Heavy Metal Summer School
Industriezone Boeretang Zuid – Boeretang 190
Mol
Overview
Heavy liquid metal (HLM) coolants offer new perspectives for the development of innovative nuclear systems for nuclear waste transmutation and energy production. The Belgian Nuclear Research Centre (SCK CEN) is working on the development of the HLM cooled MYRRHA accelerator driven system (ADS). MYRRHA will serve as an ADS demonstrator for transmutation, as an HLM reactor pilot plant and it will be used as an irradiation tool for research. With this, it is at the forefront of HLM nuclear technology worldwide.
During this summer school, participants will gain insight into the state-of-the-art research focused to the development of MYRRHA and other HLM-based nuclear systems. The summer school will cover several aspects of HLM technology that are essential for the engineering design and safety of nuclear systems.
Experts from SCK CEN and other internationally renowned research organizations will give the lectures. They will cover the most advanced HLM-based nuclear systems and deal with the neutronics, chemical, thermal hydraulic and materials issues and challenges in instrumentation, safety and design. Complementary to the lectures, visits are foreseen to various experimental facilities that were constructed at SCK CEN in support of the MYRRHA project.
Throughout the course week, participants will have the opportunity to brainstorm on best practices and selections of technologies for HLM cooled nuclear systems in interactive sessions with the experts.
As a research center specializing in heavy liquid metal technology, it seems more than a coincidence that SCK CEN is neighbor to one of the most successful Heavy Metal festivals in the world: the Graspop Metal Meeting (GMM). The GMM begins when the HLM summer school ends. Each participant receives a free festival ticket for GMM for Friday June 18 (*), 2027 to enjoy metal and liquids at this unique festival.
SCK CEN reserves the right to cancel a training course or event (e.g. in case of low number of registrations).
(*) Participation to the GMM festival is voluntary and at your own risk. Conditions of GMM on ticket apply. You are not entitled to exchange the ticket with SCK CEN nor claim the value hereof from SCK CEN. SCK CEN is not responsible for any damage or theft at GMM.
Topics
To set the frame, the motivation for HLM-based nuclear systems and the design of several of the most developed HLM facilities will be introduced. In addition, the link with accelerator technology for ADS systems and partitioning and transmutation fuels is made.
In a module on chemistry you will be introduced to the various sources of impurities in HLM and to methods for their purification, to oxygen monitoring and control systems, and to the chemistry of radioactive impurities.
In the module on materials you will learn to select materials for structural and functional components of reactors and get acquainted with irradiation damage processes and with liquid metal induced corrosion and its mitigation strategies.
The thermal hydraulics module will start from the fundamentals of heat transfer in liquid metals to provide insight in the thermal hydraulic phenomena occurring in the fuel assembly and primary system. Experimental and numerical tools for the system safety analysis will also be covered.
In the instrumentation module you will get an overview of measurement techniques that can be used in liquid metals.
Attention is also given to the socio-economic and ethical aspects of this technology.
Audience
The summer school is targeted to last year Master students in engineering, PhD students, post-docs and young professionals in the field.
Programme
The full programme can be downloaded here.
Required Knowledge
Participants should have obtained a Master degree in physics or engineering (or be at the end of the last year).
Preparation
Participants are requested to send in an application file (1 pdf file) containing following items:
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general contact details
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brief motivation to attend the summer school (max. 200 words)
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scientific CV including current position and field of research (latest degree obtained, current job description, supervising professor/direct manager and previous studies relevant to the HMSS topics)
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abstract for a poster presentation on your research project
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budget breakdown of the associated costs
This should be sent to academy [at] sckcen [dot] be (academy[at]sckcen[dot]be), the latest on March 15, 2027.
Applicants will be informed about the evaluation not later than March 24, 2027. They will then be contacted by the SCK CEN Academy and asked to log in into the SCK CEN Academy registration system for confirmation of their participation.
Learning outcomes
After participation to this course, participants will be able to:
Related to the module on motivation and design:
- understand the motivation behind the use of HLM coolants in nuclear applications
- describe the basic design principles for HLM cooled nuclear systems
- understand the principles that define the requirements and design of an accelerator suited for ADS
- understand the principles and steps required for spent fuel partitioning and the conversion into transmutation fuel
Related to the module on coolant chemistry:
- identify different chemical processes occurring in HLM systems and explain their relation to operation and safety
- list the different sources of impurities in HLM systems
- describe by which theoretical and experimental methods the different sources of impurities can be quantified
- explain why and by which methods certain impurities are removed from heavy liquid metal coolants
- explicate why oxygen control and monitoring is essential for operation of HLM nuclear systems
- describe by which methods oxygen control can be achieved and explain their operation
- explain the working principle and different designs of oxygen sensors
- clarify which chemical processes govern the distribution of radionuclides in a system like MYRRHA
- explain the physic chemistry of radionuclide evaporation from heavy liquid metals and experimental methods to measure evaporation
Related to the module on thermal hydraulics:
- explain the general principles of liquid metal heat transfer
- identify the possibilities and shortcomings of different numerical approaches for liquid metal heat transfer
- select proper correlations for pressure loss and heat transfer coefficients in liquid metal cooled fuel assemblies
- estimate the effects of blockages and deformations in fuel assemblies
- explain the phenomena occurring in heavy liquid metal pools including mixing and stratification, sloshing etc.
- describe the approach to design and instrument a scaled pool experiment
- identify the possibilities and shortcomings of system analysis codes for heavy liquid metal cooled reactor systems
- explain the issues related to system safety in heavy liquid metal cooled reactor systems
Related to the module on materials issues:
- identify the general principles of selection and qualification of materials for structural and functional components of reactors
- differentiate between screening tests and characterization of materials properties for design
- list mechanical properties used for the design of structural and functional components
- name the degradation effects of heavy liquid metals and neutron irradiation on mechanical properties used in the development of reactor components
- describe the general principles of liquid metal corrosion and to give an example of mitigation approaches
Related to the module on instrumentation:
- give an overview of measurement techniques for diagnostics and process monitoring of liquid metal systems
Registration info
You can register using the button above until 25 March 2025.
Official registration is only possible after positive evaluation of your application file (see under ‘preparation’).
Cancellation requests must be sent by email to academy [at] sckcen [dot] be and the accommodating hotel(s) no later than May 16, 2025.
No shows and cancellations after this date will incur the full cost of registration and the hotel.
Participation to the summer school includes:
- Full attendance to the course, interactive sessions and technical visits;
- Welcome reception on Monday evening June 16;
- Belgian snacks on Tuesday evening June 17;
- Coffee breaks & lunches during the course;
- Online training material and documentation;
- Transport between the two course hotels and course venue;
- Certificate of attendance;
- A free ticket for the GMM music festival on Friday June 20.
10 participants can be supported financially through the NEST SMR project.
Maximum 10 applicants can be granted the ENEN2plus mobility grant of 900 euro to cover travel and accommodation expenses. Applicants agree with the terms of conditions as published on the ENEN2plus website. They are obliged to submit a mission report and answer the questionnaire through the ENEN2plus application portal no later than 30 days after completion of the mobility action. Failure to submit the report will require the applicant to return the full lump sum of 900 euro.
All participants are requested to attend all sessions and need to prepare a poster presentation about their research topic.
SCK CEN reserves the right to cancel a training course or event (e.g. in case of low number of registrations).
Accommodation
The course is held at the SCK CEN Lakehouse of the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, Boeretang 201, BE-2400 Mol, Belgium.
Rooms are pre-booked at the Corbie Hotel (20 rooms) in Mol and at Hotel Roosendaelhof (20 rooms) in Geel. Please check out the prices directly with the selected hotels: mol [at] corbiehotel [dot] com or info [at] roosendaelhof [dot] be
Please inform the SCK CEN Academy via academy [at] sckcen [dot] be (to the attention of Mrs. Kris Pennemans) when you confirmed your room in one of the hotels.
Daily transport between the Corbie Hotel, Hotel Roosendaelhof and the course venue will be provided by the course organizer.