US DOE, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre sign nuclear R&D agreement

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Belgium’s Studiecentrum voor Kernenergie/Centre d’Etude de l’Energie Nucléaire (SCK•CEN), also known as the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) dealing with cooperation in nuclear energy research and development (R&D).

The MOU will allow for collaboration on irradiation and post-irradiation examinations (PIE).

Currently, DOE and SCK•CEN are collaborating on irradiation tests and PIE with silicon carbide, uranium alloys and uranium ceramic materials, as well the development of sensors and instrumentation under a cooperative research and development agreement under Annex 1 of the MOU that was signed in November 2016.

Future collaborations include planned SCK•CEN activities to take place in the Belgium Reactor–2 and associated Laboratory for High and Medium Activity hot cells, as well as planned DOE undertakings to take place in the Advanced Test Reactor, the Transient Reactor Test Facility, and High Temperature Test Laboratory located at the Idaho National Laboratory and other facilities that are part of DOE’s Office of Nuclear Energy Nuclear Science User Facilities.

The nuclear industry may assess the results of some of efforts through the Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear initiative, which supports faster and economical development of nuclear energy technologies.