SMiRT 20 Conference
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Chairs’ Message
The two biggest global challenges facing the energy world today are climate change and the huge increase in energy consumption. Global electricity consumption is expected to double by the year 2030. There will be increasing competition in the world for energy resources. On the other hand there is a need to lower energy intensity of the economy and turn to CO2-free form of energy production. Inevitably, the era of cheap energy is over. These are driving forces favourable for increasing nuclear energy production capacity.
In Europe, the EU has put forward a very concrete target. The Heads of State set very ambitious EU mandatory targets for the new Energy and Climate Change policy for 2020. One of those targets requires at least 20% less CO2 emissions by 2020 and 50% by 2050 compared to 1990. Targets will not be realistic without considerable investments on new nuclear power plants and their development. Consequently, the European Commission with the support of nuclear industry have launched a Sustainable Nuclear Energy Technology Platform (SNE-TP) in September 2007. In Finland, a decision to build a new (fifth) nuclear power plant (EPR) was already made in 2002, and the licence for the construction was granted in early 2005. In this year three applications for Decision in Principle for three more nuclear plants in Finland are being handled by the Government. Some other countries like France, UK in Europe have made initiatives for new builds.
The international conferences on Structural Mechanics in Reactor Technology (SMiRT) have traditionally provided innovative and practical mechanics-based solutions to the planning, design, construction, operation, and regulation of NPPs and related facilities. SMiRT 20 will continue this tradition, bringing together experts and practitioners from around the world to share their knowledge of technology that is most relevant at this time in the nuclear energy industry for both current operations and future development. Around 400 papers will give answers to Challenges Facing Nuclear Renaissance. Besides technical papers the SMiRT20 Programme consists of Leadership Forum, Technical Plenary Sessions, Panel Workshops and Tutorial Workshops having topics of current interest.
This document includes the programme of SMiRT 20 and gives general information of the conference, organization, programme of Leadership Forum, Technical Plenary Sessions, Panel and Tutorial Workshopsand detailed programme of technical Sessions. In addition the document provides the Proceedings of the Conference.
The contents of full papers of the papers included in the technical sessions can be browsed through the hyperlinks included for each paper for which the full papers have beeb submitted prior to the conference.
We wish all the SMiRT20 participants and authors a successful conference and pleasant stay in Finland 2009.
Rauno Rintamaa
Chairman
SMiRT 20 Conference
Seppo Vuori
Chairman
Local Organizing Committee