194

Research and development infrastructure

Alan Hooper

Nirex, Harwell, UK

8.1. Introduction: Management of research and development

8.1.1. Drivers for research and development

Even within the restricted field of radioactive waste management, the range and depth of science that could be investigated is almost unlimited (cf. Sumerling, 2006). If best use is to be made of the available resources, some method is needed to prioritise and target the R&D and, in particular, to decide when to stop work on a specific topic. To explain how this is done, the prime aims of Research and development (R&D) R&D for radioactive waste disposal need to be considered, including:

to provide understanding, data and models for use in various types of assessment: post-closure safety, environmental impact, operational safety, etc;

to support the development and optimisation of repository design, including the selection and specification of the engineered barrier system;

to provide the necessary level of confidence in the safety assessment (noting that this implies a value judgement that will change with societal context).

These aims create a feedback system that can be used to modify the disposal concept and to set the future direction of R&D. This leads to an R&D management system in which (a) R&D provides the data and models for safety assessments, (b) safety assessment outputs are compared with regulatory targets and with stakeholder expectations, and (c) these comparisons generate a need for changes to the disposal concept (cf. Chapter 5) and/or improved understanding, data and models and, hence, new R&D, as illustrated in Fig. 8.1. This type of methodology has the advantage that it can be easily integrated with the stepwise approach to radioactive waste disposal (see also Chapter 7). To illustrate the role of most national R&D work in the overall repository programme, some of the main areas of importance to repository performance will be briefly introduced here and then the role of R&D examined. Where appropriate, comments will also be made on the areas requiring further R&D in the future, but it is not intended to produce an exhaustive list covering all possible areas of R&D as many are very specific to host rock, waste type and EBS design.

Disposal Concept

Gather

R&D understanding, data & models

Safety Assessment – apply the models

Compare outcome with regulatory requirements/ stakeholder expectations for the specified step

Proceed to next step

Fig. 8.1. Relationship between R&D and safety assessment (SA).

8.1.2. Organisation of R&D

There are many kinds of organisations involved in R&D for radioactive waste disposal. The roles of these bodies, and the relationships between them, are diverse and complex, but they are perhaps best described in terms of ‘‘fund providers’’, ‘‘fund disbursers’’ and ‘‘researchers’’ (notwithstanding that some organisations may qualify for all these labels). Figure 8.2 provides a simplified representation of these relationships and helps to describe where the main responsibilities for R&D lie.

At the top of the diagram are the fund providers. These are principally waste producers and the government (including inter-governmental organisations, e.g., the European Commission (EC) through its Research Framework Programmes). Waste producers (e.g., the utilities, central government) typically transfer the funds to an independent fund-holding body. How the funds are raised is often decided by statute; most commonly, it is done through a surcharge on the price of nuclear-produced electricity.

Funds from the waste producers pass to the next level, the radioactive waste implementers and nuclear regulators; this latter category could include both federal and local government. As the prime means of maintaining the regulatory infrastructure, funds also pass to the nuclear regulator from the government. Under some circumstances (e.g., when a licence application is submitted), the implementing body may be required to fund any independent R&D that the regulator may wish to perform. The label ‘‘fund disbursers/researchers’’ indicates that, while these organisations are the main purchasers of R&D, they are also likely to carry out some R&D in-house.

At the foot of Fig. 8.2 are the main research organisations. These consist of commercial organisations, national research institutes and universities. The ‘‘commercial companies’’