An international conference for interdisciplinary discussion, exciting uranium-centred presentations, and the opportunity for our academic community to meet and collaborate online. The forefront of modern uranium research will be showcased through a mixed program of plenary speakers, presentations, and poster sessions. We look forward to seeing familiar faces and to meeting new members of our growing network of uranium science researchers at our next edition.
Topics
Nuclear Fuel Behaviour
Nuclear power is a cornerstone technology of the modern energy sector, and plays a crucial role in the global transition towards a carbon neutral future. The stringent efficiency, safety, and environmental standards required for next-generation nuclear fuels present an exciting challenge to uranium materials research. Additionally, understanding the behaviour of current nuclear fuels within the worlds operational reactors remains an active area of research, highlighting both the complexity and importance of understanding this uranium system. We look forward to contributions within this theme that further our understanding of contemporary nuclear fuels or the candidate materials for next generations of nuclear reactors.
Fundamental Science
As a actinide whose 5f electrons are strongly duel natured, uranium and its many compounds play host to an almost unparalleled breadth of fascinating physical and chemical phenomena, including but not limited to: superconductivity, magnetism, complex structures and phase transitions, kondo physics, large spin-orbit coupling, heavy fermion behaviour and charge density waves. Understanding these phenomena is of great interest to the Uranium Science community and essential to their potential applications in devices. As such, we welcome research that expands upon or challenges our understanding of uranium and its compounds, showcases the diverse phenomena at play within uranium containing materials, and combines innovation with fundamental science to pioneer the technologies of tomorrow.
Environmental Science and Forensics
The impact of uranium on the environment is a scientifically complex and often politically sensitive issue. characterising and quantifying the presence of uranium and its related compounds is vital for proper risk mitigation and environmental protection and restoration. Similarly, identifying sources of uranium is of fundamental importance to both nuclear forensics and applied nuclear industries. Covering the forefront of actinide spectroscopy and the complex evolution of uranium compounds in the environment, this theme showcases the research making strides to understand the impact of uranium on our world, how best to detect its presence and understand its origins.
Chemistry and Corrosion
As a highly reactive and electron-abundant element, uranium manifests a rich array of chemical behaviours. Both as chemical compounds of their own interest or as part of a wider synthesis pathway, investigations of the chemistry of uranium compounds have impacted the way that uranium is understood and utilized within the wider scientific community. A key area for the study of uranium chemistry and surface reactivity are corrosion studies, which are primarily concerned with nuclear fuel materials, material structural and waste management. In the presentations related to this theme we hope to highlight the importance of uranium chemistry and surface reactivity to the wider uranium science community, and to prompt discussions at the frontier of uranium chemistry.
