On May 19, 2015, Sinosteel Corporation hereinafter referred to as the Sinosteel and Oak Ridge National Laboratory hereinafter referred to as ORNL in headquarters of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S signed a strategically cooperative agreement to officially launch the project of nuclear graphite material irradiation experiment, which marks the R&D of domestic nuclear graphite at the stage of final and most crucial irradiation experiment. Mr. Liu Andong, Party Secretary of Sinosteel Corporation and General Manager of Sinosteel Corporation Limited, and Thom Mason, Director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory made speeches at the signing ceremony and on behalf of two sides signed a strategically cooperative agreement.
Thom Mason firstly introduced relevant information of ORNL which, founded in 1943 as part of Manhattan Project originally, is the largest science and energy research laboratory affiliated to Department of Energy of US. At present, ORNL is mainly involved in advanced computing, advanced materials, biological systems, energy science, nanotechnology, national security, neutron science research and other research fields. With numerous significant scientific research facilities, ORNL that has a number of nuclear science laboratories is a large comprehensive study base in the United States, which has made tremendous contributions to the United States. Thom Mason expressed that, in recent years, ORNL has strengthened its cooperation with Chinese research institutions, including the strategically cooperative agreement signed with Chinese Academy of Sciences last year and that signed with Sinosteel this time – the first time for ORNL to cooperate with Chinese enterprises, opening the gate of cooperating with Chinese enterprises. ORNL attaches great importance to irradiation experiment of nuclear graphite materials produced by Sinosteel and has set up a special project team to use high-Flux Isotope Reactor and other advanced equipment to help Sinosteel complete the irradiation experiment of nuclear graphite material.
Liu Andong firstly expressed his thanks to the leadership and researchers of ORNL for their support and help to Sinosteel experimental team over the last two years, and then made a introduction of Sinosteel which is a most influential steel service company in China, also one of Chinese enterprises of developing overseas economic and technical cooperation in the earliest stage, with main business covering mineral resources, engineering equipment, new materials of science and technology, trade and logistics, financial services and other fields. Liu said that China is an inland-based country and Chinese government has always put the safety of nuclear power in the first place in the development of nuclear power. He also expressed that high temperature gas cooled reactor HTR is considered a safer supply mode of nuclear power with a wide range of market prospects in China. Sinosteel will also manufacture nuclear graphite for HTR use as an important product direction with trial production in recent two years, with result of that the current product specifications and cold indicators have reached the design requirement of HTR. Nuclear graphite materials irradiation experiment is a prerequisite for us to enter quality assurance system of nuclear power. We express our gratitude to ORNL for the experimental conditions prepared this time. President Liu finally said, signing an agreement of strategic cooperation is a good start, Sinosteel’s subsidiaries of sci-tech and production enterprises have strong technological innovation strength in the fields of mineral development, materials R&D, safety and environmental protection, energy conservation and other areas, and Sinosteel is willing to continuously strengthen cooperation with ORNL.
The signing of the strategically cooperative agreement launched officially the experiment project of Sinosteel nuclear graphite material irradiation, which is the first time for China's nuclear graphite material to accept irradiation test of foreign research institutions, with great significance for Sinosteel to develop nuclear graphite, attracting broad attention in the international materials sector.
The two sides signed an agreement of strategic cooperation
Visiting Oak Ridge Laboratory
