The annual FIGARO project meeting (Fires Involving Glove boxes with Aerosol Release Occurrences), held on February 3–4, 2026, in Cadarache, brought together teams from SA2I and SCA alongside the Japanese Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) and was highlighted by the completion of the final test in a ventilated enclosure on the GALAXIE platform.

Researchers from the Internal Hazards and Industrial Risks Department (SA2I) and the Containment and Pollutant Aerodispersion Department (SCA) shared the progress of their work with NRA partners present on site, as well as with researchers from JAEA (Japan Atomic Energy Agency), who joined via videoconference and have been supporting the NRA since the beginning of the project.

A full-scale test in a ventilated enclosure

The meeting was followed by a visit to the fire test facilities on the GALAXIE platform, where participants observed the project’s final test. This test took place in the mechanically ventilated PLUTON enclosure (400 m³), involving a full-scale glove box (1 m³) previously “contaminated” with an inactive PuO2 simulant.

The test results will contribute to evaluating the radiological consequences of glove box fires, supporting fire safety analyses in French and Japanese nuclear fuel cycle facilities. They are also used for the development and validation of glove box fire models, which are implemented in the fire simulation tools SYLVIA and CALIF3S, developed by SA2I (S3AFER software platform).

A time for exchanges to open new common opportunities

The meeting concluded with a discussion session, allowing the three organizations to review their fire safety research activities and identify potential new areas of mutual interest beyond glove box fires (e.g., solvent fires, electrical cable fires, fire door behavior…).