organizational chart

2. SELF-ASSESSMENT REPORT FOR THE PREVIOUS 4 YEARS
2.1. Administrative structure diagram of the institution
By the governmental law no.3413/16.03.2009, released by Ministry of
Education, Research, Youth and Sport an Organizational Chart to National
Research and Development Institute for Cryogenics and Isotopic Technologies
- ICIT Rm. Valcea has been approved.
ORGANIZATIONAL CHART
Scientific Council
CS I Dr. Vasile Stanciu, President
CS I Dr. Elena David, Vice-president
CS II Dr. Roxana Ionete, Secretary
Prof. Dr. Ioan Stefanescu, Member
CS II Dr. Mihai Culcer, Member
CS II Dr. Gheorghe Titescu, Member
CS II Dr. Anisia Bornea, Member 2.2. General activity report of the institution GENERAL PRESENTATION OF THE INSTITUTE
T
he National Research & Development Institute for Isotope and Cryogenic
Technologies Ramnicu Valcea was founded in 1970 under the former name of
Uzina "G". Initially, the only task of the new research organization was to
define, experiment and validate the heavy water technologies as one of the
forefront point of Romanian nuclear program at that time. In order to
accomplish this task, there were developed several related activities which
involved hydrogen isotope research and new analytical measurements
techniques have been elaborated and implemented. The target has been
achieved and, at that time, it was one of the most illustrative success-
story of Romanian research structure. Once the heavy-water production
technology has been successfully transferred to a large production plant at
Drobeta Turnu-Severin, the research organization started to re-adjust its
activities and establish new target, based obviously, on the already
accumulated experience and knowledge. Therefore, in 1991, by an official
decision of the Research Minister, it was created Institute for Cryogenic
and Isotope Separation by conversion of the "G" unit. In agreement with the
name, the main field of activities were isotopes separation (especially
Hydrogen but also other stable isotopes separation techniques have been
investigated) and cryogenics initially only as support technology for
isotope separation.
Once the Romanian research structure has been organized again, and
together with development of the National Research Institute network, in
2003 the Institute became National Research & Development Institute for
Isotope and Cryogenic Technologies Ramnicu Valcea, the name under which is
activate today as well.
In years, the research activities were diversified and hydrogen became
more and more the focus point of the work, by hydrogen isotope separation
technologies - tritium separation and by development of the new hydrogen-
based technologies especially those related to fuel cell.
Nowadays, The Institute has a staff of 225 persons, and 165 of them
are directly involved in the Research & Development activities. 55% of them
are highly - educated persons and 18% of them have a doctoral degree. It's
activity was audited by the official Governmental Commission for
accreditation of National Research & Development Institutes and achieve the
first accreditation in 2003 and the second one in 2007.
National Research & Development Institute for Isotope and Cryogenics
Technologies has been set up under this name and the current structure, on
Governmental Decision no. 1319/25.11.1996 basis. Its declared main activity
is Research & Development CAEN code 7310.
It must be emphasis that the overall institute's patrimony expressed
by fixed assets, at 15th of December 2011, is 20.822 KEuros. This patrimony
will be enhanced in 2012, with a value of about 11.500 K Euros, by
finalising CRYO-HY project (the project which was shortly described in this
paper).
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTIZE The National Research and Development Institute for Cryogenics and
Isotopic Technologies - ICIT Rm. Valcea traces its roots to isotopic
physics research related to the defining of the Heavy-Water production
technologies. The research staff has had a tradition of research into
fundamental aspects of isotopic physics and chemistry, including all the
necessary aspects from analysis to separation methods. Once this task has
been accomplished, (the Heavy-Water plant has been built and currently
produces from 1988) the research and instrumental development has been
oriented onto new area of isotopes technologies and applications. The major
emphasis of the current experimental isotopic physics research is in
hydrogen and cryogenic fluids study, centered on the experimental pilot
facilities for Deuterium and Tritium separation.
The ICIT Rm. Valcea, by the specific nature of its research
activities, successfully combines the experience of the research activities
developed by its specialists in the nuclear field, isotopic exchange,
cryogenics and vacuum physics and more recently, hydrogen applications in
producing energy. The activity of the National Research and Development
Institute for Cryogenics and Isotopic Technologies was carried out at the
boundary between science and technology, consisting in theoretical and
experimental studies, processes and phenomena modeling as well as in the
development of some pilot plants and stands.
At the moment the Institute has a dynamic and mobile structure and
undertakes research projects from the main field of activity - isotope and
cryogenic technologies. The main topics of the Institute's research are
part of the National Scheme for Research, Development and Innovation
(PNCDI). ICIT Rm. Valcea has planned to contribute to meeting the current
social and economic requirements and in this respect, we focused our
efforts on the following research-development actions:
. The experimental national interest pilot plant for Tritium and Deuterium
separation, whose main objective is to develop non-polluting technology
for the detritiation of the moderator (heavy water) in the CANDU nuclear
reactors.
. Hydrogen & Fuel cell which is focused onto production and storage of
highly pure hydrogen, achievement and development of new energy systems
based on fuel cells using hydrogen. Moreover, the integration of new
renewable energy sources is also an important task which was assigned and
an entire staff is working on it.
. Low temperature technology - Cryogenics, a research & development
direction which is supported both theoretically and experimentally for
the study and development of liquid nitrogen, hydrogen and helium, of the
pumping systems and measurement of temperature in this range.
Superconductivity and related physical processes are important objectives
of activity of working teams within this direction.
. The environment and life quality improvement, a direction of significant
importance, especially if looked through from the perspective of
Romania's efforts of complying with the European standards.
ICIT Rm Valcea focused almost entire research activity towards
searching better ways to support new forms of energy or to implement new
energy system. Few important aspects regarding the research activities
developed in the directions proposed in this project and evaluated as the
"line of attack" for the new energy society roadmap, namely: nuclear energy
and hydrogen energy, are presented below.
Directly related to these above mentioned research direction, NR-DICIT
Ramnicu Valcea is organized in four distinct units, every of it having
clear defined tasks and projects:
Tritium and Deuterium separation pilot plant
According to the energetic strategy and policy, the nuclear energy
plays an important part in ensuring the demand for electricity in Romania
without having an impact on the environment. By the developed research
activities, ICIT Rm. Valcea has homologated the technology for the
separation of deuterium and tritium from waters containing deuterium and
tritium at the level of laboratory, based on a combined method: Isotopic
catalyzed exchange and cryogenic distillation. Based on the obtained
results, the installation called "Experimental Pilot for the Separation of
Tritium and Deuterium" has been developed, with the transposition of the
laboratory technology to a semi-industrial plant.
The "Experimental Pilot Plant for Deuterium and Tritium Separation",
also called Tritium Removal Facility (TRF), it is a research site of
national interest and was design to complete the technology for heavy water
detritiation resulted from the CANDU-like reactors and to assess the
equipment and tools involved in cryogenics and tritiated environments.
This pilot plant is registered at Romanian NCNAC (National Commission
for Nuclear Activities Control) and at IAEA from Wien (International Atomic
Energy Agency).
It worth mention the association of the plant with the EURATOM/JET
programmes. In this respect, the plant from ICIT Rm. Valcea took part in
the development of projects within EURATOM, referring to the fusion and
development programme Water Detritiation System which will function within
the ITER reactor from Cadarache. Therefore, the development of joint
experiments between institutes from EU is required, the plant being made
available to the European programme. A consortium between MEdC and FZK
Karlsruhe has been created to which ICIT is part of in order to develop
compo