Launched in April 2023, the UKAEA Tritium Training Course has provided world-class development to more than 180 fusion industry professionals.
In those 18 months, the course at Culham Campus has welcomed attendees from as far afield as the USA and Europe. They spend a day with UKAEA’s tritium experts and learn about the fuel. Tritium is vitally important for the commercialisation of fusion energy.
Representatives from 20 industry organisations have attended. This includes Atkins Realis, Commonwealth Fusion Systems, First Light Fusion, Fusion for Energy, Helion Energy, and US ITER. There have also been attendees from the Universities of Bristol, Manchester, Bath, Sheffield, Surrey, University College London and Sapienza Università di Roma.
In addition, the course has been attended by representatives from the UKAEA’s regulators, the Environment Agency and Health and Safety Executive. They have received insight and information on the challenges and solutions associated with handling tritium. This includes the key differentiating factors between fusion and fission environments.
The day at Culham also includes a tour of the Active Gas Handling System, UKAEA’s tritium processing plant. This played a vital role in JET’s record-breaking campaigns and is still managing the tritium being off-gassed by the tokamak.
I want to express my appreciation for the outstanding course on tritium for fusion energy. The delivery was excellent, and the interactive nature of the course made the learning experience even more enriching. The chance to upskill in such an exciting area of engineering has been truly valuable. Thank you for organizing this exceptional course!
– Wilf Harness, Senior Engineer, Frazer Nash Consultancy
The Tritium Training Course is a great opportunity to learn about pioneering systems and technologies for the treatment and handling of tritium in nuclear fusion facilities.
– Mario Garcia Hormigos, Radwaste and Decommissioning Mechanical Engineer, Empresarios Agrupados Internacional
1 day course with facility tour enhanced my understanding of fusion – Basics, technical challenges and plant system overview. Lots of interactions and facility tour during the course helped understanding. The knowledge obtained during the training course contributed to explore further areas of work!
– Aya Shin, Chemistry and Corrosion R&D Technical Lead, EDF UK R&D Nuclear
The next courses for external attendees will be on 6th February, 12th June, and 11th September, 2025.
The Tritium Fuel Cycle division is not resting on its laurels, however. Plans are being put in place for the training course to be delivered on location at companies and organisations. This will allow larger number of people to attend the course and tailor it to a company’s specific needs. It would also reduce costs and carbon footprint associated with travelling to Culham.
Tritium Fuel Cycle Director, Sarah Clark, commented:
The Tritium Training Course is an important part of our work in the division to develop tritium expertise both internally and externally to UKAEA.
We have extensive expertise at UKAEA and it is important to make our knowledge available to our peers from across the fusion sector. It has been really pleasing to come into a division where there is such a positive and proactive approach to providing outstanding professional development opportunities.
Find out more about the Tritium Training Course.