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EC-JRC-ITU

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ITU

The mission of ITU is to protect the European citizen against risks associated with the handling and storage of highly radioactive elements. ITUs prime objectives are to serve as a reference centre for basic actinide research, to contribute to an effective safety and safeguards system for the nuclear fuel cycle, and to study technological and medical applications of transuranium elements.

To fulfill its various tasks, the Institute for Transuranium Elements, part of the Joint Research Centre from the European Commission, is provided with a large number of equipment and unique facilities.

ITU’s special facilities consist of 24 hot cells with capacities up to 1 Mio Curies and some 400 glove boxes in 30 alpha laboratories.

Within the scope of the ACTINET Project, the following facilities become accessible*. They are installed in alpha-boxes or are specially equipped for handling actinide compounds. Some of them are also lead-shielded to receive samples with high gamma-activity.

(*The use of some of the facilities within the ACTINET may be restricted because they are also allocated to the Actinide User Laboratory, which is funded by other sources.)

Partner: EC-JRC-ITU

Website: http://itu.jrc.cec.eu.int

Instruments for solid-state properties of actinide compounds

  • 237Np Mössbauer spectroscopy
  • SQUID magnetometry
  • Low temperature and room temperature transport properties at ambient and high pressure (diamond cells).
  • High pressure X-ray diffractometry
ITU Glove box

Instruments for the study of thermodynamics, thermophysics and radiation damage

  • Low- and high-temp calorimetry
  • Electromotive force cell
  • Knudsen cell with mass spectrometer and gas-inlet control
  • Q-GAMES (quantitative Knudsen cell exhaust gas measurement device)
  • Thermal diffusion (LAF)
ITU hand
  • Time-of-flight mass spectrometer with sample laser-heating
  • Autoclave (7000 bar) with laser heating (melting, phase transition measurements)
  • Thermo-optical properties (emissivity/reflectivity from RT to 4000 K)
  • Spectro pyrometry (500 channels)
  • High-resolution electron microscopy (TEM/STEM/EDAX)
ITU Picture 1

Instruments for analytical or solid-liquid interface chemistry

  • Electron microprobe
  • ICPMS
  • SIMS
  • XPS, UPS
  • Scanning electron microscopy (SEM/EDAX) with micro-manipulator
ITU Picture 2
  • Autoclaves (up to 80 bar) for leaching experiment with oxygen and hydrogen activity sensors.
  • Analytical laboratory for traces and ultra-traces
  • Autoclaves (up to 80 bar) for leaching experiment with oxygen and hydrogen activity sensors.
  • Controlled thin film deposition
  • Quartz-nanobalance
  • Electrochemistry cells
  • Alpha spectrometry
ITU Picture 3

Access requirements:

Security clearance and medical checks to ensure radiation protection requirements

Jean-Paul GLATZ


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Thierry WISS


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