The University of Strathclyde and Babcock are to lead an industrial partnership worth £4.2m with the aim of making nuclear assets safer and more reliable.
The Programme will develop advanced inspection techniques, biotechnology solutions for infrastructure repair and new products and processes for managing nuclear power facilities and extending their lifetime. The project forms part of a £138m investment in research-business partnerships announced by the UK government and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
The project involves Babcock, EDF Energy, Kinectrics Inc, Bruce Power, The Weir Group, BAM Nuttall, Imperial College London, University of Surrey, Cranfield University and the Alan Turing Institute.
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A transition from fossil fuels to mitigate the impacts of climate change will require large amounts of metal and rare earth elements that could create environmental challenges, the World Bank has warned.
Technologies needed to meet the Paris climate agreement from wind, solar & electricity systems are “more material intensive” than current fossil-fuel supply systems, a report by the bank says.
The mining or extraction of metals and rare earth elements could create environmental problems in terms of energy, water and land use, the report said.
“If not properly managed, minerals to combat climate change could constitute a bottleneck vis-à-vis our policies on global warming,” Riccardo Puliti, global head of the energy and extractives practice group at the World Bank, told the Financial Times.
Metals demand could more than double because of growth in wind turbines and solar panels. There is also the potential for a 1,000% (one thousand per cent) rise in lithium demand for batteries, the bank says.
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The trial offshore floating windfarm known as Hywind is starting to take form off the coast of Peterhead.
This new technology allows wind power turbines to be floated out at sea where waters are too deep for conventional bottom standing turbines to operate. The design can operate in water up to a kilometre deep.
The first 575ft tall, 11,500-ton giant turbine has been moved into place with four more units awaiting installation. It is believed these new turbines will provide power for up to 20,000 homes once all five are installed.