3. Conclusion

Research is one of the keys to progress in nuclear safety. It provides the knowledge needed to develop and validate innovative technical solutions (such as the development of hydrogen recombiners to reduce the risk of explosion in a containment vessel), as a replacement for or complement to technical measures offering a lesser degree of protection. It also enables us to maintain and develop high-level skills in nuclear safety, whatever the field concerned - indeed, high-level skills cannot be maintained without research.

Nuclear safety research programs began in the 1960s with the implementation of major electronuclear programs. They focus on the hazards to which a nuclear facility may be exposed, human and technical failures, their consequences, and ways of preventing accidents and reducing their consequences. Priorities are defined in the light of feedback from...