Tier AEU

Co-funded European partnership for research in nuclear materials

European Commission — Horizon Europe

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About this opportunity

Expected Outcome: this topic is a continuation for the co-funded European partnership for research in nuclear materials (CONNECT-NM) and constitutes the EU’s contribution to the 2026-2027 budgetary period. This action aims to provide additional funding to the co-funded European partnership on nuclear materials that brings together European entities that have a national mandate for research in materials science and deal with nuclear materials. It aims to pool their resources in order to achieve critical mass and improve safety, as well as efficiency and effectiveness, when implementing materials solutions in the nuclear domain across Europe. The scope of the partnership on nuclear materials covers the research interests of all Member States and Associated Countries dealing with nuclear materials research. It is not limited to countries that generate nuclear power. The grant to the partnership will contribute to the expected outcomes specified in topic HORIZON-EURATOM-2023-NRT-01-04. The consortium that won the grant under topic HORIZON-EURATOM-2023-NRT-01-04 is uniquely placed to submit a proposal to continue the envisioned partnership. The consortium for the present topic may include additional partners and is expected to add new activities outside the scientific scope of the CONNECT-NM. In line with the objectives of the Nuclear Safety Directive, this European partnership should contribute to the safe operation of existing and future advanced nuclear installations, including small modular reactors (SMRs). The extended partnership on nuclear materials will further contribute to enhancing interaction and cross-fertilisation between national players in the relevant key areas and ensuring improved knowledge management at the EU and Member State levels. Project results are expected to contribute to: further deepening knowledge about the main types of nuclear structural materials and fuels, with an emphasis on research into innovative materials solutions for the reactor systems under development (including light-water SMRs and other advanced reactors); improving the holistic approach to the simulation and predictive modelling for the materials of interest (in line with the ‘materials by design’ strategy); safely and securely assisting the NPP lifetime extension programmes via the integration of obtained knowledge into the relevant technical assessment and licencing procedures; further developing experimental abilities for the qualification of nuclear materials and fuels (encouraging, inter alia, neutron irradiation experiments); assuring the further development of robust and functional knowledge management approaches for this domain (including by contributing to the development of necessary nuclear design codes); widening the scope of the materials and fuels under investigation, by comparison with those that have already been dealt with in the CONNECT-NM European Partnership (e.g. polymers). Scope: materials science is one of the main drivers of technological development and industrial innovation. In the nuclear area, materials research plays a crucial role in improving the safety, efficiency and economy of nuclear installations. It supports technological and safety improvements in existing nuclear reactors and new builds. It also enables the development of advanced reactor concepts (including SMRs). Materials science also addresses several classes of materials. These include those that are essential to nuclear reactor cores (e.g. metallic alloys and ceramics; fuel cladding and fuels; substances for neutron control; concrete; and polymers for cables). Innovative solutions for research into the development, manufacturing and qualification of these nuclear materials are necessary if the EU’s nuclear sector is to not only maintain the highest safety standards but also be competitive with other energy-generating technologies (as well as with a range of international players in this area). This action is therefore expected to significantly contribute to the development and qualification of materials and related advanced manufacturing techniques, thus ensuring the highest safety standards for nuclear components and reducing time to market. This will require a shift from the traditional ‘observe and qualify’ materials science approach to the modern ‘design and control’ one that is already pursued in CONNECT-NM and is further targeted in its extension. Accurate materials-health-monitoring methods also need to be developed for application during operations, along with advanced predictive methodologies that incorporate modern digital techniques blended with physics-based models [1] . Drawing on the advisory bodies already established in CONNECT-NM, the partnership should consolidate its exploitation and innovation group (comprising members from industrial bodies and other relevant institutions) and should also have expertise in innovation and the exploitation of results. In addition, the consolidation of the independent i

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Official source: European Commission — Funding & Tenders Portal ↗
First retrieved: July 21, 2026
Last verified: July 21, 2026
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