Decommissioning of the pool reactor Thetis in Ghent, Belgium

The Thetis research pool reactor (with a nominal power of 150 kW) of the Ghent University was operational from 1967 till December 2003. The first phase of the decommissioning of the reactor, the removal of the spent fuel from the site, took place in 2010. The cumulative dose received was only 404 man · μSv. During the second phase, the transition period between the removal of the spent fuel in 2010 and the start of the decommissioning phase in March 2013, 3-monthly internal inspections and inspections by Bel V, were performed. The third and final decommissioning phase started on March 18, 2013. The total dose received between March 2013 and August 2013 was 1561 man · μSv. The declassification from a Class I installation to a Class II installation was possible by the end of 2015. The activated concrete in the reactor pool will remain under regulatory control until the activation levels are lower than the limits for free release.

Belgian class II nuclear facilities such as irradiators and accelerators: Regulatory Body attention points and operating experience feedback

The aim of this paper is to present the Regulatory Body attention points and the operating experience feedback from Belgian “class IIA” facilities such as industrial and research irradiators, bulk radionuclides producers and conditioners. Reinforcement of the nuclear safety and radiation protection has been promoted by the Federal Agency for Nuclear Control (FANC) since 2009. This paper is clearly a continuation of the former paper [1] presenting the evolution in the regulatory framework relative to the creation of Bel V, the subsidiary of the FANC, and to the new “class IIA” covering heavy installations such as those mentioned above. Some lessons learnt are extracted from the operating experience feedback based on the events declared to the authorities. Even though a real willingness to meet the new safety requirements is observed among the “class IIA” licensees, promoting the safety culture, the nuclear safety and radiation protection remains an endless challenge for the Regulatory Body.