The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority

 

REACT Engineering Ltd, a Cumbrian engineering company, was among a number of companies to win an NDA concept development contract designed to encourage innovative nuclear decommissioning and clean-up technologies from the supply chain.

The funding from the NDA has enabled REACT Engineering Ltd to further develop its NVisageTM software system. The NVisageTM software system takes radiation data from a building and constructs a map of where the radioactive sources are potentially located within the building. This map can then be used to investigate the worker dose consequences of potential decommissioning plans.

During the project REACT Engineering Ltd demonstrated the applicability of the system in situations where thick radiation shields were present and also extended the system to include a remote radiation scanning device suitable for working in confined, high-dose environments where staff access is difficult.

"This research enabled us to extend the capabilities of the NVisage™ system, which means it can now be used in a much wider range of situations. We have already begun to apply aspects of the technology at Sellafield and hope to complete our first projects at other sites, both nationally and internationally, within the next 12 months. The NDA-funded project has enabled us to make dramatic progress in a remarkably short space of time," said Matt Mellor Principle Consultant at REACT Engineering.

 

The system is now being used to assist with the decommissioning of a highly active redundant facility on the Sellafield site. The facility, that handled spent fuel rods, was closed in the 1970's and uncertainty about radioactivity levels has since restricted staff access for decommissioning. 

Sellafield Ltd Decommissioning Project Manager John McGregor said:

"We needed to establish whether concentrated high-dose hotspots could be removed and shielded to allow staff access. The NVisage™ dose scenarios proved that the ambient dose was still too high for staff access, but the information on radiological distribution is valuable and will help us to plan future decommissioning schemes. We hope to use the technology for a number of other projects across the site."

NDA Technology Integration Manager Rebecca Trainor said:

''The REACT project is an excellent example of innovation and concept development from within the supply chain, being accelerated for deployment on a NDA site. Innovation and technology development will help the NDA fulfil its mission to deliver solutions to the challenge of nuclear clean-up and waste management.''

• More information on NDA's Concept Development Programme

If you would like any other information on NDA Research and Development please contact research@nda.gov.uk.

Alternatively if you would like any other information on the NVisageTM system, please contact: REACT Engineering on 01946 590511 or email mail@react-engineering.co.uk