From 29 October to 2 November the hotel "Intourist-Kolomenskoe" has hosted the 16th International school-conference "New materials: Tolerant nuclear fuel", organized by the Department "Physical problems of materials science", INPhE MEPhI.
The program traditionally included invited review lectures and reports of leading domestic and foreign scientists, as well as poster presentations of students. The theme of the conference was “FA materials of the active zones of light water reactors as a factor of ensuring the safety of nuclear energy in the future”.
The conference was attended by 179 people, including 15 postgraduates and 85 students of MEPhI, 18 doctors and 31 candidates of science from 21 organizations of the Russian Federation and 6 foreign organizations (USA, Belarus, Slovakia and Kazakhstan). During the event, 22 lectures, 6 oral presentations of students and 47 poster presentations were given.
A feature of the school-conference was a two-day introductory training for young participants in modern laboratories and common use centers of MEPhI, MISiS, and National Research Centre "Kurchatov Institute".
Participation of students of the MEPhI Department №9 in the school-conference was carried out as research works of students in master's, specialist’s and bachlor’s programmes. MEPhI Professor Michael Short (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA) passed students of the group C14-107 and 108 in English for the academic discipline "Radiation solid state physics" during the conference.
The participants shared their impressions.
Kirill Prikhodko, Professor of the MEPhI Department №9, employee in the Kurchatov Institute:
"In the future, mankind has only one way – the extraction of energy from the core itself, because all the rest of the energy is exhaustible. To understand how to make energy safe it is necessary to know how materials behave under the influence of neutron irradiation and what problems exist in those reactors that we are currently using. It’s clear that in the near future we need to move to new types of fuel and covers that will ensure the uninterrupted and trouble-free operation of nuclear facilities. This conference’s aim is to discuss how we can change the current situation with fuel and covers material to make them safe. All speakers talk about the approaches: either we modify the material that is at the moment and improve its characteristics, or we are looking for new materials that, in case of an emergency, would withstand the load and there would no depressurization, release of fission products into the coolant and subsequent reactions that would lead to an explosion. Our aim is to prevent such negative consequences for nature and humanity, that is why we have gathered here: to advance our reactor materials science and raise the level of safety of nuclear power plants, which is now the dream of all progressive mankind."
Artem Bragin, student of the MEPhI Department №9, employee of the Kurchatov Institute:
"The conference was held at a very high level. I’ve been taking part in it for the second year in a row and, in my opinion, this year there were more foreign participants. I like the atmosphere of this event: everyone is open to dialogue, ready to share information. During breaks, you can approach the speaker and talk to him personally, if the topic of his speech was interesting for you. The main advantage of this conference is communication with other speakers and presentation of their developments, results, exchange of experience. Also during the conference I made a poster presentation, the theme of which directly relates to my work".
Ilya Kozlov, graduate of the MEPhI Department №9, Kurchatov Institute:
"This conference is an annual tradition for me, I try not to miss it, and even now I took a vacation so that to be here. During this event, I immerse myself in the student time and the atmosphere that was at the Department, I enjoy it very much. My report is devoted to the technique of atomic probe tomography. It is not very common in Russia, at the moment only Kurchatov Institute has it. The method makes it possible to study local inhomogeneities, precipitates, carbides and other inclusions in metals. The method makes it possible to make useful observations, for example, on the composition of emissions, their quantity, which in consequence is possible to be reduced or eliminated".
The annual international conference brings to the agenda the urgent problems of mankind and invites Russian and foreign experts to share experience, research findings and developments in order to solve global problems quickly, not only within the country but also in the whole world.
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