FORMER National Nuclear Laboratory Account Director Kat Lennox has been appointed to head up a new technology company at the Culcheth based Rawwater Group.
Kat, previously employed as an account director with the UK’s National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL), has joined Rawwater Applied Technology Ltd as managing director.
A new company within the Rawwater Group, Rawwater Applied Technology Ltd has been established to further exploit the capabilities of the group’s specialist metal alloy seals and application techniques for use in nuclear decommissioning, as well as in other industry sectors.
“This is an incredibly exciting time at Rawwater,” comments group managing director, Professor Robert Eden PhD. “Having successfully created the world’s first ‘anticipated’ 3,000-year-life Bureau Veritas-certified metal seal for oil and gas reservoir plugging and abandonment, we identified further opportunities for our proprietary, low-melting-point bismuth alloys in nuclear decommissioning. Through a programme called Molten Metal Manipulation (M3), we went on to develop a range of alloy classes and application techniques for a host of sealing challenges.
“Such an important technological development required an individual with the necessary skills to convey the capabilities of our M3 programme to both the nuclear sector and wider industry.
Having worked with Kat Lennox over a number of years, I knew immediately that she was the right person to take up the mantle and lead Rawwater Applied Technology Ltd.”
Commenting on her appointment Kat said: “I am delighted to bring my knowledge of the international nuclear industry to Rawwater.
“At NNL, I worked with organisations from around the globe on a range of waste management and decommissioning activities. I believe I offer a unique perspective into the requirements of those involved in nuclear decommissioning and the challenges they face. As managing director of Rawwater Applied Technology Ltd, I will apply my nuclear industry expertise to the development, commercialisation and exploitation of the Rawwater Group’s innovative and inspiring sealing technologies for the energy, nuclear decommissioning and high-risk industrial sectors.”
Rawwater’s specialist M3 alloy seals are being adapted to support decommissioning challenges at the UK’s Sellafield nuclear site in Cumbria. Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) is also exploring their use across its nuclear facilities. Rawwater M3 alloys can seal large openings or fill micron-sized cracks or pores, preventing fluid leakage. Applied underwater or in the air, M3 alloys can stabilise structures, pipework, flanges, gaskets and other seals. They can be tailored to expand, contract or remain neutral upon solidification, offering reduced recovery costs and extreme longevity.
Rawwater made the transition into the nuclear sector through Sellafield’s Game Changers programme. Game Changers is an innovation programme designed to find solutions and develop technologies to overcome some of the most complex challenges facing the nuclear industry. The programme is delivered by NNL and FIS360, specialists in supporting innovative technologies from concept to commercial production.
From its UK-based technology centre in Culcheth, the Rawwater Group provides solutions to oil & gas, nuclear energy and defence sectors. The group offers contract research and consultancy in the fields of materials science, well technology and water management, and combines engineering with reservoir microbiology to deliver solutions for facilities design, oilfield souring, biofouling and microbial corrosion. The Rawwater Group’s engineering division is well known for its expertise in the development and application of molten bismuth alloys as a specialist alternative to cement for ensuring oil and gas well integrity onshore, offshore and in subsea applications. As experts in the simulation of complex systems and operating environments, the division is also developing special purpose alloy compositions and in-situ metal casting tools and techniques for the emergency and long-term isolation of leaks within high-risk environments.
Picture: Kat Lennox, newly appointed managing director at Rawwater Applied Technology Ltd.
