The University of Manchester has been awarded a major grant to lead a new programme that will transform the lifecycle of graphite in nuclear energy - an essential material for the future deployment of nuclear power.
The award brings together world-leading expertise led by The University of Manchester in collaboration with the Universities of Oxford, Plymouth, and Loughborough.
Nuclear energy is expected to play a central role in the UK's net zero goals as it emits nearly zero carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gas emissions - but it comes with challenges.
The five-year ENLIGHT programme (Enabling a Lifecycle Approach to Graphite for Advanced Modular Reactors) will develop critical technologies to support the deployment of next-generation nuclear energy technology and will address two of the UK's most pressing nuclear challenges - securing a sustainable, sovereign supply of nuclear graphite and finding solutions to manage the country's growing volume of irradiated graphite waste.
The project is supported with an £8.2m grant from UK Research and Innovation's Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), Higher Education Institutions, and around £5m of contributions from industry partners.
The programme of research, collaboration, and skills development aims to secure the UK's position at the forefront of nuclear innovation and a global leader in advanced reactor technology and clean energy innovation.
Graphite is a critical component in many next-generation Advanced Modular Reactors (AMRs), including High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactors and various Molten Salt Reactor designs - technologies key to achieving the UK's ambition to deliver 24GW of new nuclear power by 2050.
The material accounts for around one-third of reactor build costs, yet despite its importance, the UK currently relies entirely on imports to meet demand.
With the existing Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor fleet approaching decommissioning by 2028, and more than 100,000 tonnes of irradiated graphite already in storage, ENLIGHT will pioneer new approaches to both recycling legacy material and producing new, sustainable high-performance graphite suitable for future AMRs.
Dr Greg Black, Senior Advisor at the Environment Agency, said: "The Environment Agency look forward to participating as a partner in the ENLIGHT programme. As the environmental regulator for the nuclear industry in England, we consider the ambitions of the ENLIGHT programme on 'sustainable graphite' aligns with our Regulatory and RD&I areas of interest."
The programme will focus on three strands of work:
- Sustainable Graphite - Developing processes for decontaminating, recycling and reusing irradiated graphite from ARM deployment.
- Graphite Selection & Design - Designing new graphite materials engineered to withstand extreme conditions in AMR environments.
- Graphite Performance - Understanding how these new materials behave in novel AMR conditions to improve its lifespan.
These advances could save the UK up to £2 billion in future waste management costs and offers a pathway to strengthen the UK's unique position as a global hub for graphite research and innovation.
Professor James Marrow, Professor of Energy Materials at the University of Oxford will lead theme two around graphite selection and design. He said: "I'm delighted to be leading Theme two (Graphite Selection & Design - Designing new graphite materials engineered to withstand extreme conditions in AMR environments) in this major project. Materials will contribute to several work packages across the whole activity, and our initial focus will be on novel studies of mechanical damage to support the design and qualification of new nuclear graphites for advanced fission reactors."
At Loughborough University, researchers are contributing advanced computational modelling to explore how nuclear graphite behaves under extreme conditions.
Dr Kenny Jolley, Senior Lecturer in Materials Modelling at Loughborough University, said: "This will help us predict how and when these critical reactor components may fail, guiding the design of stronger, more reliable materials for the reactors of tomorrow. Our research also supports the reuse and recycling of existing graphite, helping to make future nuclear energy both safer and more sustainable."
The University of Plymouth will bring expertise in the analysis of porous materials, which will play a critical role in evaluating the performance and suitability of repurposed graphite.
Dr Katie Jones, Lecturer in Environmental and Analytical Chemistry at the University of Plymouth, said: "This project is not just about scientific discovery; it's about pioneering sustainable solutions for nuclear energy, turning waste into a valuable resource and bolstering the UK's energy security for decades to come. This consortium embodies a truly cyclical and green approach to nuclear solutions, aiming for a cleaner energy transition and helping to demystify some of the traditional concepts that surround the nuclear industry. Our expertise in analysing the intricate properties of porous materials will be instrumental in ensuring the suitability of repurposed graphite for next-generation nuclear reactors, and we are particularly excited to have the opportunity to grow our relationship with The University of Manchester - and our industrial partners across the nuclear industry - through this initiative."
ENLIGHT will also focus on skills development to expand the national graphite research community and train the next generation of graphite scientists and engineers essential to the UK's clean energy future.
Home to the Dalton Nuclear Institute and a core partner in the Henry Royce Institute, The University of Manchester is uniquely positioned to lead the ENLIGHT programme. The University brings together cutting-edge facilities from the Irradiated Materials Laboratory and the Molten Salts in Nuclear Technology Laboratory.
ENLIGHT will also build on Manchester's role in flagship activities and initiatives including, the Nuclear Waste Services Research Support Office, the SATURN Centre for Doctoral Training in Nuclear Energy, Robotics and AI in Nuclear (RAIN) and Robotics and AI Collaboration in Cumbria (RAICo).
