---
title: "STEP WP5 - Heat Pipe Design Challenge"
ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-997a235b-367d-44d9-bac7-b217c8e7b380"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-997a235b-367d-44d9-bac7-b217c8e7b380"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-997a235b-367d-44d9-bac7-b217c8e7b380.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-997a235b-367d-44d9-bac7-b217c8e7b380.json"
source: "Contracts Finder"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "UNITED KINGDOM ATOMIC ENERGY AUTHORITY"
published: "2019-11-29"
---

# STEP WP5 - Heat Pipe Design Challenge

Buyer: UNITED KINGDOM ATOMIC ENERGY AUTHORITY  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-b5fd17-997a235b-367d-44d9-bac7-b217c8e7b380

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## Summary

The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority is conducting a tender titled "STEP WP5 - Heat Pipe Design Challenge" related to the radioactive materials industry. This procurement is currently in the award stage, with the contract valued at £99,525.11. The contract period commenced on 15th November 2019 and will conclude on 28th February 2020. The tender was officially published on 29th November 2019, and successful suppliers include Aavid Thermacore Europe Ltd and Brunel University, who will be working on innovative heat pipe designs for the STEP divertor target at the Culham Science Centre in Abingdon, South East England. The tender initially required submissions by 4th November 2019.

This tender presents significant opportunities for businesses engaged in mechanical engineering services, research, and development, particularly those with expertise in heat exchange units and high heat flux applications. SMEs with innovative technical solutions in heat pipe technology are particularly well-suited to compete, as the project aims to harness industrial expertise outside the fusion community. As the fusion reactor sector continues to evolve, suppliers offering creative engineering solutions and feasibility studies could find valuable prospects for collaboration and contract opportunities.

## Notice

Managing the heat exhaust from a fusion reactor is one of the most pressing challenges facing those seeking to realise a commercial power plant design For spherical tokamak designs such as STEP, the compact nature of the device potentially increases the heat fluxes on the plasma-facing components and restricts the space for incorporating cooling when compared to conventional larger aspect-ratio tokamaks such as ITER or EU-DEMO. A fusion reactor heat exhaust is handled via a divertor, which needs to handle large heat fluxes (>10 MW.m-2) especially in the divertor target 2Heat pipes have been proposed as potential technology for fusion high heat flux components since at least 1972. Liquid metal filled heat pipes have been tested under fusion relevant heat fluxes as recently as 2018. Despite this, there remain significant outstanding questions before they can be considered as a feasible solution for the fusion heat exhaust problem The STEP Work Package 5 (Resilient Nuclear Components) wishes to harness industrial expertise in heat pipe design outside the fusion community and to identify whether this expertise can be applied to developing an innovative heat pipe concept design for the STEP divertor target. This design challenge is ultimately concerned with the feasibility of implementation for a heat pipe high heat flux handling solution within the divertor region of a fusion reactor. The UKAEA is seeking the assessment of innovative preliminary concept designs of a high heat flux heat pipe suitable for use as a STEP divertor target. The total duration of the activities of this initial contract shall not exceed 12 weeks and must be completed by March 2020.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Contracts Finder |
| Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/5ef9867a-f58e-4514-8c2d-0474042a8ed6 |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Open |
| Procurement method details | Open procedure |
| Tender suitability | SME |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 29 Nov 2019 |
| Submission deadline | 4 Nov 2019 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 20 Nov 2019 |
| Contract period | 15 Nov 2019 - 28 Feb 2020 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £99,525 |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Not specified |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | UNITED KINGDOM ATOMIC ENERGY AUTHORITY |
| Locality | ABINGDON |
| Post town | Oxford |
| Postcode | OX14 3DB |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLJ South East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLJ1 Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire |
| ITL 3 | TLJ14 Oxfordshire CC |
| Local authority | South Oxfordshire |
| Electoral ward | Sandford & the Wittenhams |
| Westminster constituency | Didcot and Wantage |
| Delivery location | TLJ South East (England) |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 2 |
| Supplier names | AAVID THERMACORE EUROPE; BRUNEL UNIVERSITY |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 09 - Petroleum products, fuel, electricity and other sources of energy
- 38 - Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses)
- 42 - Industrial machinery
- 71 - Architectural, construction, engineering and inspection services
- 73 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

### Codes

- 09343000 - Radioactive materials
- 38970000 - Research, testing and scientific technical simulator
- 42511100 - Heat-exchange units
- 71241000 - Feasibility study, advisory service, analysis
- 71333000 - Mechanical engineering services
- 71335000 - Engineering studies
- 71336000 - Engineering support services
- 71337000 - Corrosion engineering services
- 71356200 - Technical assistance services
- 73120000 - Experimental development services
- 73220000 - Development consultancy services
- 73300000 - Design and execution of research and development

## Release History

- 29 Nov 2019 at 14:01 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/5ef9867a-f58e-4514-8c2d-0474042a8ed6

## Documents

- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/5ef9867a-f58e-4514-8c2d-0474042a8ed6
  29th November 2019 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder
- https://uk.eu-supply.com/app/rfq/rwlentrance_s.asp?PID=30408&B=UK
  Additional data
- https://uk.eu-supply.com/ctm/Company/CompanyInformation/Index/72814
  User / Company

## Notice URLs

- http://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/uk-atomic-energy-authority

## Provenance

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