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4.6 Nuclear Physics Tools and Applications
4.6.1 Introduction
From the beginning and all along its history, fundamental
knowledge and technological developments in
Nuclear Physics has stimulated and fertilized research
and applications in a variety of other fields. The growing
interest of these interdisciplinary research areas is
boosted either by the relevance of the domain itself, or
by new possibilities offered by recent developments of
nuclear techniques and tools.
In this report, we try to review briefly the recent
achievements and the current state of the art in all the
domains of applications of Nuclear Physics, discuss
the future perspectives, identify the strength and weaknesses
of the different communities involved in these
domains and formulate recommendations.
The report is divided according to the different
domains of applications:
• Energy
• Life science
• Environmental and space applications
• Security
• Material science and applications to other domains
• Cultural heritage, arts and archaeology
with an additional section devoted to new frontiers in
nuclear physics tools i.e. accelerators, detectors and
electronics.
The last section summarises the main conclusions
of the report and gives general recommendations for
the future.
4.6.2 Nuclear Energy
Key Question
How can Nuclear Physics contribute to the sustainability
and acceptability of nuclear energy generation
Key Issues
• Accurate nuclear data for the design of new generation
reactors
• Study and modeling of nuclear reactions involved in
transmutation processes or new fuel cycles
• Modern Nuclear Physics tools (accelerators, detectors,
modeling techniques,..) applied to the design
and construction of next generation fission/fusion
reactors and incineration factories
The discovery of fission in the late 30s represented the
second major contribution to energy generation under
human control after the combustion process. However,
security issues together with proliferation problems and
the concern on the disposal of waste resulted in extensive
discussions questioning the interest of this source
of energy in the 80s.
Nowadays, the amplification of the green house effect
contributing to the global warming due to anthropogenic
burning of fossil fuels, together with the important
increase in energy demand expected during the next
decades are changing the energy policies worldwide.
A mixing of sustainable CO 2 free energies based on
renewable sources but also on advanced nuclear energy
generators seems to be an option to combat climate
change. In this respect, inherently safe fission reactors,
transmutation of minor actinides responsible for the
main long-term radioactive hazard of today’s fission
reactors and the development of fusion technologies
will certainly contribute to reach this aim by improving
social acceptance of nuclear energy.
Fundamental Nuclear Physics research being
responsible of the discovery of the energy-generation
processes, fission and fusion, can still contribute improving
the sustainability of these energy sources. Nuclear
data relevant for the design of new generation fission
reactors or future fusion reactors, high-power accelerators
producing neutrons in some waste transmutation
options constitutes examples of the role that fundamental
nuclear physics can play in solving the energy
generation problem. Moreover preserving and developing
the required nuclear knowledge through education
and research at European universities and institutes is
an important goal to fulfil the worldwide energy policy.
176 | Perspectives of Nuclear Physics in Europe – NuPECC Long Range Plan 2010