Why do we need decommissioning & dismantling research?

The shutdown of the last three German nuclear power plants on 15 April 2023 marked the exit from nuclear power production in Germany. The closed plants must now be decommissioned and dismantled and the resulting waste managed safely, responsibly and in an environmentally sound way.

The following challenges will have to be addressed in the years and decades to come:

• Decommissioning and dismantling of the closed nuclear power plants
• Continued dismantling of the decommissioned nuclear pilot and experimental installations
• Disposal of the resulting radioactive waste.

Germany is an international leader in nuclear decommissioning and has solid experience to draw on. It is important to maintain and build on this basis. This requires new technological solutions as well as the development of specific expertise and training for the skilled staff needed.

Research to support decommissioning and dismantling

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) funds research to support the dismantling of nuclear installations:

• The BMBF supports research projects at universities, research institutions and companies. Currently, a total of roughly 8 million euros is available per year (2024 figures). A special focus is on encouraging cooperation between research institutions and industrial companies so that innovative solutions can be translated directly into commercial applications.
• The research fields that are funded under the FORKA (Forschung für den Rückbau kerntechnischer Anlagen) programme are varied and interdisciplinary. The research topics are constantly updated in strategy seminars and evaluation processes involving the research community and industry partners to ensure that FORKA addresses current development needs. Research is conducted on the following topics:

Disassembly and decontamination techniques

Further development and optimization of existing disassembly and decontamination techniques with regard to their automation, increased safety, robustness and efficiency, the minimization of radioactive secondary waste as well as the development of short-term solutions for specific problems.

Clearance procedures and conventional disposal pathways

Development and optimization of clearance procedures for residual material from the dismantling of nuclear installations: simplified or automated clearance measurements, digital recording and presentation of room/building structures and radiological data, standardization, minimization of cost and waste.

Treatment of radioactive waste

Development of techniques for reducing radioactive waste in accordance with final storage criteria, for conditioning problematical waste for final storage, automating conditioning processes, and recycling valuable materials and components.

Declaration and interim storage of waste

Development and automation of techniques for the non-destructive material and radiological declaration and/or analysis of (old) waste and for the characterization of long-life activation products that are difficult to measure as well as topics of interim storage and transport logistics.

Environmental and radiation protection

Development of methods for site restoration (for example, phytoremediation), for the characterization, handling and processing of contaminated materials and media as well as development of materials for protective clothing (certified for various areas).

Humans, technology and organization

Developments to promote digitalization, standardization and process optimization, to maintain and enhance the safety culture, planning instruments and (digital) hardware as well as for knowledge management and training.

Early-career researchers are a particular focus of FORKA. FORKA projects regularly employ approximately 50 doctoral candidates. Excellent post-docs can apply for funding of their own junior research group, which may advance their academic career.Another means to promote skills and talent development is FORKAStart, which enables post-docs to independently manage their own nuclear dismantling research project directly after getting their PhD. By supervising theses and participating in teaching, young researchers can gain initial leadership experience and get students interested in the topic of decommissioning and dismantling at an early stage.

Strengthen the dismantling network

Recipients of FORKA funding have access to a large network of national and international cooperation partners. These contacts are strengthened by regular attendance at conferences and seminars. In addition, the BMBF regularly hosts status seminars for the FORKA community and workshops for young researchers in particular.

Funding for dismantling research is also available from the Euratom programmme. The National Contact Point (NCP) for nuclear decommissioning provides direct advice on current calls, the prerequisites for funding, the relevance of ideas and the submission of proposals as well as, in individual cases, on potential national co-funding of EU projects which receive only proportionate funding.

Further information and the contact details of the National Contact Point can be found here.