Anticipated Improved Performance of Advanced Steel Cladding Under Long Term Dry Storage of Spent Fuel

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raul B. Rebak ◽  
Shenyan Huang
Keyword(s):  
Zirconium Alloys ◽  
Nuclear Waste Repository ◽  
Ferritic Steels ◽  
Spent Fuel ◽  
Dry Storage ◽  
Long Term Storage ◽  
Water Reactors ◽  
Improved Performance ◽  
Term Storage

In current light water reactors the nuclear fuel rods are dependent on zirconium alloys cladding. Used fuel bundles are generally stored in water pools for approximately twenty years and then they may be transferred to a dry casket for an interim storage until reprocessing or the final disposition in a permanent nuclear waste repository. The delay in opening a permanent repository in the US says that the used fuel bundles would need to be stored in dry casks for unanticipated extended periods (maybe 100 years). Under dry storage several mechanisms were identified for the degradation of zirconium based cladding. The vulnerabilities of zirconium alloys would limit their subsequent fuel retrievability and transportation after the long term storage. As part of the DOE Accident Tolerant Fuel (ATF), advanced ferritic steels such as Fe-Cr-Al alloys are being investigated to replace the zirconium alloy cladding. Previous performance in storage of austenitic stainless steel cladding suggests that the proposed ATF ferritic steels would perform well under long term storage in dry casks.

Comparison of Granite, Tuff, and Basalt as Geologic Media for Long-Term Storage of High-Level Nuclear Waste

1990 ◽  
Vol 212 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. E. Grandstaff ◽  
V. J. Grassi ◽  
A. C. Lee ◽  
G. C. Ulmer
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Waste ◽  
Nuclear Waste Repository ◽  
Long Term Storage ◽  
Hydrothermal Experiments ◽  
Ion Activity ◽  
Activity Ratios ◽  
High Level Nuclear Waste ◽  
High Level ◽  
Term Storage

ABSTRACTSystematic differences in pH, cation/proton ion activity ratios, and redox have been observed between solutions produced in rock-water hydrothermal experiments with tuff, granite, and basalt. Stable pH values in tuff-water experiments may be as much as 1.5 pH units more acidic than basalt-water experiments at the same temperature and ionic strength. Redox (log fO2) values in 300°C tuff experiments are 4–7 orders of magnitude more oxidizing than basalt experiments and ca. 4 log units more oxidizing than the magnetite-hematite buffer. Such fluid differences could significantly affect the performance of a high-level nuclear waste repository and should be considered in repository design and siting.

Decommissioning of the A-1 NPP Long-Term Storage Facility

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Medved ◽  
Ladislav Vargovcik
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Water Jet ◽  
Stage I ◽  
Stage Ii ◽  
Storage Facility ◽  
Spent Fuel ◽  
Special Equipment ◽  
Long Term Storage ◽  
Term Storage

The paper deals with experience, techniques and new applied equipment durig undergoing decommissioning process of the A-1 NPP long-term pool storage and the follow-up decommissioning plan. For rad-waste disposal of the long-term pool storage (where most of the contaminants had remained following the removal of spent fuel) special equipment has been developed, designed, constructed and installed. The purpose of this equipment is the restorage, drainage and fragmentation of cartridges (used as a spent fuel case), as well as treatment of sludge (located at the pool bottom) and of the remaining liquid radwaste. The drainage equipment for cartridges is designed for discharging KCr2 solution from cartridges with spent fuel rods into the handling storage tank in the short-term storage facility and adjustment of the cartridges for railway transport, prior to the liquidation of the spent fuel rod. The equipment ensures full remote visual control of the process and exact monitoring of its technical parameters, including that of the internal nitrogen atmosphere concentration value. Cartridges without fuel and liquid filling are transferred to the equipment for their processing which includes fragmentation into smaller parts, decontamination, filling into drums with their sealed closing and measurement of radioactive dose. For the fragmentation, special shearing equipment is used which leaves the pipe fragment open for the following decontamination. For cleaning the cartridge bottom from radioactive sludge water jet system is used combined with slow speed milling used for preparing the opening for water jet nozzle. The sludge from the cartridge bottom is fixed into ceramic matrix. Nuclear Power Plant JE A-1 (since 1980 in decommissioning) is situated in the locality of Jaslovske´ Bohunice. So far the decommissioning of the Long-term storage was carried out within Stage I of A-1NPP decommissioning. This year the Stage I of decommissioning finished, and the performance of Stage II of decommissioning was started. Decommissioning of the long-term storage facility continues within Stage II of the A-1 NPP decommissioning process.

Dry Storage of the BR3 Spent Fuel in the CASTOR® BR3 Cask

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luc Ooms ◽  
Vincent Massaut ◽  
L. Noynaert ◽  
M. Braeckeveldt ◽  
G. Geenen
Keyword(s):  
Spent Fuel ◽  
Dual Purpose ◽  
Shock Absorbers ◽  
Commercial Plant ◽  
Long Term Storage ◽  
Fuel Assemblies ◽  
Test Reactor ◽  
And Storage ◽  
Term Storage

The BR3 reactor was the first PWR plant installed in Europe. Started in 1962, BR3 was definitely shut down on June 30th, 1987. Used at the beginning of its life as a training device for commercial plant operators, it was also used during its whole life as test-reactor for new fuel types and assemblies. Most of the spent fuel was stored in the deactivation pool of the plant for more than 15 years. The reactor being now in decommissioning, it was decided to remove the spent fuel from the plant. After comparison of different solutions, the long term storage in dual purpose storage casks was selected in 1997. The selected CASTOR-BR3® cask is designed as a transport and storage cask for accommodating 30 spent fuel assemblies. As a type B(U) cask fitted with shock absorbers, it meets the transport requirements according to the IAEA guidelines and fulfils also the conditions for cask storage.

Sorption of Actinides in Well-Defined Oxidation States on Geologic Media

1981 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Allard ◽  
U. Olofsson ◽  
B. Torstenfelt ◽  
H. Kipatsi ◽  
K. Andersson
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Fuel ◽  
Spent Nuclear Fuel ◽  
Oxidation States ◽  
Spent Fuel ◽  
Long Term Storage ◽  
Term Storage ◽  
Geologic Media

The long-lived actinides and their daughter products largely dominate the biological hazards from spent nuclear fuel already from some 300 years after the discharge from the reactor and onwards . Therefore it is essential to make reliable assessments of the geochemistry of these elements in any concept for long-term storage of spent fuel or reprocessing waste, etc.

Managing Aging Effects on Used Fuel Dry Cask for Very Long-Term Storage

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Omesh Chopra ◽  
Dwight Diercks ◽  
David Ma ◽  
Vikram Shah ◽  
Shiu-Wing Tam ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
National Laboratory ◽  
Argonne National Laboratory ◽  
Department Of Energy ◽  
Spent Fuel ◽  
Aging Effects ◽  
Aging Research ◽  
Long Term Storage ◽  
Term Storage ◽  
The U.S

The cancellation of the Yucca Mountain repository program in the Unites States raises the prospect of very long-term storage (i.e., >120 years) and deferred transportation of used fuel at the nuclear power plant sites. While long-term storage of used nuclear fuel in dry cask storage systems (DCSSs) at Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installations (ISFSIs) is already a standard practice among U.S. utilities, recent rule-making activities of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) indicated additional flexibility for the NRC licensees of ISFSIs and certificate holders of the DCSSs to request initial and renewal terms for up to 40 years. The proposed rule also adds a requirement that renewal applicants must provide descriptions of aging management programs (AMPs) and time-limited aging analyses (TLAAs) to ensure that the structures, systems, and components (SSCs) that are important to safety in the DCSSs will perform as designed under the extended license terms. This paper examines issues related to managing aging effects on DCSSs for very long-term storage (VLTS) of used fuels, capitalizing on the extensive knowledge and experience accumulated from the work on aging research and life cycle management at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) over the last 30 years. The technical basis for acceptable AMPs and TLAAs is described, as are generic AMPs and TLAAs that are being developed by Argonne under the support of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Used Fuel Disposition Campaign for R&D on extended long-term storage and transportation.

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