Jefferson Lab Signs CRADA to Advance Commercialization of Subsurface Tritium Continuous Monitor: Overcoming the Challenge of Online Monitoring of Low-Energy Beta Particles in Groundwater at Nuclear Power and Fusion Facilities

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility (Jefferson Lab) announced that it has formally signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with startup company Canary Instruments to jointly advance the commercialization of its independently developed Subsurface Continuous Radioisotope Environmental Monitor (SCREM). This technology is specifically designed for nuclear power plants, nuclear fuel facilities, and future...

2026-10-07

Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics Makes Important Progress in Electrolyzer Design and Electrocatalytic Materials Research

Recently, the National Key Laboratory of Thorium-based Nuclear Fission Energy at the Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, has made important progress in the fields of membrane-divided electrolyzer design and electrocatalytic materials. Researchers combined electrolyzer reactor design with electrocatalytic material innovation to develop an anion exchange membrane-divided H-type electrolysis system based on nonporous metal-organic framework (MOFs) materials, achieving efficient electrochemical recovery of uranium resources and complete degradation of organic ether solvents in uranium-containing organic ether wastewater. The related results, titled "Nonporous Metal-Organic Framework Enables Record-High Uranium Extraction and Complete Diglyme Degra...

2026-09-30

Langfang Holds 2026 Unscripted Radiation Accident Realistic Emergency Exercise

On September 22, the Ecology and Environment Bureau of Langfang City, Hebei Province, together with the Guangyang District People's Government of Langfang City, held the 2026 unscripted radiation accident realistic emergency exercise at a nuclear technology utilization unit within its jurisdiction. This exercise resolutely rejected formalism, adopting throughout a double-blind mechanism with no preset script and no prior rehearsal, strictly following the basic principles of being unscripted, realistic, and based on Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei joint prevention and control, comprehensively testing extreme response and handling capabilities under sudden nuclear and radiation safety incidents. The exercise simulated a general radiation accident, with the scenario set as a nuclear technology utilization unit within the jurisdiction discovering during an inventory check that one Category IV radioactive source and one Category V radioactive source had been accidentally lost. After the dangerous situation occurred...

2026-09-27

North China Regional Office Formulates Risk Grading List and Implements Differentiated and Targeted Supervision

The North China Regional Office of Nuclear and Radiation Safety Supervision of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment is committed to enhancing the level of nuclear safety control and has innovatively built a risk-informed supervision system. Through the implementation of a risk grading list, it promotes differentiated and targeted supervision, thereby advancing safety control and effectively improving supervision efficiency. By comprehensively identifying risk points in the design and manufacturing activities of Class 1E electrical equipment, the North China Regional Office has established the "Class 1E Electrical Equipment Supervision Risk Grading List." This list classifies risk hazards into four levels and establishes a closed-loop supervision mechanism featuring pre-event warning, in-process tracking, and post-event review. This enables supervision intensity to be dynamically adjusted according to risk levels, ensuring...

2026-09-18

IAEA 2024 Marine Radionuclide Intercomparison Exercise Shows: Credibility of Japan's Monitoring Data Continues to Remain High

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) recently released the results of the 2024 Interlaboratory Comparison (ILC) on radionuclides in the marine environment. The report shows that relevant Japanese monitoring institutions have demonstrated a high level of professionalism and data reliability in marine radionuclide analysis, and the credibility of the test data they provided continues to remain high. This intercomparison, as an important component of the IAEA's "Ocean Monitoring: Building Trust and Data Quality Assurance" project, constitutes another independent and systematic verification of Japan's Comprehensive Radiation Monitoring Plan (CRMP). This intercomparison exercise covered three main types of marine environmental media: seawater, sediment, and fish. Sampling work was conducted from September to October 2024 in the waters near the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station and surrounding markets.

2026-09-17

Korea Radioactive Waste Agency Hosts Nuclear Nuclide Analysis Industry and Technology Nexus Symposium (RANEX 2026)

The agency and the Korea Radioactive Analysis Association jointly hosted the Nuclide Analysis Industry and Technology Nexus Symposium (RANEX 2026) from September 15 to 16 at the Lahan Select Hotel in Gyeongju, attracting more than 200 experts, scholars, and industry representatives from home and abroad. The core purpose of this symposium was to share the importance of nuclide analysis—a key area in the national radioactive waste management undertaking—and to jointly explore strategies for technological innovation and the cultivation of an industrial ecosystem through in-depth cooperation between the public sector and private enterprises. During the symposium, experts discussed the development strategy for the radioactive waste nuclide analysis industrial ecosystem, the latest analytical technologies and instrumentation...

2026-09-17

Russia helps Kyrgyzstan rehabilitate the Kristall plant and eliminate environmental risks

Rosatom will cooperate with the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Kyrgyzstan to restore the site of the former Kristall plant to a safe state using Russian engineering and environmental technologies. In Tashkumyr, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, Rosatom held an information session with local residents, public representatives and experts to present the upcoming work at the Kristall plant. Rosatom experts presented the work stages, technical solutions and environmental monitoring system. The site has stored up to 155 tonnes of toxic chemicals for about 15 years. These chemicals are kept in process tanks left after the production line was shut down and pose a potential hazard to the surrounding area....

2026-09-16

Russian Research Team Synthesizes Novel Metal-Organic Framework Material Capable of Immobilizing Radioactive Cesium

The Frumkin Institute of Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry of the Russian Academy of Sciences has synthesized a novel metal-organic framework material containing neptunium and cesium atoms. Research shows that this material is insoluble in water, resistant to high temperatures and intense radiation, and can stably "lock" radioactive cesium within its own structure, offering new insights for research on radionuclide immobilization and radioactive waste treatment materials. Metal-organic framework materials are a class of materials with high porosity and controllable crystal structures, whose lattices are typically composed of metal atoms connected by organic molecules. Since their pore sizes and structures can be tuned at the molecular level, these materials can be used to adsorb gases or specific nuclides. However, compared with traditional adsorbents such as activated carbon...

2026-09-04

New Monitoring Well Characterizes Hexavalent Chromium Plume at Los Alamos National Laboratory

LOS ALAMOS, New Mexico — The U.S. Department of Energy Environmental Management Los Alamos Field Office continues to advance characterization efforts for the hexavalent chromium plume at Los Alamos National Laboratory to inform future remediation alternative selection. According to reports, its legacy cleanup contractor, Newport News Nuclear BWXT-Los Alamos LLC, has completed drilling of a new groundwater monitoring well. Designated R-80, the well reaches approximately 1,030 feet below ground surface and will be used to further characterize the northeastern extent of the hexavalent chromium plume and evaluate different remediation alternatives. Completion of this monitoring well also marks the achievement of a Fiscal Year 2026 consent order milestone for the hexavalent chromium remediation project...

2026-09-02

Demolition Begins on Contaminated Buildings in Isotope Area at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

The Oak Ridge Environmental Management Office in Tennessee recently initiated demolition of a group of highly contaminated buildings in the Isotope Area at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Located in the laboratory's central campus, this area is considered one of the more challenging sites in the local cleanup effort. The Isotope Area comprises 10 facilities, constructed between the late 1940s and early 1960s, which once served the laboratory's isotope program. These facilities were used for decades in the production, processing, and research of chemical elements for medical, industrial, and scientific applications. As the laboratory evolved, the facilities were taken out of service in the early 1990s but remained standing. According to reports, the area retains contaminated...

2026-09-02

Russian Academy of Sciences Reveals Mechanism of Microbial Bioremediation Reducing Actinide Content in Groundwater

September 1, 2026 news: Researchers from the Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry of the Russian Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with the Frumkin Institute of Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry of the Russian Academy of Sciences and other institutions, studied the biogeochemical mechanisms affecting the distribution of actinides such as uranium, plutonium, and neptunium during bioremediation of nitrate-contaminated groundwater. Radionuclide-contaminated groundwater is a significant environmental issue in areas associated with nuclear fuel cycle facilities. Long-lived actinides such as uranium, plutonium, and neptunium, once released into the environment, can migrate over considerable distances with groundwater. Bioremediation, which alters geochemical conditions by stimulating natural microbial processes in the subsurface environment, is considered a potential approach for remediating contaminated zones...

2026-09-02

Japanese Team Develops High-Temperature, High-Pressure Isotope Ratio Analysis Method for Tracing Halogenated Pollutants

Researchers from Shibaura Institute of Technology (SIT) and the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) in Japan have collaboratively developed a customized high-temperature, high-pressure combustion interface for liquid chromatography-isotope ratio mass spectrometry (LC-IRMS), enabling carbon stable isotope ratio (δ¹³C) analysis of various halogenated organic compounds. The research findings were published online on August 2, 2026, and will appear in Volume 1421 of Analytica Chimica Acta, scheduled for release on November 1, 2026. Source of the new high-temperature, high-pressure LC-IRMS system: Professor Hiroto Kawashima, SIT, Japan. Halogenated organic compounds are widely present in disinfection byproducts, pesticides, refrigerants, and industrial chemicals, some of which exhibit persistence, bioaccumulation, and toxicity. Traditional environmental monitoring primarily relies on concentration measurements, which makes it difficult to directly provide information on pollutant sources and environmental transformation processes. δ¹³C analysis can offer clues for studying chemical sources, production processes, and environmental fate, but organic pollutants containing strong carbon—chlorine or carbon—fluorine bonds are difficult to fully oxidize under conventional LC-IRMS combustion conditions, limiting the application of this technique.

2026-09-02

CIAE Neutron Measurement Patent for Nuclear Waste Wins China Patent Excellence Award

On August 28, the results of the 26th China Patent Award, the highest government honor in China's intellectual property field, were announced. The invention patent for the calibration method of a neutron measurement device for drummed nuclear waste, completed by Zhu Liqun, Senior Engineer, and Xu Xiaoming, Associate Researcher, from the Department of Radiochemistry at the China Institute of Atomic Energy (CIAE), won the China Patent Excellence Award. Since 2020, CIAE has won the China Patent Award for six consecutive sessions, securing a total of 11 awards including 2 gold and 1 silver medals, further demonstrating the institute's formidable strength in technological innovation and intellectual property. The calibration method invention patent for the neutron measurement device for drummed nuclear waste has achieved multiple world firsts...

2026-08-29

IAEA Technical Meeting on Indicators for the Management of Disused Ionizing Radiation Sources

From 24 to 28 August 2026, a technical meeting was held at the IAEA headquarters, focusing on indicators for the status of disused ionizing radiation sources and their application in sustainable management. The meeting emphasized how these indicators can serve as measurement tools to support countries in the long-term, safe, and traceable management of disused radiation sources. The Ukrainian delegation participated in the meeting, including Oleksii Zhyvotenko, Head of the Department for Production and Technical Issues and Radioactive Material Management at the "Radon" Association of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, as well as representatives of the central nuclear power plant management. During the meeting, the Ukrainian side delivered a presentation on the practical experience of integrating key IAEA indicators into Ukraine's national management system for disused ionizing radiation sources.

2026-08-28

Symposium on Marine Radiation Monitoring and Emergency Response Technology Exchange Successfully Held

To further enhance the technical support capability for marine radiation environment monitoring and promote scientific research innovation and practical application in marine radiation monitoring and emergency response, the National Marine Environmental Monitoring Center (hereinafter referred to as the Marine Center) recently conducted a technical exchange with the Jinan Zhongke Nuclear Technology Research Institute. The two sides engaged in comprehensive discussions on technology development, equipment application, data analysis, and standards development, focusing on the new situation and new requirements facing marine radiation environmental safety. The Marine Center systematically presented its operational system, technical capabilities, and practical experience in the field of marine radiation monitoring and emergency response. The Jinan Zhongke Nuclear Technology Research Institute highlighted its core...

2026-08-27

Fifth Mega Saltstone Disposal Unit Approved for Operation at U.S. Savannah River Site

The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management announced on August 25 that it has approved the operation of the fifth mega saltstone disposal unit at the Savannah River Site in Aiken, South Carolina. Designated as SDU 10, the facility will receive purified material for final disposal, marking a new milestone in the site's cleanup program. According to reports, SDU 10 completed construction in June 2024, nearly 10 months ahead of schedule. Its leak-tightness testing was completed in December 2025, and the test results verified that the unit can safely store up to 33 million gallons of purified, solidified salt solution generated at the Savannah River Site. Saltstone disposal units are the end-stage facilities in the salt waste treatment process.

2026-08-26

Hanford Site Resumes Certification Work for Permanent Disposal of Transuranic Waste

The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management recently stated that its contractor, Central Plateau Cleanup Company, has resumed transuranic waste characterization and disposal certification work at the Hanford Site in Washington State, preparing for the future shipment of relevant waste to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Carlsbad, New Mexico, for permanent disposal. The Hanford Site had suspended its transuranic waste treatment program in 2011 due to higher priorities for other cleanup tasks, and resumed related work in 2018. According to the plan, the site will resume shipping contact-handled transuranic waste to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant by September 30, 2028. Hanford Site Office of the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management...

2026-08-26

Busan, South Korea Reports No Abnormal Radiation Detected in Seawater and Seafood Three Years After Fukushima Discharge

Busan Metropolitan City stated on August 24 that since the discharge of contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant began in 2023, the city has continuously conducted radiation monitoring and analysis of coastal seawater and seafood. The results show that the safety conditions of Busan's waters and seafood remain stable with no abnormal changes detected. According to Busan Metropolitan City, seawater radioactivity testing is currently conducted at 26 coastal points. Among them, samples from 14 coastal locations including Haeundae, Gwangalli, Dadaepo, Songdo, and Songjeong are analyzed by the Busan Metropolitan City Institute of Health and Environment and local university research institutions. Test results show that the concentrations of relevant radionuclides are far below the World Health Organization drinking water standards, with cesium-134,...

2026-08-24

Korea Atomic Energy Environment Corporation Earns Top Grade A in All Categories of Radioactivity Analysis Capability Evaluation for Nine Consecutive Years

The Korea Atomic Energy Environment Corporation announced on August 21 that it received an A-grade rating in all evaluation categories for the ninth consecutive year in the 2026 Radioactivity Analysis Capability Evaluation conducted by the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety. In this evaluation, the corporation achieved A-grade results across all analysis items covering 7 samples and 12 radionuclides, demonstrating high detection precision and quality control capabilities. The Radioactivity Analysis Capability Evaluation has been conducted annually since 1997, primarily to verify the testing capabilities of domestic radioactivity analysis institutions in Korea, as well as the reliability and quality management level of related analytical data. This year, a total of 58 institutions participated in the evaluation, including regional radiation monitoring...

2026-08-21

22 Atmospheric Radiation Automatic Monitoring Stations in Shaanxi Operate Stably, with National-Controlled Stations Achieving 99.9% Data Acquisition Rate

In recent years, Shaanxi Province has continuously strengthened the construction of its radiation environmental monitoring network. The 22 atmospheric radiation automatic monitoring stations across the province, including 12 national-controlled stations and 10 provincial-controlled stations, have maintained stable operation. These stations utilize high-pressure ionization chambers, ultra-high-flow aerosol samplers, gamma spectrometers, and other equipment to conduct continuous monitoring of atmospheric instantaneous gamma dose rates, aerosol samples, and gamma radionuclides. Relevant data are transmitted in real time to the system platform of the Shaanxi Provincial Nuclear and Radiation Safety Supervision Station. According to reports, Shaanxi has gradually established an automatic station operation and maintenance management system featuring strong organization, closed-loop responsibility, funding guarantees, standardized procedures, and digital-intelligent empowerment. In 2023, the 5-minute data acquisition rate of Shaanxi's 12 national-controlled stations reached 99.9%, ranking third nationwide.

2026-08-21

A Category IV Cobalt-60 (Co-60) radioactive source retired in Huangshi

Recently, under the coordinated deployment and on-site supervision of the Huangshi Municipal Ecological Environment Bureau in Hubei Province, a retired Category IV Cobalt-60 (Co-60) radioactive source was transported in a closed loop by a professionally qualified vehicle and safely delivered to the Hubei Provincial Urban Radioactive Waste Repository, where it was permanently sealed in a standardized manner. The collection and storage process for this waste source followed standard procedures with meticulous control, and no readings exceeding limits, equipment loosening, or other safety anomalies occurred throughout the entire transport process. It is understood that this Cobalt-60 radioactive source was originally the core component of a level gauge supporting an enterprise's kiln production line. As the production line was dismantled and scrapped, the related equipment ceased operation, increasing the safety management pressure of the idle radioactive source. Upon receiving the enterprise's disposal application, the Huangshi Municipal Ecological Environment Bureau...

2026-08-21