Work

From robots to drones, the future of decommissioning operations – The CLEANDEM and XS-ABILITY projects

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: In recent years, there has been an increase in Dismantling & Decommissioning (D&D) operations of nuclear facilities, driven by the ageing of infrastructures and political decisions to phase out nuclear power. These operations, which can last from a few years to several decades, require mature and reliable techniques that meet international standards, local safety regulations, and radiation protection criteria. Despite developments in robotics, sensors, and digital tools that could reduce manual labor and risk exposure, their deployment remains limited due to financial and logistical constraints. The EU-funded projects CLEANDEM and XS-ABILITY address this challenge by upgrading advanced nuclear sensors and mounting most of them on autonomous terrestrial (CLEANDEM) and both terrestrial and aerial (XS-ABILITY) robots. These robots are and will be designed to assist operators by enabling continuous monitoring during D&D processes, reducing radiation exposure (CLEANDEM), and accessing hard-to-reach areas and difficult to measure radionuclides (XS-ABILITY). They also minimize human errors and organizational issues related to limited intervention time and repetitive tasks. CLEANDEM's results were showcased at its final workshop, and XS-ABILITY, launched October 1st 2024, will build upon these developments to further improve safety and efficiency in D&D operations. This work focuses on CLEANDEM's technical developments, and presents XS-ABILITY as one of its perspectives.

Source: EPJ Nuclear Sciences & Technologies

DOI: 10.1051/epjn/2025013

Authors: Maugan Michel, Guillaume Amoyal

Institutions: Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives, Université Paris-Saclay, CEA Paris-Saclay - Etablissement de Saclay, Laboratoire d'Intégration des Systèmes et des Technologies

Language: English

Topic: Nuclear and radioactivity studies

Subfield: Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Industry, innovation and infrastructure

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $565