Overview
Actinides
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The actinides are the elements with an atomic number (the atomic number of an element is the number of its electrons, or equivalently the number of protons in its nucleus) between 89 (actinium) and 103 (lawrencium). They play a major role within the field of nuclear energy. Two of them, Uranium and Plutonium, are key elements in the fuel that is used in the reactors of nuclear power plants. In particular, these elements have the property of being fissioned when bombarded with neutrons, causing the release of a vast amount of energy. However, through various processes such as nuclear activation, several other elements of the actinide series are also produced in the burnt fuel and radioactive waste. As such, the minor actinides Neptunium (Np), Americium (Am) and Curium (Cm) need to be further examined, since they contribute to the nuclear waste’s long-term radiotoxicity. |
The elements from actinium (element 89) to lawrencium (element 103) form a distinct group - the actinides - within the periodic table |
Therefore, research on materials containing actinides, and on the partitioning, the confinement and the transmutation of actinides, is considered to be of high importance in regard to future nuclear fuels and waste management.
Nuclear Power, a sustainable energy source
At present, the European Union produces 35% of its electricity from nuclear fission. Furthermore, nuclear fission is likely to contribute substantially to the European energetic mix in the future as an option to reduce the energy dependency of the European Union, while avoiding greenhouse gas emission.
Nuclear power plant - France
Although the nuclear industry has now come to maturity and operates nuclear plants with a high level of safety and efficiency, some issues in the field of the back-end cycle and resource management remain open. Research and Development are needed to explore new concepts for nuclear energy generation that make better use of fissile material and generate less waste. One other major issue requiring intensive research programs remains a broadly agreed approach to waste management. All these issues require expertise and improved knowledge of the processes involved in the behaviour of fuels in reactors or transmutation targets, spent fuel treatment, as well as a comprehensive understanding of the processes governing the behaviour of high level waste in storage and disposal systems.
As a general trend of nuclear science and technology, the assessment of the behaviour of nuclear systems relies more and more on basic scientific understanding of each component, down to the nanometre and atomic scales. This requires further development of basic knowledge, which in turn needs to be supported by state-of-art experimental capabilities. Maintaining high-performance research infrastructures and expertise are therefore necessary to allow science-based decision-making on issues of great relevance for the industry, and for the public.
Advanced research in actinide sciences is therefore recognized as one essential endeavour for further development of a dynamic, competitive and sustainable knowledge-based nuclear industry.
Challenges
In the past decades, research in actinide sciences has stagnated and became less attractive for young scientists, in particular in the European countries. Safety requirements for maintaining up-to-date experimental facilities for handling alpha-emitting compounds, such as actinides, have gradually made research very costly and many radiochemistry laboratories therefore have restricted their activities largely to beta- and gamma-emitting materials.
In addition, appropriate facilities for actinide research are becoming rare. Currently, they are scattered among several institutes in Europe, while some of them are difficult to gain access to. This has resulted in the fragmentation of the European actinide science community.
Because of its strategic importance, research in actinide sciences must be revitalized and made attractive to students and young scientists.
To sustain and disseminate the indispensable knowledge and expertise, as well as to maintain the threshold level of research activity in actinide sciences in Europe, success can only be envisaged by Networking at the European scale: this will not only facilitate the coordination and utilization of the available facilities for research on actinides, but this will also consolidate and reinforce research programming and training capacities throughout Europe.
