE plc (Project Partner)
- Radioactive Waste Management Ltd. (Project Partner)
Publications
Ahmadzadeh M
(2020)
Structure of NaFeSiO4, NaFeSi2O6, and NaFeSi3O8 glasses and glass-ceramics
in American Mineralogist
Anderson C
(2022)
The TRANSCEND University Consortium Theme 4: Nuclear materials
Austin D
(2021)
A preliminary investigation of the molten salt mediated synthesis of Gd2TiO5 'stuffed' pyrochlore
in MRS Advances
Bailey D
(2020)
Ce and U speciation in wasteforms for thermal treatment of plutonium bearing wastes, probed by L 3 edge XANES
in IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering
| Description | Research on the project was split into four technical themes: Integrated Waste Management; Site Decommissioning and Remediation; Spent Fuels; and Nuclear Materials. The achievements on each are outlined below. Integrated Waste Management: For the removal of radionuclides from effluent, notable achievements in this theme include optimisation of the synthesis of a metal-doped tin umbite, which has shown exceptionally fast kinetic uptake of Cs, to facilitate scale-up for further active testing at NNL. Importantly, this material also shows Cs uptake even in the presence of high levels of completing ions such as potassium. A methodology to transform single natural zeolite ion exchangers by base treatment has also been developed to give rise to mixed zeolite compositions which have the ion exchange properties of both the original and treated zeolites. The most promising material investigated is mordenite, which can be transformed to zeolite-P, with the hybrid mordernite/zeolite-P material showing excellent uptake of both Cs and Sr. A process for rapid and facile nanomagnetite precipitation and thermal decomposition has also been developed and optimised to produce well-dispersed magnetite particles with a narrow size distribution, with functionalisation of nanomagnetite with phosphate to target actinide and lanthanide removal from effluents performed. With regard to pond and silo sludge behaviour, behavioural modification techniques, implemented using additives (including polymers) to particle-laden waste streams, to enable improved flow, mixing and separation of wastes during retrieval and post operational clean out activities, have been assessed both with numerical simulations and experimental methods. In particular, methods for encouraging or discouraging particle agglomeration have been identified and demonstrated using high fidelity direct numerical simulations and novel ultrasonic profilers as a remote monitoring technique. This has been confirmed in both ideal and practical flows. The addition of high molecular weight polymers is now being used on Sellafield site to explore the potential of flocculation techniques to separate non-settling fine solids as a promising method to instigate settling. The dynamics associated with these processes are poorly understood, and work has been performed to elucidate the underpinning polymer-particle adsorption and subsequent flocculation dynamics to aid in more efficient process design. Data on in-situ hydrogen generation, diffusivity and radiolytic consumption in simulant Magnox sludge during irradiation, using facilities at the Dalton Cumbrian Facility, has permitted the development of models to predict the hydrogen concentration within waste sludges as a function of radiation dose. Additionally, a model has been developed using the TOPAS software to calculate the radial dose from mineral nanoparticles that are prevalent in effluent streams, and importantly to characterise their influence on radiolytic radical production. Wasteform development projects have also established new, critical research into both ILW and HLW encapsulation materials. For ILW, replacements for pulverised fly ash cement additives have been investigated to secure long term production routes, where full physicochemical analysis of substitute systems was investigated in collaboration with the Low Level Waste Repository (LLWR). Various novel glass-ceramic materials have been manufactured at scale using both smelting and HIP routes, specifically for the stable encapsulation of plutonium-contaminated material where their durability and release rates were being assessed under various conditions. In addition, current glass vitrification materials have been improved for the retention of high levels of molybdenum, expected in post operational clean out wastes, with additions of Ca and Zn leading to its partition in powellite (CaMoO4). Lastly, a suite of sodium titanosilicate glass compositions for the immobilisation of Ionsiv E-11 has been created and characterised, based on the SiO2-TiO2-Na2O phase diagram. Site Decommissioning and Remediation: Notable achievements in this theme include experimental work to investigate the application of colloidal silica grout to inhibit radionuclide migration in air and soils. Research has shown that colloidal silica grout can be used to grout waste/soils up to 120 degrees Celsius, without compromising grout integrity. The resulting grouted soil can be successfully vitrified and retains both Sr and Cs, with a higher retention rate of Cs than obtained when vitrifying ungrouted soil. Colloidal silica grouting of soils has also been combined with electrokinetic soil remediation. Experiments have shown significant promise with both Cs and Sr migrating under very low voltage gradients toward the grouted soil surrounding the cathode. Electrokinetics has also been demonstrated to form an in-situ redox barrier to prevent radionuclide migration, at scale and in real site materials, with a combined electrokinetic/silica grout land remediation and groundwater containment strategy being explored. Electrokinetics has also been applied to the treatment of difficult to measure radionuclides or DTMRs, such as Sr-90, Tc-99 and I-129, with work having examined the application of electrokinetics to the clean-up of complex on-site and off-site materials such as contaminated concretes and contaminated coastal and estuarine sediments. A prototype non-invasive system for identifying radioisotopes present in buried pipelines from gamma ray signals has also been developed, with a model based on wavelet analysis, in combination with neural networks, validated. A numerical model to simulate biomineral repair of degraded concrete assets on nuclear sites has been developed, with complementary experimental research used for model validation completed. This repair method utilises microbially-induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) via urea hydrolysis, providing a novel alternative grout form that offers the potential to seal small aperture fractures with stable calcium carbonate. Currently commercialised concrete repair methods can be ineffective when treating micro-cracking and need periodic care and maintenance due to their low durability, which renders MICP a promising alternative for micro-fracture repair. Spent Fuels: Notable achievements in this theme include work to assess the properties and release behaviour of products arising from metallic and exotic fuel corrosion, including uranium corrosion in Magnox sludge. X-ray tomography and XRD at the Diamond Light Source has been used to understand the corrosion behaviour of spent nuclear fuel simulants sealed 'partially wet' inside metal storage cans. Microcosm experiments on U metal corrosion in Magnox sludge have elucidated corrosion rates and the spatial distribution of products formed. Tests on the corrosion behaviour of uranium carbide fuels under post-closure, geological disposal conditions revealed the presence of uranium sesquicarbide. A range of laser-based techniques (Raman, TRLFS, LIBS, LA-ICP-MS) has been used to characterise representative uranyl oxide, phosphate, silicate, sulphate, carbonate and vanadate phases in order to develop a spectral library for spent fuel applications; the aim being to deploy these techniques in situ via miniaturised, fibre-optic probes. Collaborations on prepared uranyl peroxides (studtite) augmented by 'blind' verification tests undertaken using a robotic assembly have also been performed. The extensive spectral database which has been constructed is available as an open-access resource for nuclear inspections and decommissioning applications. Sintered Eu-doped CeO2 pellets have been used as surrogates of spent mixed oxide fuels (MOX SIMFUELs) in microcosm tests of crack development affecting mixed actinide matrices. A combination of Raman, SEM and voltametric analysis has yielded valuable information on redox transformations during post-irradiation interim storage and geological disposal. Laboratory rigs have been built for micromechanical, drop evaporation tests on stainless steel plate samples and novel small-scale punch-tests for in situ investigations of stress corrosion cracking in stored AGR fuel during drying. A mathematical model has also been developed to determine the length and width of cracks in the steel cladding. A predictive one-dimensional, spent fuel dissolution COMSOL model has also been developed, together with an alpha dose rate calculator, including crack and spherical geometries. The latter has been used to assess the radiolytic generation of H2, H2O2, OH-, etc. in a range of fuel/water exposure scenarios. Deposited thin film samples, irradiated at the Dalton Cumbrian Facility and Surrey Ion Beam Centre, have been used for model testing and validation. Nuclear Materials: Notable achievements in this theme include the use of density functional theory to study the surface chemistry of ThO2, as a surrogate for PuO2, which has evaluated the interactions of water with the most stable surface, demonstrating its hydrophilic behaviour and establishing that water splitting has no energy barrier. The reactions of H·, H+ and OH- with the wetted surface at differing temperatures have also been examined. Americium is formed in PuO2 from the radioactive decay of Pu atoms, and density functional theory to study the mode of Am incorporation within PuO2, and the impact Am makes to its defect chemistry, has found that Am is accommodated on Pu vacancies, and the presence of Am increases the conductivity of PuO2, potentially affecting its redox behaviour. Experimental work has also been used to develop two novel techniques for the measurement of water adsorption at actinide oxide surfaces. The first, based on simple sessile drop contact angle measurements, has found that ThO2 surfaces are more hydrophilic than CeO2 (as a PuO2 surrogate) or U3O8 surfaces. The second, employing direct mass-based measurements of water adsorption at the surface of thin layers of metal oxides to obtain adsorption enthalpies, has also found that ThO2 is the most wettable of the materials studied. Additionally, electrochemical studies of lanthanide-doped PuO2 thin films have allowed observation of the solid state oxidation of PuO2 to PuO2+x for the first time. This work was the subject of a presentation and paper at WM2022 for which it won 'Superior Paper' and 'Paper of Note' awards. Work to understand the possible metal oxide-catalysed recombination reactions that may occur between hydrogen and oxygen - the two main gas phase products of the above-mentioned water radiolysis - under conditions relevant to Pu storage has also been completed. On Pu immobilisation, we have quantified the kinetics of dissolution of zirconolite full-ceramics and zirconolite glass-ceramics, incorporating Ce or U as the Pu surrogate. Ceramic materials were found to be more durable than their glass-ceramic counterparts when subject to leaching in conditions relevant to a geological disposal facility for radioactive waste, and three orders of magnitude more durable than high level waste simulants. It was found that neither Ce nor U replicated Pu behaviour exactly; however, there are merits of the use of both in determining dissolution mechanisms. Work has also underpinned the choice of zirconolite formulation for application in hot isostatic pressing, as well as determining HIP canister-ceramic interactions that may form deleterious secondary phases. Natural analogues for titanate ceramics have also been studied to underpin observations on chemical durability in aqueous media. Active Research Projects: A key component of the research programme has been the use of active research facilities, although active research is costly, time consuming and must be carefully planned. Webinars have been held to assist in the planning of such projects, with presentations on the active funding scheme and from a number of facilities where such work can be undertaken. Fifteen projects were approved for funding which added value to the originally proposed projects, with work taking place in the UK and overseas, including at NNL facilities on active materials that cannot be handled elsewhere. All these projects provided valuable training for our researchers in the use of active facilities. |
| Exploitation Route | Outputs from the work undertaken by the consortium have been/are being taken up by key industry partners AWE, Cavendish Nuclear, LLW Repository Ltd, NNL, NDA, Radioactive Waste Management, Sellafield Ltd and TÜV SÜD Nuclear Technologies, as well as a wider range of industries involved in nuclear waste management and decommissioning. |
| Sectors | Chemicals Energy Environment Government Democracy and Justice Manufacturing including Industrial Biotechology Security and Diplomacy |
| URL | https://transcendconsortium.org/ |
| Description | Aside from academia, beneficiaries of the work of the consortium include nuclear site licence companies and the associated industrial supply chain, government, regulators and implementation authorities, and society and stakeholder groups. The consortium has undertaken activities of relevance to all these groups, with details given below. Site Licence Companies and the Associated Industrial Supply Chain: In terms of site licence companies and the supply chain, these were kept informed through our Annual Research Conference which formed the core of our networking and knowledge transfer activities. Four in-person meetings were held, in 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2023. Nearly 120 participants were in attendance at each meeting, approximately half of which were from industry and government bodies. Industry sponsorship was also used to support broader participation by beneficiaries not directly associated with the consortium. Theme meetings were also held annually, approximately 6 months before the annual meeting around October/November each year, with these meetings focussing on technical progress on individual projects. Four sets of theme meetings were held, two in-person in 2019 and 2022, and two virtually in 2020 and 2021, with the meeting in 2020 held as a joint meeting with the UK Nuclear Waste and Decommissioning Research Forum and NDA PhD bursary students. Both virtual meetings were well attended, with the joint meeting attracting over 300 registrants and 217 attending the 2021 event. These meetings provided an opportunity for focused discussion of research findings and emerging collaborative opportunities, assisting integration of knowledge and capability across distinct projects. Two challenge-led meetings were also held. The first on digital twins was held in January 2023 and the second on Pu immobilisation in July 2023. These meetings were used to harness the broad collective experience and capability of the consortium in meeting specific industry needs-led research challenges, providing a rapid and effective impact mechanism. Involvement by colleagues from our key project partners in the supervision of individual research projects which made up the overall consortium benefits those partners more directly. Our key project partners were also members of the Management Board of the consortium, which met every six months, assisting lead academics in the running of the overall project. The International Advisory Group, which met annually, included academic and industrial representatives from the Management Board, as well as other leading researchers from complementary international research organisations. Non-academic members included: Atkins, AWE, BAM Ritchies, Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS), Catholic University of America, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, Cavendish Nuclear, CEFAS, Citizens for Nuclear Technology Awareness, Costain, Diamond Light Source, Eden Nuclear and Environment, Environment Agency, EPSRC, Fraser Nash Consultancy, IAEA, International Nuclear Services Ltd, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, LLWR, Longenecker & Associates, NDA, NNL, Nuvia, PNNL, RWM, Sellafield Ltd, SRNL, Thornton Tomasetti, TÜV SÜD Nuclear Technologies, URENCO, US DoE, US DoE EM, Westinghouse and Wood plc. This group is chaired by Prof. Ian Pegg of the Catholic University of America. Members of both the Management Board and the International Advisory Group reviewed research project progress, provided strategic leadership and ensured relevance, as well as encouraging knowledge transfer activities and collaborations with industry within the UK and overseas. Presentations by consortium members to encourage engagement in the overall project were also given at the start of the project to engineers and scientists within industry at two industry roadshow events held in Warrington in December 2018 and Bristol in January 2019. A number of presentations were also made by consortium members in order to promote the project nationally and internationally, most notably through a dedicated session at the 2020 WM Symposia, which involved 7 presentations in the session itself as well as 5 other technical papers. A follow on session was also held at WM2022 focusing on achievements of the project, with 7 presentations in the session itself as well as 9 other technical papers. TRANSCEND also had a stand in the UK Pavilion in the Exhibit Hall at this event, with the UK being the featured county in 2022. Government, Regulators and Implementation Authorities: In terms of impact on government, regulators and implementation authorities, Claire Corkhill and Neil Hyatt were elected as members of the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM), with Claire also a member of the Energy Working Group of the Green Taxonomy Advisory Group (GTAG) which provides independent advice to the UK government on developing and implementing a green taxonomy in the UK. Malcolm Joyce is a member of the UK Nuclear Innovation and Research Advisory Board (NIRAB), with Neil Hyatt and Tom Scott being past members, all of whom have participated in advisory committees to the board. Neil Hyatt was also a member of an IAEA working group on options for managing separated plutonium, and has given evidence to a government review on a National Policy Statement for Geological Disposal Infrastructure. Neil subsequently left the University of Sheffield to become Chief Scientist of Radioactive Waste Management (now Nuclear Waste Services). Michael Fairweather has also given presentations about the project to the BEIS Decommissioning and Policy Team and at a CoRWM Open Plenary meeting, and of course the NDA and RWM are key project partners. Discussions with BEIS were held during the project formulation stage and it was agreed that the secondment of subject matter experts into BEIS would be of significant benefit, allowing research findings to provide input to relevant select committees and expert working groups, as well as providing an opportunity for our researchers to gain valuable policy experience. Two of our research investigators, Laura Leay and David Read, started such secondments in May and June of 2019. Laura's secondment was as an expert advisor to radioactive waste policy in the Nuclear Decommissioning and Radioactive Waste team. Her knowledge of analytical techniques was used to inform policy making, specifically in updating guidelines on recovery in the event of a release of radioactivity into a public space. The project was a collaboration between BEIS, the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra), Public Health England and the Environment Agency. David's placement concerned risk-based disposability, and he joined a team at BEIS working on aspects of the Nuclear Sector Deal, specifically nuclear decommissioning, waste management and geological disposal, working on a risk-based approach to inform radioactive waste management policy. Both secondments were successfully completed. Lois Tovey also undertook a secondment as a policy advisor in the Radioactive Waste and Nuclear Decommissioning team. Her analytical skills were used to inform policy making with regards to legislation to facilitate the recovery phase from a radiological incident. This was part of a joint project with Defra and involved consulting/liaising with the UK Health Security Agency, the Environment Agency, the Food Standards Agency, the Health and Safety Executive, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, the Ministry of Defence, the Office for Nuclear Regulation, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, Local Authorities, the Police, NDA, EDF, Magnox and Sellafield Ltd. Society and Stakeholder Groups: The engagement of society and stakeholder groups through public activities was restricted due to the impacts of COVID-19. In particular, attendance at science fairs and festivals, and a proposed exhibition at 'We the Curious', a science centre and educational charity in Bristol, had to be abandoned. We did attend the International Festival of Glass 2022 showcasing our work on the vitrification of radioactive waste. We also had a presence at the NDA Supply Chain event in July 2022. We have established a YouTube channel, Green Nuclear Future, which contains animated videos promoting the TRANSCEND programme. These videos highlight the challenges arising from the safe management and storage of radioactive waste, and how TRANSCEND has addressed these issues. Interviews/podcasts with our researchers are also being added to this channel. We have developed the 'NuclearVerse' as a joint collaboration with the Royal Society of Chemistry and AWE. This explores nuclear challenges through VR and is aimed at the general public and school children. This was tested at a nuclear and radiochemistry summer school for high school students and has been rolled-out within schools and in face-to-face interactions with the public, for example, at science fairs. The project originally planned a two-day Public Engagement summer school for our PDRAs, PhDs and early career researchers to cover training in public, media, industry and government engagement. This would include sessions covering IP and technology development, research ethics, plus equality and diversity. Additionally, a workshop on the development and writing of research proposals for our researchers was also proposed. Grant writing training took place at our Annual Meeting in November 2021. The Public Engagement activity took the form of four days of media training workshops held in September 2023. We also commissioned a public outreach activity regarding the social and ethical dimensions of waste management, based on workshops and interviews at events organised and attended by consortium members. This activity was led by colleagues at the Institute for Cultural Practices at the University of Manchester, based on a game playing route to providing public understanding of research and development needs, opportunities and solutions. This was rolled-out at a number of events attended by members of the public. The 'RePlace the Waste' game that was developed also holds potential for adaptation for online use. The consortium had significant 'flexi-funds' allocated which were used to pursue ad-hoc impact activities. In conjunction with the Royal Society of Chemistry and the NNUF-Exact Facility at Southampton we have developed a Rad Ratings card game. This is an interactive card game intended as a lesson supplement to the core curriculum for students in year nine and above. It covers half-life, radiation, different types of decay, cost and risk. The game has been extremely popular across the nuclear sector and has been used as a successful activity to support STEM Ambassador outreach for the nuclear industry in both classrooms and as part of site/university visit days. We now have distributed over 900 packs of cards to TRANSCEND consortium partners for use in activities such as those described. We also supported the development of RadDose - an open source web application - which is a modelling tool to simulate the dose of radiation from radionuclide-containing solids exposed by surrounding media. It includes the following features: alpha and beta dosimetry; planar and spherical geometry capabilities; single inputs for average decay energy and multiple inputs for radionuclide entries; multiple interfaces; background gamma; and report downloading. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2018 |
| Sector | Energy,Environment,Government, Democracy and Justice |
| Impact Types | Societal Economic Policy & public services |
| Description | Appointed to the HM Treasury Green Taxonomy Energy Working Group |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Membership of a guideline committee |
| Description | CoRWM SMR / AMR report |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Implementation circular/rapid advice/letter to e.g. Ministry of Health |
| Impact | The major outcomes of the publication thus far are: (1) better informed civil service members (2) decision by Great British Nuclear to include management of radioactive waste in the next phase of the SMR competition Other impacts include bringing together a wide range of relevant stakeholders (e.g. NDA, NWS, EA, ONR, GBN etc. to discuss the issue of radioactive waste management in new nuclear reactors). |
| URL | https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/development-of-small-modular-reactors-smrs-and-advanced-m... |
| Description | Expert reveiwer for Radioactive Waste Management LImited |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Membership of a guideline committee |
| Description | Expert reviewer for Nuclear Decommissioning Authority on Plutonium Stockpile Management |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Membership of a guideline committee |
| Description | International Atomic Energy Agency Predisposal Network Steering Committee |
| Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
| Policy Influence Type | Participation in a guidance/advisory committee |
| Description | Member HM Goverment Committee on Radioactive Waste Management |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Membership of a guideline committee |
| Description | Oral Evidence at the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee inquiry on Delivering Nuclear Power |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Contribution to a national consultation/review |
| Impact | The evidence given has been used to strengthen government policy on the geological disposal of radioactive waste in the UK, as well as underpin further enquiry into public spending on nuclear decommissioning. |
| URL | https://committees.parliament.uk/work/6864/delivering-nuclear-power/news/196805/strategic-plan-neede... |
| Description | Participation in South Copeland community events |
| Geographic Reach | Local/Municipal/Regional |
| Policy Influence Type | Participation in a guidance/advisory committee |
| Impact | Members of the Community Partnership have sought further advice from me, and have reported a change in attitude about the geological disposal of radioactive waste in their community. |
| Description | Secondment to BEIS of academic as an expert advisor to radioactive waste policy in Nuclear Decommissioning and Radioactive Waste team. Knowledge of analytical techniques used to inform policy making, specifically in updating guidelines on recovery in event of release of radioactivity into public space. Project a collaboration between BEIS, Defra, Public Health England and Environment Agency. |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Participation in a guidance/advisory committee |
| Description | Secondment to BEIS of academic as an expert advisor to team working on aspects of Nuclear Sector Deal, specifically nuclear decommissioning, waste management and geological disposal, working on risk-based approach to inform radioactive waste management policy. |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Participation in a guidance/advisory committee |
| Description | A molten salt community framework for predictive modelling of critical characteristics |
| Amount | £591,182 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/X011607/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 06/2023 |
| End | 06/2026 |
| Description | Abatement Trials with Advanced Materials (ADVANCED FUEL CYCLE PROGRAMME) |
| Amount | £91,778 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | NNL/NIP/039 |
| Organisation | National Nuclear Laboratory |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 06/2020 |
| End | 03/2021 |
| Description | Advanced Nuclear Fuels Programme |
| Amount | £810,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | NNL/NIP/003 |
| Organisation | Government of the UK |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2019 |
| End | 10/2021 |
| Description | Development of disposal-MOX |
| Amount | £10,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Orano |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | United States |
| Start | 07/2022 |
| End | 03/2023 |
| Description | Development of technology to reduce environmental problems via innovative water purification agents |
| Amount | £283,148 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/V027387/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 11/2020 |
| End | 03/2023 |
| Description | Disposal MOX |
| Amount | £120,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | National Nuclear Laboratory Agreement No NNL/UA/137 |
| Organisation | National Nuclear Laboratory |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2021 |
| End | 09/2025 |
| Description | Dissolution of neutron poisons from zirconolite - NNL |
| Amount | £69,657 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Nuclear Decommissioning Authority NDA |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2020 |
| End | 03/2021 |
| Description | EDI Network Plus for Energy Researchers |
| Amount | £1,250,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/W033747/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 05/2022 |
| End | 05/2026 |
| Description | Glass Leaching Assessment for Disposability II |
| Amount | £145,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | U.S. Department of Energy |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United States |
| Start | 01/2018 |
| End | 01/2019 |
| Description | Groundwater interaction with nuclear waste glass |
| Amount | £120,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | National Nuclear Laboratory |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2019 |
| End | 09/2023 |
| Description | Immobilisation of radioactive resins in glass |
| Amount | £55,200 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Ministry of Defence (MOD) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2018 |
| End | 04/2019 |
| Description | Interactions of extrinsic species with PuO2 during storage |
| Amount | £100,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Sellafield Ltd |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2021 |
| End | 09/2025 |
| Description | Intermediate range order effects in radioactive waste glasses: implications for aqueous durability and mechanical properties |
| Amount | £863,375 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/T016337/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 06/2021 |
| End | 12/2024 |
| Description | Isolation of 14C species from spent ion exchange resins and their stabilisation |
| Amount | £386,163 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/S032959/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 08/2019 |
| End | 08/2022 |
| Description | Long-term durability of plutonium-containing glass ceramics |
| Amount | £305,946 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Nuclear Decommissioning Authority NDA |
| Department | Radioactive Waste Management |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2019 |
| End | 03/2021 |
| Description | Long-term performance of phosphate based backfill cements in repository environments |
| Amount | £120,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | RWM504 |
| Organisation | Nuclear Decommissioning Authority NDA |
| Department | Radioactive Waste Management |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2022 |
| End | 09/2026 |
| Description | MOX SIMFUELs - Development of Simulants |
| Amount | £100,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Nuclear Decommissioning Authority NDA |
| Department | Radioactive Waste Management |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 12/2019 |
| End | 11/2023 |
| Description | Modelling Hydrogen Build-up in Plutonium Storage |
| Amount | £325,039 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Nuclear Decommissioning Authority NDA |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 07/2021 |
| End | 02/2023 |
| Description | NNUF2a: Facility for Radioactive Materials Surfaces (FaRMS) |
| Amount | £922,271 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/V035495/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2021 |
| End | 09/2024 |
| Description | Optimising bacteria production and storage for field-scale application of a new biomineralization technology in ground engineering |
| Amount | £100,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 08/2021 |
| End | 11/2022 |
| Description | Performance of aged cement grouts for encapsulating radioactive wastes |
| Amount | £119,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | RWM422 |
| Organisation | Nuclear Decommissioning Authority NDA |
| Department | Radioactive Waste Management |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2021 |
| End | 09/2025 |
| Description | Platform for Long-term Experimental Investigation of Alteration in Disposal Environments and Storage - PLEIADES |
| Amount | £597,980 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/V035215/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2021 |
| End | 09/2023 |
| Description | Plutonium wasteform dissolution - RWM |
| Amount | £988,914 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | RWM313 |
| Organisation | Nuclear Decommissioning Authority NDA |
| Department | Radioactive Waste Management |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 02/2021 |
| End | 02/2026 |
| Description | Proton, alpha and gamma irradiation assisted stress corrosion cracking: understanding the fuel-steel interface |
| Amount | £65,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | A109474 |
| Organisation | Sellafield Ltd |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2023 |
| End | 09/2027 |
| Description | SATURN CDT ("Skills And Training Underpinning a Renaissance in Nuclear" Centre for Doctoral Training) |
| Amount | £10,393,040 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/Y034856/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2024 |
| End | 09/2032 |
| Description | SICODELIQ - SImulated COntamination assisted DEcontamination of highly active LIQuid facilities |
| Amount | £29,200 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | National Nuclear Laboratory Agreement No NNL/UA/ |
| Organisation | National Nuclear Laboratory |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2021 |
| End | 09/2025 |
| Description | THERAMIN |
| Amount | € 3,972,539 (EUR) |
| Funding ID | 755480 |
| Organisation | European Commission H2020 |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | Belgium |
| Start | 05/2017 |
| End | 05/2020 |
| Description | TRISO Electrochem Corrosion |
| Amount | £167,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | PSS/2023/077 |
| Organisation | Government of the UK |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 12/2023 |
| End | 01/2025 |
| Description | The Management of Spent Oxide Fuel: Detecting the Onset of Cladding Corrosion Under Irradiated Fuel Storage Pond Conditions |
| Amount | £120,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | NNL/UA/160 |
| Organisation | Nuclear Decommissioning Authority NDA |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2023 |
| End | 12/2026 |
| Description | The Management of Spent Oxide Fuel: Irradiation of AGR SIMfuels in Pond Storage Environments - Consequences for UO2 Corrosion and Water Radiolysis |
| Amount | £60,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Sellafield Ltd |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 09/2023 |
| End | 09/2027 |
| Description | UTGARD Lab - 7 User Access Awards Funded by the National Nuclear Users Facility |
| Amount | £7,511,247 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/T011351/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2019 |
| End | 03/2024 |
| Description | UTGARD Lab Phase II: A SIMFUEL Fabrication & Characterisation Facility |
| Amount | £752,056 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/T011416/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 11/2019 |
| End | 03/2024 |
| Description | William Penney Fellowship |
| Amount | £120,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Atomic Weapons Establishment |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 05/2022 |
| End | 05/2025 |
| Title | CSD 2036872: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination |
| Description | Related Article: Sarah E. O'Sullivan, Eduardo Montoya, Shi-Kuan Sun, Jonathan George, Cameron Kirk, Malin C. Dixon Wilkins, Philippe F. Weck, Eunja Kim, Kevin S. Knight, Neil C. Hyatt|2020|Inorg.Chem.|59|18407|doi:10.1021/acs.inorgchem.0c03044 |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| URL | http://www.ccdc.cam.ac.uk/services/structure_request?id=doi:10.25505/fiz.icsd.cc26cjkp&sid=DataCite |
| Title | CSD 2036873: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination |
| Description | Related Article: Sarah E. O'Sullivan, Eduardo Montoya, Shi-Kuan Sun, Jonathan George, Cameron Kirk, Malin C. Dixon Wilkins, Philippe F. Weck, Eunja Kim, Kevin S. Knight, Neil C. Hyatt|2020|Inorg.Chem.|59|18407|doi:10.1021/acs.inorgchem.0c03044 |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| URL | http://www.ccdc.cam.ac.uk/services/structure_request?id=doi:10.25505/fiz.icsd.cc26cjlq&sid=DataCite |
| Title | CSD 2036874: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination |
| Description | Related Article: Sarah E. O'Sullivan, Eduardo Montoya, Shi-Kuan Sun, Jonathan George, Cameron Kirk, Malin C. Dixon Wilkins, Philippe F. Weck, Eunja Kim, Kevin S. Knight, Neil C. Hyatt|2020|Inorg.Chem.|59|18407|doi:10.1021/acs.inorgchem.0c03044 |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| URL | http://www.ccdc.cam.ac.uk/services/structure_request?id=doi:10.25505/fiz.icsd.cc26cjmr&sid=DataCite |
| Title | CSD 2107209: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination |
| Description | Related Article: Malin C. Dixon Wilkins, Lucy M. Mottram, Ewan R. Maddrell, Martin C. Stennett, Claire L. Corkhill, Kristina O. Kvashnina, Neil C. Hyatt|2021|Inorg.Chem.|60|18112|doi:10.1021/acs.inorgchem.1c02733 |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| URL | http://www.ccdc.cam.ac.uk/services/structure_request?id=doi:10.25505/fiz.icsd.cc28qqh7&sid=DataCite |
| Description | Collaboration with Huddersfield University Nuclear Materials Group |
| Organisation | University of Huddersfield |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Contact and discussions with Huddersfield Nuclear Materials group, directly enabled by this project. Discussions are at an early stage but reciprocal visits and discussions underway and future funding bids in consideration. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Contact and discussions with Huddersfield Nuclear Materials group, directly enabled by this project. Discussions are at an early stage but reciprocal visits and discussions underway and future funding bids in consideration. |
| Impact | Too early - no outcomes yet as collaboration has just begun. |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | Collaboration with Sellafield |
| Organisation | Sellafield Ltd |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | Academic supervision of three research students in the area of spent nuclear fuel and nuclear waste management |
| Collaborator Contribution | Industrial supervision and funding of three research students in the area of spent nuclear fuel and nuclear waste management |
| Impact | Project early stages at the moment |
| Start Year | 2019 |
| Description | Industrial Collaboration with Sellafield Ltd |
| Organisation | Sellafield Ltd |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | Supporting thermal treatment of radioactive wastes arising from site operations and decommissioning |
| Collaborator Contribution | Supporting research through provision of input, expertise and know-how in the nuclear sector |
| Impact | Collaboration has recently started so no formal outputs to note here yet |
| Start Year | 2023 |
| Description | Japan Atomic Energy Agency |
| Organisation | Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) |
| Country | Japan |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | The grant award has led to the establishment of a strategic partnership with the JAEA based around fallout and fuel debris analysis. There has been an MoU signed by both institutions to permit collaboration, exchange of personnel and samples. Subsequently, the remit of the MoU has been widened (2019) to include joint work on diamond battery (ASPIRE) technology, high dose-rate diamond detectors and radiation mapping robots. We have contributed expertise, consultancy, shared data recorded from Japanese samples and sites and have won several experimental sessions at the Diamond Light Source synchrotron facility for fallout particle analysis. JAEA colleagues have participated in all of our UK synchrotron experiments and participated and presented at UK workshops and conferences e.g. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Already we have had over 15 visits from the JAEA since the start of the partnership as well as a suite of fallout samples from Fukushima and access to nuclear fallout storage sites and other restricted areas of the Fukushima fallout zone. The site access and samples provided are extremely valuable. |
| Impact | Several joint publications. Widening of the relationship to cover other areas such as radiation detection, UAVs and most recently diamond batteries. |
| Start Year | 2016 |
| Description | National Nuclear Laboratory |
| Organisation | National Nuclear Laboratory |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | Producing materials for decommissioning and clean-up activities |
| Collaborator Contribution | Discussions regarding potential application of new technologies for decommissioning |
| Impact | None yet |
| Start Year | 2014 |
| Description | Partnership with HZDR ROBL |
| Organisation | Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres |
| Department | Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf |
| Country | Germany |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Partnership is focused on developing techniques and samples to elucidate the chemistry of uranium-based nuclear fuels. My team have contributed materials for this effort. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partners at HZDR have contributed access to the ROBL beamline to advance understanding of uranium chemistry in nuclear fuels -- they have used their in-house beamtime for this. |
| Impact | A number of publications have arisen from this partnership, with more in the pipeline. We are preparing a large collaborative EU grant together. |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | US DoE - SHU Collaboration |
| Organisation | U.S. Department of Energy |
| Country | United States |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | Link between SHU and US DoE facilitated by 3 PhD students (jointly-funded by both US DoE and SHU, and all 3 students are affiliate members of TRANSCEND), on immobilisation of HLW and LILW from the US Hanford Site. The 3 affiliated students (James Eales, Jessica Rigby, Katrina Love) all spent summer 2019 undertaking secondments/internships at PNNL, USA. Intellectual expertise and training are being provided to the students by both SHU and US DoE and its representatives. |
| Collaborator Contribution | US DoE is providing joint funding (with SHU) for the 3 PhD students. US expertise from colleagues across several National Laboratories and Universities is providing additional intellectual and training input and opportunities. |
| Impact | No peer-reviewed outputs to date, the students have just entered the 2nd years of their PhD's. However, the 3 students all presented their research at the Society of Glass Technology Annual Meeting in Cambridge, UK, in September 2019. |
| Start Year | 2018 |
| Description | ssNMR |
| Organisation | University of St Andrews |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Collaboration on the solid-state NMR of zeolite samples with Prof Sharon Ashbrook. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Allan, Hriljac, Ashbrook - conceptulisation of experiments. Ashbrook - experiments and data interpretation. |
| Impact | None yet. |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Title | Defect Analysis Package |
| Description | The Defect Analysis Package (DefAP), an open-source Python code, has been designed to link simple thermodynamics to energies calculated using density functional theory. The primary function of the package is to predict the concentrations of defects in materials as a function of key thermodynamic variables, such as temperature and availability of different species, expressed through chemical potentials. Through simple thermodynamic equations, DefAP allows the rapid exploration of a material's defect chemistry allowing direct comparison with experimental observations. |
| Type Of Technology | Software |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Open Source License? | Yes |
| Impact | The DefAP package has been used to explore the defect chemistry of a number of systems, notably PuO2 and Li8PbO6. The major feature that this code enables is the creation of phase diagrams that include a prediction of the defect chemistry as well as the stable phase. The code was only released in 2022 and so impact so far is limited, however, there has been significant interest in the code from the community and we expect future user numbers to grow. |
| Description | 'A very real problem': How resurgent nuclear reactions at Chernobyl might be dealt with to avert disaster |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Prof Neil Hyatt was interviewed by The Independent on the potential resurgence of nuclear fission within the fuel debris of the Chernobyl reactor and the relevance to Fukushima Dai-ici, the article highlighted our recent work on the synthesis and characterisation of Chernobyl and Fukushima corium and fuel debris. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/chernobyl-nuclear-reactions-robots-drilling-b1846990... |
| Description | 'It's like the embers in a barbecue pit.' Nuclear reactions are smoldering again at Chernobyl |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Prof Neil Hyatt was interviewed by Science magazine on the potential resurgence of nuclear fission within the fuel debris of the Chernobyl reactor and the relevance to Fukushima Dai-ici, drawing on recent research on Chernobyl and Fukushima corium and fuel debris. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.science.org/content/article/nuclear-reactions-reawaken-chernobyl-reactor |
| Description | 1st Annual Meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | The consortium held its first annual meeting at the Apex City hotel in Bath on the 3rd and 4th April 2019. Over 100 representatives from academia, industry and government bodies gathered to learn about the latest research findings since the programme started in October 2018. Sixteen technical presentations covered the 4 themes: Integrated Waste Management; Site Decommissioning & Remediation; Spent Fuels; Nuclear Materials. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | 1st Industry Roadshow |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | The 1st Industry Roadshow was held at Birchwood Park in Warrington on 11th December 2018. Delegates registered from organisations across the nuclear sector to gain an overview of the research programme and to learn how it will help to address key challenges facing the industry. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | 2nd Industry Roadshow |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | The 2nd Industry Roadshow took place at The Mercure in Bristol on 14th January 2019. Delegates registered from organisations across the nuclear sector to gain an overview of the research programme and to learn how it will help to address key challenges facing the industry. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | A long term solution |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Dr Claire Corkhill was invited by RWM Ltd to present a short video explaining the benefits of geological disposal of radiaoctive wastes, in recognition of her expertise developed through several EPSRC research projects. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoPSaWV-tQU |
| Description | An article on the university of Manchester's policy blog |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | A ~1500 word blog piece was written, with a target audience of policy makers, that asks for policy makes to take some form of action. In this case the call to action was to form a social contract so that policy makers and the public could agree a way to manage radioactive waste |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| URL | http://blog.policy.manchester.ac.uk/energy_environment/2020/01/managing-radioactive-waste/ |
| Description | Article in Popular Science about our research |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Our research featured in the online magazine, Popular Science. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.popsci.com/science/chernobyl-meltdown-corium-x-rays/ |
| Description | Attendance at GLOBAL / TOPFUEL Conference, Seattle |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Attending at GLOBAL / TOPFUEL Conference in Seattle. Made a total of 8 presentations to a mixed industry / academic audience. Conference papers arising from those presentations are listed in the publications section |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | http://globaltopfuel.ans.org/ |
| Description | Attendance at Radioactive Waste Management Spent Fuel Strategy Workshop |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Attendance at Radioactive Waste Management Spent Fuel Strategy Workshop, online, 8th October 2021. Purpose to develop RWM's research strategy in this area. Made invited presentation as follows: "Update on AGR SIMFUEL Studies at Lancaster", C.Boxall, N.Rauff-Nisthar, E.Howett, R.Wilbraham, G.Berhane, S.Jones, I.Robertson |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Attending the American Nuclear Society Meeting in Washington DC |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | 5 oral presentations made at the American Nuclear Society Meeting in Washington DC in Nov 2024. Presentations made in the areas of accident tolerant fuels, spent fuel recycling, disposal, and the development of MOX SIMFUEL / Disposal MOX materials Also participated in joint UK-US panel on national level collaborations going forward and engaged with subject matter experts at US national labs about future joint research projects |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.energy.gov/doe-stem/events/2023-american-nuclear-society-ans-winter-conference#:~:text=A... |
| Description | BBC |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Prof. Claire Corkhill was interviewed on the BBC Radio 4 PM Programme on the radiation leak and situation at the Taishan nuclear power plant, in China, of the EPR design. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | BBC Inside Science |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Interviewed on BBC Inside Science about radioactive waste disposal, radioactive waste from fusion energy and Fukushima Daiichi clean up-related research. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0013zm3 |
| Description | BBC Look North |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Interviewed by BBC Look North about the siting of a geological disposal facility for radioactive waste in East Lincolnshire. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | BBC Look North interview with Peter Levy |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Interview with Peter Levy on the 6.30pm BBC Look North evening news, about the proposed siting of a geological disposal facility for radioactive waste at the Theddlethorpe site. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | BBC Radio Scotland Interview |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Interview on BBC Radio Scotland about the potential radioactive waste issues at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Brokhaven National Laboratory news article |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Our research featured in the US Department of Enerygy's newsletter |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.bnl.gov/newsroom/news.php?a=218742 |
| Description | CNN breaking story: Taishan nuclear power plant. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Professor Neil Hyatt Neil Hyatt was interviewed by CNN about the reported leak of radioactivity at the Taishan nuclear power plant in China. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://twitter.com/i/status/1405429331942379520 |
| Description | Careers talk at Diamond Light Source |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | I gave a talk about my career at the Diamond Light Source 2023 Early Career Scientist's Symposium, sparking questions about a career in the nuclear industry, and in academia. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.diamond.ac.uk/Home/Events/2023/Early-Career-Scientists-Symposium-2023.html |
| Description | Chernobyl's nuclear fuel is smoldering. To prevent another accident, researchers are studying the site's radioactive lava. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Prof Neil Hyatt and Prof. Claire Corkhill were interviewed by Business Insider on the potential resurgence of nuclear fission within the fuel debris of the Chernobyl reactor and discussed ongoing research to understand the formation and behaviour of corium materials at Chernobyl and Fukushima Dai-ici, and management of radioactive wastes more broadly. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.businessinsider.com/chernobyl-radioactive-lava-prevent-nuclear-accident-2021-5?r=US&IR=T |
| Description | Chernobyl: nuclear material may be re-igniting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Prof Neil Hyatt was interviewed by the Naked Scientist podcast on the potential resurgence of nuclear fission within the fuel debris of the Chernobyl reactor and the relevance to Fukushima Dai-ici. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.thenakedscientists.com/articles/interviews/chernobyl-nuclear-material-may-be-re-igniting |
| Description | Covid and clean air |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Prof Neil Hyatt was interviewed by BBC Science In Action on the potential resurgence of nuclear fission within the fuel debris of the Chernobyl reactor and the relevance to Fukushima Dai-ici, drawing on recent research on Chernobyl and Fukushima corium and fuel debris. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3ct1l3m |
| Description | Engagement with Academic Colleagues at University of Sheffield |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Meetings and Workshops, with mutual lab visits and seminars, to engage in collaborative research with University of Sheffield colleagues and disseminate findings from the research relating back to previous grants, e.g. CarboGlass. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023,2024 |
| Description | Engagement with UK Molten Salts Working Group |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Invitation to attend the UK MSWG meetings along with many representatives from the UK molten salts community, for community building and engagement activities. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Expert participant in BEIS public dialogue on Advanced Nuclear Technologies |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | I participated as an expert in radioactive waste management for the BEIS-sponsored Public Dialogue on Advanced Nuclear Technology. Groups of the public from different areas of the country discussed the issues around new nuclear power. The outcomes highlighted two key points: (1) the participants of the study were not aware that nuclear power is a modern technology; and (2) they were strongly resolved that there should be no new nuclear power stations until a geological disposal facility for radioactive waste is available. BEIS have taken this on board and are now building in public engagement and waste disposal matters into their emerging Advanced Modular Reactor programme. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/public-dialogue-on-advanced-nuclear-technologies-ants |
| Description | Former Vice President Al Gore - Frontiers Forum - The Case for Climate Optimism - September 2021 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I attended the Frontiers Forum on 29 September 2021 at which the Keynote Speaker was Former Vice President Al Gore, discussing Climate Change. From over 5000 attendees I was selected to be on the Q&A Panel and was one of only two members who had the opportunity to ask questions of Former Vice President Al Gore. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEpWTIZbODg&t=12s |
| Description | Frontiers in Glass Forum - Invited Presentation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Invited Presentation at the Frontiers in Glass II Forum, 30th June 2021, organised by University of Bristol. I gave an Invited Presentation, sparked discussions and questions. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | GDF Conference 2021 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Prof. Neil Hyatt was invited as the facilitator and panel chair for the Geological Disposal Facility Conference 2021, delivered by Radioactive Waste Management, in recognition of his international standing in the field. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.gov.uk/government/news/geological-disposal-programme-now-under-way |
| Description | Geology Bites podcast |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Participated in the Geology Bites podcast, talking about the geological disposal of radioactive waste. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.geologybites.com/claire-corkhill |
| Description | International Festival of Glass |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Over 100 visitors met with staff and students at our stall at the International Festival of Glass in Stourbridge, to talk about glass materials and glasses used in radioactive waste management and disposal. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.ifg.org.uk/ |
| Description | International Webinar Series on Immobilisation of Radioactive Wastes |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | I organised, during Covid-19 Lockdowns, a series of 5 international webinars on the Immobilisation of Radioactive Wastes, featuring 5 of the most eminent international speakers on the topic. The events were well attended, with well over 100 attendees for the 5 events. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Interview with Chemical & Engineering News: What caused a plume of radioactive ruthenium in Europe in 2017? |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Prof. Neil Hyatt was interviewed for Chemical & Engineering News on trace radiation detected across northern Europe, based on expertise in radioactive waste management developed in EPSRC sponsored research on nuclear fuel reprocessing. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://cen.acs.org/safety/industrial-safety/caused-plume-radioactive-ruthenium-Europe/97/web/2019/0... |
| Description | Interview with Joe Pinkstone at The Telegraph |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Interview with The Telegraph: Long search for place to bury highly radioactive nuclear waste begins |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/06/27/nuclear-waste-undersea-storage-geological-disposal-facil... |
| Description | Interview with Rachel Millard at The Telegraph |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Interview with The Telegraph: "Inside the battle to stop radioactive nuclear waste from contaminating Britain" |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2023/04/16/nuclear-radioactive-windscale-sellafield-accident/ |
| Description | Interview with Theo Legett on BBC World Service Business Daily |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | I was interviewed by Theo Leggett for a documentary on the BBC World Service's Business Daily podcast, titled "How to shut down a nuclear power station". This reached a large international audience and described why it is so difficult, and takes so long, to decommission a nuclear power plant. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3ct4n0b |
| Description | Invited speaker at Diamond Light Source Active Materials Building Launch |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Invited to speak at the launch of Diamond Light Source's active materials building -- discussed the potential for long-term corrosion experiments at that facility, combined with the Sheffield PLEIADES NNUF facility. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Journal Highlights |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Our paper in MRS Advances titled "A feasibility investigation of laboratory based x-ray absorption spectroscopy in support of nuclear waste management" (https://doi.org/10.1557/adv.2020.44), was featured as a highlight article in the Materials Research Society Bulletin in January 2022. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://link.springer.com/article/10.1557/s43577-021-00233-x |
| Description | Lead contributor - the Nuclear Dilemma |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | I was filmed for a BBC Ideas short documentary about nuclear power. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.bbc.co.uk/ideas/videos/the-nuclear-dilemma/p09rsq3p |
| Description | Letter to the Editor of The Times |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Letter to the Editor of The Times, "Nuclear waste cannot be ignored" |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://twitter.com/clairecorkhill/status/1643900472732819457/photo/1 |
| Description | Letter to the Guardian: Strategies for nuclear weapons and waste |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Prof. Neil Hyatt published a letter in The Guardian newspaper in response to an earlier article on radioactive waste, highlighting the need for a sustainable and definite end solution, informed by EPSRC sponsored research. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/aug/07/strategies-for-nuclear-weapons-and-waste |
| Description | Lloyds Register Foundation Conference - All Centre Meeting Oct 2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Supporters |
| Results and Impact | meeting of the Lloyd's Register Foundation Centre for the Safety of Nuclear Energy - included presentations from participants in TRANSCEND, ATLANTIC, TRIBECA Spent Fuel project |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Media articles about our research supporting the decommissioning of the Fukushima reactors |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Interviewed about our research and latest publication on the clean up of Fukushima in: > the IET's online magazine, E&T > the Swiss Light Source news > numerous outlets in Switzerland |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://eandt.theiet.org/content/articles/2022/02/uk-simulation-of-radioactive-reactor-debris-will-a... |
| Description | Media interviews regarding the leak of radioactivity at the Taishan nuclear power plant |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Interviewed by The New Scientist and the Independent newspaper about the leak of radioactivity. Also interviewed by Evan Davies on the BBC Radio 4 PM programme. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.independent.co.uk/asia/china-nuclear-leak-taishan-radioactivity-b1866917.html |
| Description | Meeting with NNL & RWM |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | meeting with NNL and RWM to discuss new PhD studentship |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Meeting with Radioactive Waste Management Ltd |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | meeting with radioactive waste management ltd to discuss progress on mixed oxide nuclear fuel project |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Meeting with Sellafield Oct 2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | meeting with geoff randall, sellafield, to discuss potential formation of decommissioning centre for excellence |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Member of the Royal Academy of Engineering Net Zero Working Group |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Key advisor on the NEPC Net-Zero Carbon Working Group contributing to co-authored advice papers to UK Government and directly to No 10. Downing St. on: Green Recovery from the Pandemic; Engineering Systems; Net-zero Construction and the Future Hydrogen Economy. I was selected to do the press releases for Net-Zero Construction and The Future Hydrogen Economy. This involved appearances on Radio 4's Today Programme; the BBC news website; BBC Scotland; LBC News; the New Scientist; Nature Magazine. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019,2020,2021,2022,2023 |
| Description | NNIP Phase 2 Meeting - Dec 2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Progress meeting, NNIP Phase 2 work. Work linked to TRANSCEND (MOx fuel fabrication) and ATLANTIC (Accident Tolerant Fuel Work). HMG funding Dept BEIS present |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | NNIP Phase 2 meeting at Lancaster Nov 2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | meeting to discuss progress on National Nuclear Innovation Programme work - linked to TRANSCEND & ATLANTIC |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | NNL visit to review RWM work |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | meeting with dave hambley, NNL to discuss progress on RWM/TRANSCEND work |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | National Nuclear Innovation Programme Phase 2 kick off meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | kick off meeting of phase 2 of the national nuclear innovation programme work (sponsored by BEIS) with links to TRANSCEND (MOx fuel fabrication) and ATLANTIC (Accident Tolerant Fuel Work Package) |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Nuclear reactions are discovered smouldering 'like embers at a barbecue' in an inaccessible chamber at Chernobyl, sparking gears of another explosion at the power plant. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Prof Neil Hyatt was interviewed by The Daily Mail on the potential resurgence of nuclear fission within the fuel debris of the Chernobyl reactor and the relevance to Fukushima Dai-ici, drawing on recent research on Chernobyl and Fukushima corium and fuel debris. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-9570439/Nuclear-reactions-smouldering-like-embers-ba... |
| Description | Nuclear reactions at Chernobyl are spiking in an inaccessible chamber |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Prof Neil Hyatt was interviewed by New Scientist on the potential resurgence of nuclear fission within the fuel debris of the Chernobyl reactor and the relevance to Fukushima Dai-ici, drawing on recent research on Chernobyl and Fukushima corium and fuel debris. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.newscientist.com/article/2277195-nuclear-reactions-at-chernobyl-are-spiking-in-an-inacce... |
| Description | Numerous TV, radio and newspaper interviews regarding the status of nuclear power and Chernobyl during the Russian/Ukrainian war |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Interviewed for numerous TV and radio broadcasts, and newspaper articles, regarding the status of nuclear installations in Ukraine. Offered reassurance to the public in the face of growing panic in the media. The following is not an exhaustive list of the articles / appearences: > BBC News, web interview, Feb 25th (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-60514228) > BBC News, web interview, Feb 25th (https://bbc.in/3tZUdOY) > Independent, newspaper interview, Feb 25th (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/chernobyl-update-nuclear-radiation-ukraine-b2023062.html) > BBC News, web interview, Feb 26th (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-60528828) > Chemistry World, interview, March 1st (https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/fears-for-ukraines-nuclear-facilities-follow-russian-troops-taking-charge-of-chernobyl-site/4015308.article) > BBC Science in Action, radio interview, March 3rd (https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3ct1l53) > BBC 2, TV broadcast, March 4th > BBC News, web interview, 4th March (https://bbc.in/3MOpZXX) > BBC News at 6pm, TV interview, 4th March > Sky News, TV interview, 4th March (https://news.sky.com/video/could-chernobyl-happen-again-12557735) > Channel 5 News, TV interview, 4th March > Financial Times, Newspaper interview, 4th March (https://www.ft.com/content/6caaa71c-fa11-4c24-ad19-035d694618a2) > BBC News, web interview, 4th March (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-60617145) > BBC News, web interview, 9th March (https://bbc.in/3KPyv7e) > LBC News, radio / tv interview, 9th March (https://twitter.com/LBC/status/1501634578703859720) > BBC Newsnight, tv interview, 9th March (https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/b006mk25/newsnight) > BBC Breakfast News, tv interview, 10th March (https://twitter.com/BBCBreakfast/status/1501813668190773251) |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Overview of the Work of the TRANSCEND Consortium |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | This was a videoconference giving an overview of the consortium and its work to the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Panelist on BBC R4 Start the Week |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | I participated in a panel discussion on BBC Radio 4's flagship cultural programme, Start the Week, with a focus on glass materials ("Made out of glass"). I spoke about the immobilisation of radioactive waste in glass, amongst other applications of glass. I received lots of follow-on questions from the public, as well as requests from museums and artists for help with glass materials / exhibits. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001vs75 |
| Description | Participation in Euratom-funded EURAD-2 Focus Funnel Event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | ~300 delegates attended the Euratom-funded EURAD-2 Focus Funnel event in Cyprus in order to determine the priorities for the EURAD programme. EURAD is a consortium of over 60 nuclear waste management organisations from across the EU, including respective national government agencies with responsibility for nuclear waste management policy in their respective countries |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.ejp-eurad.eu/events/eurad-2-wp-focus-funnel |
| Description | Participation in NDA Group Conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Participation in NDA Group conference, resulting in NDA research lead agreeing to provide cash-match-funding for a TRANSCEND follow-on bid to EPSRC |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Participation in panel on geological disposal facility siting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | 100 postgraduate students and professionals in the nuclear industry attended a panel session (of which I was a member) about the siting of a geological disposal facility for radioactive waste. This sparked a range of questions and increased interest in the topic. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Plutonium Projects Meeting - NNL Sellafield June 2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | meeting with NNL and sellafield to review progress on plutonium research projects |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Poster presentation by James Read at the NWDRF 2020 conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | James is a Sellafield funded PhD student who presented his work in a poster titled "Scoping studies of new ion exchnage materials " |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Presenation at the International workshop on Theory Frontiers in Actinide Sciences: Chemistry and Materials, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Research presentation to field experts |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Presentation at NWDRF meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Presentation at NWDRF meeting (by Jamie Purkis, TRANSCEND postdoc), on electrokinetic remediation technologies being developed under TRANSCEND, which sparked questions and discussions afterwards, and led to requests about (further) participation or involvement and plans made for future related activity. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Presentation at TRANSCEND Annual Conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | 1 oral presentation at the TRANSCEND Annual Meeting as follows "Safe Interim Storage of plutonium: Electrochemical investigations on doped plutonium oxide", D.Laventine, C.Boxall, D.Wegen, TRANSCEND 2nd Annual Meeting, DoubleTree by Hilton Harrogate Majestic Hotel, 10th - 12th November 2021, 3 poster presentations at the TRANSCEND Annual Meeting as follows: "The Radiolysis of Water over Plutonium Dioxide: A Study of H2/O2 Recombination Processes", C.Williams, C.Boxall, H.Steele, R.Orr "MOX SIMfuels: Production and Preliminary Studies of Homogeneous U:CeO2 SIMfuels", I.Robertson, C.Boxall, D.Hambley, R.Hibberd, R.Wilbraham "Interaction of Water with PuO2 Analogues", D.Laventine, C.Boxall, R.Taylor, R.Orr |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://transcendconsortium.org/document-library/ |
| Description | Presentation at the British Zeolite Association Annual Meeting: In-situ powder X-ray diffraction studies of Cs-exchange in the zeolite chabazite |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | 80 attendees at the meeting listened to a presentation by Dan Parsons co-authored by Anthony Nearchou and Joe Hriljac |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Presentation at the Nuclear Waste Services Research Support Office Annual Conference, Jan 2024 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Presentation at the Nuclear Waste Services Research Support Office Annual Conference, Jan 2024, on the development of MOX SIMFUELs |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Presentation to European Spent Fuel Workshop 22 in Barcelona |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Review presentation on Lancaster's SIMFUEL research to the Spent Fuel Workshop 22 conference in Barcelona |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://sfw22.amphos21.com/ |
| Description | Presentation to Institute of Environmental Geochemistry, Ukraine Academy of Sciences, Kyiv. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Presentation to Institute of Environmental Geochemistry, Ukraine Academy of Sciences, Kyiv, and local spin-out companies (who have worked extensively on nuclear contamination issues in the Ukraine), leading to discussion of related R&D projects implementing TRANSCEND and other technologies to land and water contamination issues in the Ukraine. Cundy was invited as an international expert on an ongoing INNOVATE UK project, led by ANAMAD Ltd (UK). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Presentation to meeting of Hampshire Contaminated (local authority) Land Liaison Group |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Presentation to meeting of Hampshire Contaminated (local authority) Land Liaison Group (Basingstoke and Deane Council), leading to subsequent discussion on wider application of remediation techniques (including electrokinetic remediation) to current land contamination issues in the southern region of the UK. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Presentation to regional meeting (Solent group) of the Geological Society (London). |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | A presentation to Geological Society (London) regional group discussing development of new land remediation technologies, including the work currently undertaken in TRANSCEND. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Presentations at Materials Research Society Meeting in Hawaii, USA |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Presentations made at Materials Research Society Meeting in Hawaii, USA. 6 oral presentations on: the use of SIMFUELs to predict the behaviour of real fuels; characterisation of SIMFUELs; corrosion studies of real spent nuclear fuel; the role of kinetics in nuclear reprocessing; the role of NO in directing neptunium during advanced nuclear reprocessing schemes; the corrosion behaviour of high-density Advanced Technology Fuels. 2 poster presentations on: advanced oxidation processes for the dissolution of spent nuclear fuel; novel photochemical technologies for the conditions of process streams during advanced reprocessing flowsheets |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.mrs.org/meetings-events/spring-meetings-exhibits/past-spring-meetings/2022-mrs-spring-me... |
| Description | Presentations at TRANSCEND Theme Meeting (May 2022) and Annual Conference (Nov 2022) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Presentations at TRANSCEND Theme Meeting (May 2022) and Oral Presentation on the development of MOX SIMFUELs Oral Presentation on the corrosion behaviour of real spent nuclear fuel Oral presentation on the the possible oxidation of PuO2 to PuO2+x Oral Presentation at the TRANSCEND Annual Conference (Nov 2022) on the characterisation of SIMFUELs Poster presentation on the development of MOX SIMFUELs |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://transcendconsortium.org/events/ |
| Description | Presentations at Uranium Science 2023 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | The delivery of 3 oral presentations and 2 poster presentations at the international Uranium Science 2023 conference in Manchester in July 2023. Presentations topics included the development of new TRISO-based fuels for future UK reactors, the development of simulants for spent MOX fuel and research on Disposal MOX |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.royce.ac.uk/events/uranium-science-conference-2023/ |
| Description | Presentations at Waste Management 2020, USA |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Three presentations at Waste Management 2020 in Phoenix Arizona. Presentations summarising progress on plutonium storage and spent nuclear fuel disposal research within the TRANSCEND consortium |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Presentations at Waste Management 2022, USA |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | 4 oral presentations made to WM2022 as follows "Electrokinetic In Situ Decontamination of Entrained Radioactivity Within a Concrete Matrix", T.McCarthy, C.Boxall, M.J.Joyce, A.Banford, Waste Management 2022, Phoenx Convention Centre, Phoenix, Arizona, 6th - 10th March 2022 "Towards the Decontamination of Plutonium Contaminated Bricks: Investigation of Cerium Based Simulant on Brick Penetration", J.Kennedy, C.Boxall, A.Banford, R.Demmer, A.J.Parker, D.Hutchison, Waste Management 2022, Phoenx Convention Centre, Phoenix, Arizona, 6th - 10th March 2022 "Solid-State Electrochemical Oxidation of PuO2 to PuO2+x" D.Laventine, C.Boxall, D.Wegen, Waste Management 2022, Phoenx Convention Centre, Phoenix, Arizona, 6th - 10th March 2022 "The TRANSCEND University Consortium Theme 4: Nuclear material" C. Anderson, L. Blackburn, C. Boxall, C.L. Corkhill, M. Dixon Wilkins, F. Currell, X. Han, J.W. Hobbs, N.C. Hyatt, N. Kaltsoyannis, M. Kuman, D. Laventine, S. Murphy, E. Murray, W. Neilson, R. Orr, M. Read, H. Steele, S.-K. Sun, Waste Management 2022, Phoenx Convention Centre, Phoenix, Arizona, 6th - 10th March 2022 Plus two poster presentations "The Radiolysis of Water over Plutonium Dioxide: A Study of H2/O2 Recombination Processes", C.Williams, C.Boxall, H.Steele, R.Orr "Electrokinetic In Situ Decontamination of Entrained Radioactivity Within a Concrete Matrix", T.McCarthy, C.Boxall, M.J.Joyce, A.Banford |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | http://wmsym.org |
| Description | Presentations to TRANSCEND Annual (Apr 2023) and Plutonium Theme (July 2023) Meetings |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Presentations at TRANSCEND Theme Meeting (July 2022) on plutonium research within TRANSCEND and Poster Presentations on the development of DISPOSAL MOX and MOX SIMFUELs at the TRANSCEND Annual Conference (Nov 2022) |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://transcendconsortium.org/ |
| Description | Presenting at Sellafield/NNL Special Nuclear Materials Meetings |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Presenting at Sellafield/NNL Special Nuclear Materials Meetings. Oral presentations on the management of stored plutonium and the development of Disposal MOX / MOX SIMFUELs |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023,2024 |
| Description | Progress Review Meeting with NNL |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | May 2020 meeting with NNL to review progress in TRANSCEND and Advanced Fuel Cycle Programme Research Projects |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Radioactive Waste Management Ltd Meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Meeting with Radioactive Waste Management to discuss future project on understanding the behaviour of spent nuclear fuel under disposal conditions. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | RemPlex Seminar and Round-table workshop |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Invited presentation and round table panel participation, on remediation methods for radiocesium and radiostrontium, RemPlex seminar, Pacific Northwest Nuclear Laboratories (online), USA, February 14 2023. Presentation title: Novel electrokinetic methods for radiocesium and radiostrontium management at nuclear sites - the UK TRANSCEND project. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://www.pnnl.gov/projects/remplex/seminars |
| Description | Research presentation at Transcend Theme meeting - Lancaster |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Talk on background for TRANSCEND project at theme meeting at Lancaster |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Royal Society Workshop on Nuclear Co-Generation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Prof. Neil Hyatt was invited to participate in the Royal Society meeting on Nuclear Co-generation in recognition of his expertise in radioactive waste management developed through several EPSRC research projects, outcomes from which were highlighted in discussion contribution. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Sellafield Decommissioning Centre Meet, Manchester Nov 2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Meeting to discuss potential formation of Decommissioning Centre for Excellence |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Simulant material could aid in Fukushima cleanup |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Article on Paul Scherrer Institute and Swiss Light Source website, as front page, highlighting our research on synthesis and characterisation of Fukushima corium. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.psi.ch/en/media/our-research/simulant-material-could-aid-in-fukushima-cleanup |
| Description | Sky News Interview |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Sky News interview: Nuclear waste: Public to have a say on plans to bury radioactive material |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| URL | https://news.sky.com/story/nuclear-waste-public-to-have-a-say-on-plans-to-bury-radioactive-material-... |
| Description | TRANSCEND Annual Meeting - Bath 2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Annual Meeting of the TRANSCEND Consortium |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://transcendconsortium.org/events/1st-annual-meeting-bath-3rd-4th-april-2019/ |
| Description | TRANSCEND Board Meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | TRANSCEND Project Board Meeting - 14th May 2020 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | TRANSCEND International Advisory Board |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | 15 Oct 2020 meeting of TRANSCEND Consortium's International Advisory Board |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | TRANSCEND Kickoff meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Over 50 attendees gathered for the TRANSCEND kick-off meeting held on Wednesday 12th September 2018 at the National Railway Museum in York. The first part of the day was devoted to the research programme. Mike Fairweather (PI of TRANSCEND) opened the meeting by presenting a general overview of the TRANSCEND project. Presentations from each Theme Leader giving more detail on the planned research within their respective themes then followed. The morning was rounded off with a presentation by Joanna Renshaw outlining some of the proposed impact activities. Early afternoon saw the industry partners presenting details on their involvement with the project. The final part of the day was devoted to general discussions on projects and plans going forward. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | TRANSCEND Leadership Team Meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | June 2020 meeting of TRANSCEND Consortium Leadership Team |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | TRANSCEND Theme Meeting - Lancaster Nov 2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | TRANSCEND Plutonium Theme Meeting at Lancaster. Attended by NNL, Sellafield, NDA, RWM |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://transcendconsortium.org/events/transcend-theme-meetings/ |
| Description | TRANSCEND Theme Meetings - On-line Dec 2020 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | TRANSCEND Theme Meetings - 1. Theme 3 - Spent Nuclear Fuel 2. Theme 4 - Nuclear Materials Held on-line Dec 2020 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | TRANSCEND: Collaborative Research Programme in Transformative Science and Engineering for Nuclear Decommissioning - Overview and Update |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | The was a videoconference giving an overview of the consortium and its work to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Decommissioning and Policy Team. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | TUC Congress: Panel Debate on Nuclear Decommissioning |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Dr Claire Corkhill was invited to participate in an Expert Panel Debate on Nuclear Decommissioning at the TUC Congress, in recognition of her expertise developed through several EPSRC research projects, outcomes of which were highlighted in the opening remarks and panel debate. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Talk and participation in the Czech-UK Workshop on Nanomaterials |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Invited talk and participation in a Czech-UK Workshop on Nanomaterials titled "Synchrotron and Neutron Diffraction Studies of Nanoporous Solids" |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Talk and poster presentation by Antony Nearchou at the NWDRF 2020 conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Antony is a PDRA on the grant who presented his work in a talk titled "New materials and methods for decontamination of effluent" |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Talk at Integrated Waste Management conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Dr. Samuel Murphy presented an overview of the TRANSCEND project at the Nuclear Institute sponsored Integrated Waste Management conference. The aim of the talk was to inform the industry about the work being undertaken as part of TRANSCEND but also to engage industry with the academic community. As a consequence of the talk a number of participants applied to attend the following TRANSCEND theme meeting. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Talk at the AFCP Quarterly Technical Meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | A talk was presented "Scoping materials for the removal of Cs-137 & Sr-90 from waste streams" to descibe the work to be done in the project "Abatement Trials with Advanced Materials" |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Talk at the Diamond-II Crystallography Workshop |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Presented "Structural Studies of Materials for Radionuclide Uptake" |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Talk presented by Antony Nearchou at a Sellafield online learning event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Antony is a PDRA on the grant who presented his work in a talk titled "New materials and methods for decontamination of effluent" |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Talk presented by James Reed at a Sellafield online learning event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | James is a Sellafield funded PhD student who presented his work in a talk titled "Scoping studies of new ion exchange materials" |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | The Continuing Story of the Nuclear Waste Bill |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Radio Interview on BBC Inside science discussing management and disposal of radioactive waste and highlighting recently published research on synthesis and characterisation of Fukushima coriums. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0013zm3 |
| Description | The Independent news article on nuclear accident clean up research |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Our research on Chernobyl and Fukushima clean up appeared in the Independent newspaper. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/chernobyl-nuclear-reactions-robots-drilling-b1846990... |
| Description | The nuclear dilemma |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Prof Claire Corkhill was featured in the BBC short "The nuclear dilemma", explaining the nature, management and disposal of radioactive wastes in the context of nuclear power generation to address climate change and the Fukushima dai-ici accident. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.bbc.co.uk/ideas/videos/the-nuclear-dilemma/p09rsq3p |
| Description | Theme meetings |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | The first set of Theme Meetings for TRANSCEND were held at Lancaster University Conference Centre on the 11th & 12th November 2019 providing an update of the research being undertaken Presentations from experienced researchers, PhD students and industry champions and the posters on show provided plenty of opportunities for researchers to engage directly with industry and other academic colleagues. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Theme meetings joint conference with NWDRF and NDA |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | TRANSCEND held its' annual Theme meetings as a joint online conference with the Nuclear Waste and Decommissioning Forum (NWDRF) and the NDA Bursary students. The aim was to inform the audience of our latest research results and stimulate interest in our research programme. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Transcend Roadshow - Birchwood Park |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | A workshop for industry professionals to present the activities of the Transcend grant to increase industry engagement with the research of the grant. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Transcend Roadshow - Hotel Mercure Bristol |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | A set of presentations aimed at the nuclear industry describing the research to be carried out in Transcend with the aim to increase industry engagement. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | UK - Japan meeting and workshop in civil nuclear decommissioning |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | I was an invited participant in a workshop to scope future research areas for joint UK - Japan civil nuclear decommissioning activities |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | VR exhibit at NDA supply chain event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | VR exhibit advertising the work of TRANSCEND academic/industry consortium to wider UK industry in nuclear waste and decommissioning. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.gov.uk/government/news/nda-announces-new-date-for-its-group-supply-chain-event-2022 |
| Description | VR exhibit at Waste Management Symposium |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | VR exhibit for TRANSCEND nuclear waste consortium at UK-feature country for 2022, Waste Management Symposium, Phoenix Arizona, US. Advertising UK academic/industry partnership to US and other international collaborators. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.wmsym.org/ |
| Description | Visit and Presentation to NWDRF Conference - 'Development of modular, intensified ion exchange processes for nuclear effluent treatment' |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Attended the Nuclear Waste and Decommissioning Research Frontiers (NWDRF) Conference to give a presentation around TRANSCEND research perspectives and to meet with other TRANSCEND researchers, as well as significant industry figures. Outcomes of presentation were significant new industrial links and potential research collaborations with the University of Birmingham |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Visit by Japan Chemical Analysis Centre, and Nuclear Regulation Authority (Japan). |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Visit by Japan Chemical Analysis Centre, and Nuclear Regulation Authority (Japan) to the National Oceanography Centre (Southampton). This involved a presentation of the TRANSCEND project work, and discussions of further related research in decommissioning, in-situ characterisation and analytical intercomparison. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Visit by Sellafield Chief Technology Officer |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | A visit by a Robin Ibbotson - Sellafield Ltd. Chief Technology Officer - to UTGARD Lab took place on 10th July 2023. Discussions held about Lancaster establishing a strategic relationship with Sellafield in the areas of Nuclear and Cyber |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Visit by Sellafield Staff to discuss Lancaster Spent Fuel Research |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Visit to Lancaster by Sellafield staff to discuss Lancaster's research in spent fuel management. Involved presentations on the manufacture, characterisation and use in corrosion studies of SIMFUELs, the development of MOX SIMFUELs and disposal MOX |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Visit from from the Japanese Citizens' Nuclear Information Center |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The JUNO network facilitated a visit by a delegation from the Japanese Citizens' Nuclear Information Center to the University of Sheffield on 13 September 2019. The purpose of the visit was to understand current UK - Japan collaborative R&D and the latest developments in technology to immobilise and dispose of the UK plutonium stockpile, in particular the hot isostatic pressing approach developed by the Sheffield team. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/energy/immobilising-japans-plutonium |
| Description | Visit to Idaho and Oak Ridge National Labs in the USA |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | 25 PhD students were taken on a tour of the Idaho and Oak Ridge National Labs in the US, meeting leading scientists working across the nuclear fuel cycle - from fuel fabrication to disposal - and exploring the possibilities of placements. discussions held with subject matter experts on future UK-US research in the context of the inter-govt treaty to freely exchange information and materials on the peaceful applications of nuclear energy |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Visit to UKAEA to discuss radioactive waste arising from fusion energy |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Attended visit to UKAEA Culham Centre for Fusion Energy, to discuss the regulatory issues surrounding the radioactive waste that will arise from nuclear fusion reactors. Wrote a blog about the visit for the CoRWM website. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.gov.uk/government/news/nuclear-fusion-and-radioactive-waste-regulation-corwm-members-vis... |
| Description | WM2020 Phoenix Arizona |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | TRANSCEND organised a dedicated technical session at WM2020 held from 8th - 12th March 2020 in Phoenix, Arizona. This is the leading international conference for the management of radioactive waste and related topics. The session consisted of seven presentations providing an overview of the programme, the four themes, an industry perspective of TRANSCEND and a case study of where our earlier research is making an impact. The good attendance at the technical session and the networking social held afterwards showed that there is significant interest in our research programme. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Webinar on UK Active Research Facilities |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | A one day webinar was held on 10 June 2020, in partnership with the TRANSCEND project, to showcase UK facilities for working with high activity materials and the TRANSCEND Active Research Fund. The webinar featured presentations on the HADES, UTGARD, DCF and NNL Central Laboratory facilities. The webinar facilitated a Q&A session with facility operators to assist the user community with planning future access. The event elicited interest from both existing and future users of the facilities for future access. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | six-weekly meetings with sellafield |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Meetings every 6 weeks with Sellafield and NNL to discuss progress in plutonium storage related research projects |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021,2022,2023,2024 |