Praised by science and politics, but controversial among nuclear opponents from the start: 20 years ago, on March 2, 2004, the FRM II research reactor went online in Garching near Munich – as one of Europe’s most important neutron sources for research, medicine and industry. It has been standing still for four years. It is not expected to restart before next year. Whether this is permissible with the current fuel – namely highly enriched uranium – will be dealt with by the Bavarian Administrative Court (VGH) in the summer.
“The FRM II offers unique potential for German science,” said Federal Research Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP) on Friday. “We would therefore like to play a constructive role in ensuring that neutron research is made possible again in Germany by restarting the research reactor as soon as possible and converting to low-enriched fuels in the medium term.” Despite the shutdown, Science Minister Markus Blume (CSU) praised the facility as a “symbol of Bavaria as a world-class science location.” Research with neutrons provides key insights into existential questions about the future. State Minister Florian Herrmann (CSU) spoke of an “icon for science and research”. Thomas Hofmann, President of the Technical University of Munich (TU) as the operator, said that research at FRM II – according to Hofmann the most powerful neutron source in the world – is important for the development of future-proof technology innovations. Among other things, research is to be carried out on heat-resistant materials for the walls of a future fusion reactor.
In May 2020, the Association for Nature Conservation (BN) in Bavaria filed a lawsuit with the VGH against operations with uranium enriched to up to 93 percent. The date for the oral hearing is now – four years later – June 17th, as a court spokesman told the German Press Agency. The Free State is the defendant. The Ministry of the Environment is the supervisory authority responsible for approving operations. A new fuel with uranium enriched to less than 20 percent is in the works, but it will be years before it can be used. The conservationists have considered the operation of the facility to be illegal since the end of 2018 at the latest and speak of weapons-grade material.
However, the FRM II has been almost permanently at a standstill since then. Fuel elements were missing between March 2019 and January 2020, it was shut down in March 2020 due to the corona pandemic and has not been restarted since then due to various repairs. The legal proceedings were not continued in the meantime because the reactor was not connected to the grid anyway. The reason for setting the negotiation date was the announcement by the operators of FRM II that they wanted to restart the reactor, said the VGH spokesman. The court intends to decide on the matter as soon as possible.
It remains unclear what will happen if the court actually follows the conservationists’ arguments. Work is currently underway to develop the production of the low-enriched fuel, said an FRM II spokeswoman upon request. The application for approval to convert to uranium enriched below 20 percent must be submitted next year. It will probably be years before it is used. Operation with up to 93 percent enriched uranium was approved until the end of 2010, after which it was to be switched to a maximum of 50 percent. Based on an agreement, the FRM II continued to operate with highly enriched uranium until the end of 2018. Afterwards, there was another agreement between the Free State and the Federal Government because, according to FRM II, no other approved fuel was still available. In the BN’s opinion, the agreement from 2019 was once again not sufficient. “We assume that the operation was no longer legal in 2011 since the conversion provision expired,” said the BN’s lawyer, Ulrich Wollenteit.
If it is running, the neutron source is used, among other things, in medicine to produce radiopharmaceuticals for cancer treatment and for research into new antibiotics, for example. The source is also used by industry and various research areas, from materials science, quantum technologies and climate research to archaeology. In the past, dinosaur eggs as well as a bronze figure of the god Mercury have been examined using neutron tomography. Batteries for e-mobility and materials for solar cells can be tested. At the moment, however, the Garching scientists have to use other neutron sources.
The reactor was supposed to restart several times. But revision work and repairs took a long time. In mid-May 2020, radioactive C-14 was released and the annual limit for the nuclide was exceeded. The reason was an assembly error in a drying device. For about a year now, we have been working towards installing a new so-called central canal. This tube holds the fuel assembly in position and must be replaced if there is a leak inside; the exchange would also have been necessary as planned. Only: The French company that manufactured the original part in 1999 was no longer able to produce the replacement part.
The next problem awaits: what to do with spent fuel rods?
Now an Austrian company has been commissioned. The announced completion date of the end of 2023 was not met. A replacement part did not pass the test. “We are still waiting for production,” said the FRM II spokeswoman. The consequences of the nuclear phase-out also caused problems here. It is no longer worthwhile for companies to be certified for nuclear technology. At least new fuel elements have arrived – with the highly enriched fuel.
If the reactor actually starts up again, the operators will face a new problem: what to do with the spent elements? The permits for transport to Ahaus and storage there are still pending. 47 elements are stored in the decay tank in Garching, there is space for 50. On average, three elements are burned off every year. If the reactor is allowed to start up again with the previous fuel, the first transport would have to roll to Ahaus after a year at the latest.