Improved nuclear data for the safety of energy and non-energy applications of ionising radiation

Closed

Programme Category

EU Competitive Programmes

Programme Name

Euratom Research and Training Programme

Programme Description

The Euratom Research and Training programme has the following specific objectives:

  • improve and support nuclear safety, security, safeguards, radiation protection, safe spent fuel and radioactive waste management and decommissioning, including the safe and secure use of nuclear power and of non-power applications of ionising radiation
    maintain and further develop expertise and competence in the nuclear field within the community
  • foster the development of fusion energy as a potential future energy source for electricity production and contribute to the implementation of the European fusion roadmap
  • support the policy of the EU and its members on continuous improvement of nuclear safety, safeguards and security
Programme Details

Identifier Code

HORIZON-EURATOM-2023-NRT-01-06

Call

Improved nuclear data for the safety of energy and non-energy applications of ionising radiation

Summary

Nuclear data are critical inputs – and a major source of uncertainty – in predictive modelling and simulations of energy and non-energy applications. The combination of high-power computing capabilities with the availability of advanced simulation models (and related data libraries) and more accurate nuclear data measurements enable nuclear data evaluation programmes.

Detailed Call Description

Nuclear data libraries are a combination of:

  • experimental measurements of the interactions of interest and estimation of their uncertainties and (cross-)correlations;
  • the evaluation of available experimental data and the creation of evaluated nuclear data libraries (including uncertainties and covariance matrices);
  • the validation of these (updated) evaluated nuclear data libraries by means of available differential and integral experimental data;
  • the dissemination of these (updated) evaluated nuclear data libraries according to the standards of ‘reproducible science’ – including all the information needed to reconstruct the evaluation process.

Beyond the needs for advanced and innovative nuclear designs and fuels, the use and needs of nuclear data for accelerator-related applications and for the production and use of isotopes (in fission, fusion, health, environmental monitoring, etc.) keeps growing.

Proposals should:

  • Demonstrate how state-of-the-art simulation, experimental and multidisciplinary approaches will be used to produce nuclear data libraries, capitalising on previous Euratom projects and on the international expert community.
  • Build upon new nuclear data measurements using innovative instrumentation and detectors, reactor and accelerator‑based neutron sources, improved evaluation, validation and modelling in order to achieve the required accuracies to better assess uncertainties and correlations in their evaluation.
  • Demonstrate that proposed activities will be applied to the demonstration facilities in the energy and non-energy fields, for example innovative design improvements, implementation of advanced fuel cycles, innovative light water reactors and small modular reactors, accident tolerant fuels, optimisation of radioactive waste management and geological disposal, production and use of radioisotopes (e.g. high precision nuclear data, for the major actinides present in advanced reactor fuels, to reduce uncertainties on isotopes with new relevance for applications; closing fuel cycles with minimisation of radioactive waste).
  • Provide tangible contributions in the field of evaluated nuclear data, their testing and validation; develop and validate computer tools in the nuclear data pipeline; contribute to the Joint Evaluated Fission and Fusion (JEFF) evaluated nuclear data file and its production, and as such strengthen Euratom’s nuclear simulation capacities to support the identified High Priority Request List (HPRL) of the international evaluation cooperation working parties that monitor priority nuclear data needs for nuclear applications, e.g. OECD Nuclear Energy Agency Working Party on International Nuclear Data Evaluation Cooperation, JEFF and the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Call Total Budget

€4.00 million

Financing percentage by EU or other bodies / Level of Subsidy or Loan

100%

Expected EU contribution per project: €4.00 million

Beneficiaries may provide financial support to third parties. The maximum amount to be granted to each third party is €300 000. Financial support provided by the participants to third parties, to support e.g. access to and securing availability of research infrastructures, is one of the primary activities of the action in order to be able to achieve its objectives.

Approximate number of proposals: 1

Thematic Categories

  • Education and training
  • Research, Technological Development and Innovation

Eligibility for Participation

  • Educational Institutions
  • Researchers/Research Centers/Institutions
  • Training Centres

Eligibility For Participation Notes

The Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as member of the consortium selected for funding.

Call Opening Date

04/04/2023

Call Closing Date

08/11/2023

EU Contact Point

Contact:   RTD-EURATOM@ec.europa.eu

(Publish Date: 05/04/2023-for internal use only)