Sellafield’s health physics team has made incredible advances in improving radiation monitoring. Their first successful trial of a new four-legged robot that swabs surfaces in areas with radioactive materials. This pathbreaking action is the first to improve safety standards at the dangerous facility at Cumbria. It too aims to enhance decommissioning practices to protect public health and safety.
Each day, Sellafield’s health physics team performs hundreds of swabs on different surfaces to check for contamination and radiation. This data provides critical information to inform effective decommissioning strategies. It enables us to preserve social distancing measures. The introduction of a robotic solution could completely change this process, enabling contactless and more efficient, safer monitoring of patients.
The four-legged robot has a large arm at the front, topped with a bright yellow swabbing tool. This attachment simulates the human swabbers’ manual swabbing motion, allowing for efficient testing. Its speed and maneuverability lets it be first on the scene in areas too dangerous for first responders. This reduces your exposure to risk while still maintaining operational efficiency.
“The robot provides feedback that allows for precise control, making it a valuable asset in hazardous environments,” said Deon Bulman, the remotely operated vehicle equipment lead at Sellafield. He highlighted how critical such technology would be to accelerate decommissioning work.
The trial at Sellafield extends those successful tests that took place last year in the Joint European Torus facility, in Culham, Oxfordshire. Those tests were primarily aimed at proving out fusion technology itself. Dr. Kirsty Hewitson, director of RAICo, noted that advancements like this “could have an impact on both nuclear decommissioning and fusion engineering sites,” highlighting the broader implications of integrating robotics into these high-stakes environments.
Sellafield is currently investigating groundbreaking approaches to monitoring radiation, such as using drones fitted with various sensors. Advanced robotics offer great potential for improving decommissioning operations with processes that are faster, safer, and less expensive.