Distance learning courses in engineering in the EU-27

The European Union is facing a scarcity of skilled professionals in the field of nuclear energy, especially at the higher educational levels. This is mainly due to the worldwide reduction in public acceptance of everything nuclear in the aftermath of the Three Mile Island and Chernobyl accidents, occurred in 1979 and 1986 respectively. These accidents have led to a decreased interest in nuclear education and thus to a “generational gap”, where the skilled nuclear workforce is on the verge of retirement or has already retired, and the new generation of nuclear workers does not have the numbers to cover the needs of the industry. The present report, commissioned by the CAPTURE Action of the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, has the aim of complementing other European initiatives in the field of nuclear Education & Training by analyzing the availability of eLearning courses in nuclear and nuclear-related fields across the EU-27. This report gives an overview of the eLearning tools and frameworks available on the market and analyzes the main types of eLearning. A list of the eLearning courses offered by Universities in Europe is presented, along with contact details and websites (situation as of the15th of April 2013). An electronic version of the list of courses will be published on the CAPTURE website (http://capture.jrc.ec.europa.eu/), and it will be updated every six months.JRC.F.4-Nuclear Reactor Integrity Assessment and Knowledge Managemen

The socio-economic impacts of the closure of the Groningen gas field

During the year 2019 the DG Joint Research Centre offered scientific support to the Cities of Northern Netherlands in their transition towards the closure of the Groningen gas field. This study reports on the assessment of the regional socio-economic impacts deriving from the closure of the gas field planned by 2022. This analysis served as a framework for evaluating the impacts and as an information tool for the local authorities on how to plan the steps towards a successful transition and a new socio-economic development. Although the energy sector is not new to experiences such as the closure of big extracting facilities, the analysis of the impacts on the regional economy, employment and the energy sector remains a challenging task. The scientific literature does not provide with a tested universal approach to the study of these impacts. SWAP analysis, input-output models are the most common methodologies. To assess the regional socio-economic impacts of the closure of the gas field in Groningen we adopted at step-wise approach starting from the analysis of the decision of the Dutch government announced in 2018 and followed up in September 2019. We then study the natural gas value chain from the point of view of the business activities in the territory and the jobs at risk. Finally we analyse the opportunities set out in the energy development plans in place or announced by the local authorities. To complement the assessment of future possible developments in the region, we also took into account in the analysis other energy production potentials from clean sources and the opportunities of gas infrastructure reuse. The result of our work was presented at the final conference held in Leeuwarden in December 2019. The work helped the local authorities of the Northern Netherlands in defining a road map for the industrial and economic transition required to adapt to a situation in which no natural gas will be extracted.JRC.C.3-Energy Security, Distribution and Market

Digital Transformation in Transport, Construction, Energy, Government and Public Administration

This report provides an analysis of digital transformation (DT) in a selection of policy areas covering transport, construction, energy, and digital government and public administration. DT refers in the report to the profound changes that are taking place in all sectors of the economy and society as a result of the uptake and integration of digital technologies in every aspect of human life. Digital technologies are having increasing impacts on the way of living, of working, on communication, and on social interaction of a growing share of the population. DT is expected to be a strategic policy area for a number of years to come and there is an urgent need to be able to identify and address current and future challenges for the economy and society, evaluating impact and identifying areas requiring policy intervention. Because of the very wide range of interrelated domains to be considered when analysing DT, a multidisciplinary approach was adopted to produce this report, involving experts from different domains. For each of the four sectors that are covered, the report presents an overview of DT, DT enablers and barriers, its economic and social impacts, and concludes with the way forward for policy and future research.JRC.B.6-Digital Econom

Remote Monitoring System for Commercial Containers Security in Maritime Transportation

This Thesis describes the state of the art in supply chain security, with a particular emphasys given to security in maritime transportation. Current standards and regulations are analyzed, and an overview of the the use of modern technologies in the field is given. The main vulnerability of the supply chain is the commercial container. Presently, regulations and standards mainly take into consideration mechanical means of sealing a commercial container. The use of wireless technologies for container sealing, tracking and tracing is not part of international regulations. Moreover, this document discusses the need for a global approach to supply chain security that envisages vulnerability tests on the whole flow of goods and not on single elements that compose it. In this document we present the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, and the reasearch carried by the JRC in the field of supplychain security. In particular, we discuss a remote monitoring technology for commercial containers developed by the JRC, based on RFID, GSM, GPS and passive RFID based eSeals.JRC.G.7-Traceability and vulnerability assessmen

European approach for a Perennial Storage of Severe Accident Research Experimental Data as Resulting from EU Projects like SARNET, PHÉBUS FP and ISTP

In the fleet of European nuclear power plants, with a very low probability circumstances, severe accident sequences may result in core melting and plant damage leading to dispersal of radioactive material into the environment and thus constituting a health hazard to the public well beyond the borders of the State where the damaged plant is located. It is therefore crucial that the best state of knowledge on severe accident phenomenology, qualified computer tools and appropriate methodology should be used uniformly throughout Europe, in order to evaluate the corresponding risks and update former evaluations, taking into account notably the inevitable evolutions in reactor operations.JRC.F.5-Nuclear Reactor Safety Assessmen

How RFID Technology Can Assist the Visually Impaired: the Sesamonet System

The project's objective is the development of an integrated system to increase mobility of pepople with disabilities and their personal safety and security, by identifying a secure path to walk through selected areas, particularly for people with visual disabilioties. This is done through the use of mature and proven technologies (RFID, antennas, bluetooth, etc.) which only have to be integrated for this specific application. The system is based on 3 main components: a path made of transponders, a custom-designed walking cane and a smart phone. Each RFID tag is associated to a message or a small beep. The system describes the environment and warns the user if there is a potential danger such as a road crossing or a step.JRC.G.7-Traceability and vulnerability assessmen

MULTIMEDIA TOOL FOR WWER TRAINING

The Institute for Energy and Transport of the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission, jointly with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), have developed an innovative multimedia knowledge package which is based on systematically collected and consolidated knowledge of top-experts in WWER (i.e. the Russian version of a pressurised water reactor) Reactor Pressure Vessel (RPV) Embrittlement and is meant to support training in the field. The tool is addressed to nuclear engineers and researcher who need to be trained on WWER RPV Embrittlement issues. The modules provide very compact knowledge; an expert is recorded while giving a lecture (usually composed of 10-20 topic related questions answered) and his speech is subtitled. The presentation is powered with eye-catching animations that make simpler the learning process and that attract the user attention. At the end of each lecture the trainee can test his understanding on the topic with a multiple-choice questionnaire and receives a score based on his performance. A powerful search engine is built in the package to ensure the easy navigation across all Modules in, text, video and sound. These multimedia modules are designed as an on-line resource and include the possibility to easily share and discuss on social medias (i.e. twitter, Facebook, etc.) the selected presentation/slide. The package is completed and programmed in HTML 5 language to allow high flexibility and make the content browsable also on tablets and phones. For classroom training an offline version can be generated.JRC.F.4-Nuclear Reactor Integrity Assessment and Knowledge Managemen

EHRO-N and the Human Resources of the Nuclear Energy Sector: Analysis of demand and supply in Europe

In 2010, the European Human Resources Observatory for the Nuclear energy sector (EHRO-N) analysed the demand and supply of human resources (HR) in the European nuclear field in the short, medium and long term. Before this analysis, no comprehensive picture on the demand/supply of nuclear HR was available for the whole EU-27. The availability of national data varies, indeed, from country to country. For instance, France, UK and, more recently, Finland have monitored their national demand and supply of the nuclear workforce through comprehensive national surveys. However, national data and reports on nuclear HR are missing for most EU's Member States (MSs). The same reports produced by international organizations, such as IAEA and OECD/NEA, do not always provide complete data. The paper summarizes the result of the EHRO-N analysis. The focus is on the match (and mismatch) between the demand and supply of highly skilled workforce in the nuclear field (or ''nuclear experts'') at present and in the future. Data was collected by EHRO-N through an EU-wide survey. The process of data collection and analysis also benefited from the co-operation with relevant actors of the European nuclear energy sector. Such cooperation took place through the EHRO-N's Senior Advisory Group (SAG), which brings together the representatives of research organisations, industry, international organisations, etc. involved in nuclear energy across Europe. Finally, the paper puts the demand/supply of nuclear experts in the EU-27 into a broader perspective by highlighting the major lessons learnt and possible future areas of intervention.JRC.F.4-Nuclear Reactor Integrity Assessment and Knowledge Managemen

An Innovative RFID Sealing Device to Enhance the Security of the Supply Chain

One of the most vulnerable elements of the supply chain, from a security point of view, is the commercial container. Due to its nature of transportation vector for goods, it can easily be exploited as a carrier for illegal and dangerous items. In this paper, while acknowledging the need for a global and comprehensive approach to supply chain security, we focus on the security of commercial containers. We discuss the technologies presently used in the field of commercial container security. In particular, we give an overview of the research carried out by the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission in the field of supply chain security. We then discuss in depth the active RFID-based sealing systems designed at the JRC, giving a detailed technologicalo description and presenting the experimental results of the laboratory testsJRC.G.7-Traceability and vulnerability assessmen