SARNET integrated European Severe Accident Research—Conclusions in the source term area Original Research Article

The overall aim of the SARNET (Severe Accident Research NETwork), in the EU 6th Framework programme was to integrate in a sustainable manner the research capabilities of fifty-one European organisations from eighteen member states of the European Union (EU) plus the Joint Research Centres, with one Canadian company, to resolve important remaining uncertainties and safety issues concerning existing and future nuclear plant, especially water-cooled reactors, under hypothetical severe accident conditions. It emphasised integrating activities, spreading of excellence (including knowledge transfer) and jointly executed research, with the knowledge gained being encapsulated in the European severe accident modelling code ASTEC. This paper summarises the achievements over the whole project in the Source Term Topic, which dealt with potential radioactive release to the environment, covering release of fission products and structural materials from the core, their transport in the primary circuit, and their behaviour in the containment.