A robot designed to inspect radioactive parts of Dounreay nuclear power plant has been named as one of the top inventions of 2022 by Time magazine (Stuart MacDonald writes).
The robot, called Lyra, has been used in areas that are inaccessible and unsafe for humans.
Between February and April, Lyra surveyed a radiologically contaminated duct that runs beneath the central corridor between the plant’s laboratories.
Lyra is the result of a three-year collaboration between the decommissioning team from Dounreay’s fuel cycle area; a consortium of universities led by Professor Barry Lennox of the University of Manchester; and experts at FIS360, a team of innovation professionals and enthusiasts.
It has been named in Time’s top 200 inventions of 2022. The magazine said the robot “can accelerate the pace of decommissioning legacy nuclear facilities”.
Dounreay is Scotland’s largest nuclear clean-up and demolition project. The facility shut down in 1994 after generating electricity since 1955.
“We are delighted that Lyra has been recognised in this way,” said Jason Simpson, the project manager at the Caithness plant.
“We are always looking for technology that will help us to decommission the site. Remotely operated vehicles such as Lyra are ideal for areas that are too small or contaminated for people to access.”
In 2020 the robotics specialists carried out trials in an inactive building at Dounreay, followed by a limited survey within a radiologically contaminated duct. A second-generation robot was then developed, which improved on the original robot’s reliability.
Lennox said: “The trials at Dounreay have been incredibly helpful and not just for the development of Lyra. There are lots of reports [on this topic] but there remain very few detailed case studies.
“The Lyra deployment has demonstrated to many people in the nuclear industry that robots can be used to solve real nuclear challenges.”
Kate Canning, of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), said: “This has been a win-win, bringing together a range of partners to develop a solution which has benefits for all involved.”
The Dounreay site is owned by the NDA, which aims to have it “passively safe” by 2036. The total cost of this is estimated to be £2.9 billion.
