Fuels and materials test laboratories Some of these laboratories, operated by CEA, are used to carry out a variety of experiments on irradiated materials or fuels. The purpose of some research programmes for example is to allow higher burn-up of fuels or improve their safety. Some of these facilities are also operated for fuel preparation and repackaging. The following fall within this category of laboratories: ∙ the Active Fuel Examination Laboratory (LECA), in Cadarache and its extension, the Treatment, Clean-Out and Reconditioning Station (STAR), which make up BNI 55; ∙ the Laboratory for Research and Fabrication of Advanced Nuclear Fuels (Lefca – BNI 123), located in Cadarache; ∙ the Spent Fuel Testing Laboratory (LECI – BNI 50), located in Saclay. Research and development (R&D) laboratories R&D on new technologies is also carried out for the nuclear industry in laboratories, more particularly with regard to the development of new fuels, their recycling, or the management of ultimate waste. The Alpha facility and laboratory for transuranian elements analysis and reprocessing studies (Atalante – BNI 148), situated in Marcoule and operated by CEA, provides Orano Cycle with technical support for optimising the operation of the La Hague plants. It carries out experimental work to qualify the behaviour of nuclear glass matrices in order to guarantee the long-term confinement properties of high-level waste packages. In the light of the issues associated with certain accident scenarios, ASN considered that a strict schedule needed to be applied to the implementation of certain provisions, notably those concerning improvements to the measures for prevention of fire and flooding risks following an earthquake and that the waste stored in the facility should be reprocessed or removed within a reasonable time-frame. Continued operation of BNI 148 following the conclusions of its periodic safety review is therefore subject to the prescriptions defined in the ASN resolution of 19 April 2022. Artificial Radionuclides Production Facility The Artificial Radionuclides Production Facility (UPRA), situated in Saclay and operated by CIS bio international, is a nuclear facility designed according to the same principles as a laboratory (special areas for handling and experimenting with radioactive substances, using appropriate means), for the purposes of research and to develop radionuclides for medical uses. CIS bio international is a subsidiary of the Curium group, a manufacturer of radiopharmaceuticals. ASN is currently examining the facility’s periodic safety review and it will also be the subject of an opinion from the Advisory Committee of Experts for Laboratories and Plants (GPU). 1.2.2 Particle accelerators Some particle accelerators are BNIs. These installations use electrical or magnetic fields to accelerate charged particles. The accelerated particle beams produce strong fields of ionising radiation, activating the materials in contact, which then emit ionising radiation even after the beams have stopped. Exposure of the population, the personnel and the environment to ionising radiation is thus the primary risk in this type of facility. The Ganil The Large National Heavy Ion Accelerator (Ganil – BNI 113), located in Caen, carries out fundamental and applied research work, more particularly in atomic physics and nuclear physics. This research facility produces, accelerates and distributes ion beams with various energy levels to study the structure of the atom. An examination is currently under way on the construction of a new building to receive bundles, called “Désir”, so that new experimental research programmes can be carried out. The CERN The European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) is an international organisation situated between France and Switzerland, whose role is to carry out purely scientific fundamental research programmes concerning high energy particles. On several interconnected sites, the CERN operates a whole chain of research devices looking at the structure of matter, which currently includes several linear and circular accelerators, along with several detectors and acquisition systems. Owing to its cross-border location, the CERN is subject to particular verifications by the French and Swiss Authorities. 1.2.3 Industrial ionisation installations Industrial ionisation installations, called “irradiators”, use the gamma rays emitted by sealed sources of cobalt-60 to irradiate targets in the irradiation cells. These irradiation cells are designed with particularly thick walls and windows, to protect the operators against the ionising radiation. The sealed sources are either placed in the lowered position, stored in a pool under a layer of water which protects the workers, or are placed in the raised position to irradiate the target item. Personnel exposure to ionising radiation is thus the primary risk in these facilities. The main applications of irradiators are to sterilise medical equipment, agrifood products and pharmaceutical raw materials. Irradiators can also be used to study the behaviour of materials under ionising radiation, notably to qualify materials for the nuclear industry. These irradiators are used by: ∙ the Ionisos Group, which operates three facilities located in Dagneux (BNI 68), Pouzauges (BNI 146) and Sablé-sur-Sarthe (BNI 154): ‒ a new irradiator project (D7) is currently being examined for the Dagneux site, ‒ further to an analysis of the implications of the facility and inspections on the topic of the facility’s periodic safety review, ASN made no objective to the continued operation of BNI 154 for the next few years; ∙ the Steris group, which operates the Gammaster (BNI 147) and Gammatec (BNI 170) facilities in Marseille and Marcoule; ∙ the CEA, which operates the Poséidon irradiator (BNI 77) on the Saclay site. 1.3 Materials storage facilities The materials storage facilities operated by CEA are primarily devoted to the conservation of non-irradiated (or slightly irradiated) uranium and plutonium-bearing fissile materials from other CEA facilities. This activity enables the laboratories (Atalante, Lefca, etc.) to be supplied according to the needs of the experiments being conducted. More recently, they have become a temporary storage solution for the fissile materials which were present in facilities that are now shutdown, such as the research reactors (Éole, Minerve, Osiris, Masurca in particular). Principles and safety issues The main challenges inherent in these facilities are to prevent the dispersal of radioactive substances and to control the chain reaction (criticality). The safety of these facilities is based on a series of static physical barriers (walls and doors of rooms and buildings) to prevent the dispersal of radioactive substances. When operations are carried out on these substances, static confinement is also provided by the equipment (glovebox, shielded cell) in which these operations are 332 ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2022 • 12 • Nuclear research and miscellaneous industrial facilities 12
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