France’s nuclear regulator, the Autorité de Sûreté Nucléaire et de Radioprotection (ASNR), has inaugurated new research facilities for a project to study passive cooling systems for innovative reactors and small modular reactors (SMRs).

Passive cooling systems aim to bring a nuclear reactor to safe shutdown and maintain that state for a long period, without human intervention and with limited reliance on support functions.

Integrating these systems into reactors is a key area of research for the developers of next-generation nuclear plants.