Advances in conditioning of low- and intermediate-level nuclear waste

MRS Advances ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (19) ◽  
pp. 983-990 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael I. Ojovan ◽  
Rebecca A. Robbins ◽  
Miklos Garamszeghy
Keyword(s):  
Radioactive Waste ◽  
Fuel Cycle ◽  
Industrial Applications ◽  
Intermediate Level ◽  
List Type ◽  
Long Term Storage ◽  
Technical Requirements ◽  
Processing And Storage ◽  
Intermediate Level Radioactive Waste ◽  
Storage Technologies

ABSTRACTRadioactive waste with widely varying characteristics is generated from the operation and maintenance of nuclear reactors, nuclear fuel cycle facilities, research facilities and medical facilities and the through the use of radioisotopes in industrial applications. The waste needs to be treated and conditioned appropriately to provide wasteforms acceptable for safe storage and disposal. Conditioning of radioactive waste is an important step to prepare waste for long-term storage or disposal and includes the following processes:▪ Immobilization which may or may not also provide volume reduction, includinga) Low temperature processes andb) Thermal processes;▪ Containerization fora) Transport,b) Storage, andc) Disposal;▪ Overpacking of primary containersa) Prior to disposal andb) In a disposal facility as part of disposal process.Conditioning consists of operations that produce a waste package suitable for handling, transportation, storage and/or disposal and may be performed for a variety of reasons including standardization of practices and/or wasteforms, technical requirements for waste stability in relation to a repository design or safety case, technical requirements related to waste transportation, societal preferences, regulatory preferences, etc. This paper gives an overview of recent advances in conditioning of low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste.The paper is based on the new IAEA Handbook “Conditioning of Low- and Intermediate-Level Liquid, Solidified and Solid Waste” which is one of eight IAEA handbooks intended to provide guidance for evaluating and implementing various characterisation and radioactive waste processing and storage technologies before final disposal

Increasing Operational Efficiency in a Radioactive Waste Processing Plant

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. W. Turner ◽  
S. N. Watson
Keyword(s):  
Radioactive Waste ◽  
Solid Waste ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Operational Efficiency ◽  
Processing Plant ◽  
Waste Processing ◽  
Long Term Storage ◽  
Below Ground ◽  
Pass Through ◽  
Intermediate Level Radioactive Waste

The solid waste plant at Harwell in Oxfordshire, contains a purpose built facility to input, assay, visually inspect and sort remote handled intermediate level radioactive waste (RHILW). The facility includes a suite of remote handling cells, known as the head-end cells (HEC), which waste must pass through in order to be repackaged. Some newly created waste from decommissioning works on site passes through the cells, but the vast majority of waste for processing is historical waste, stored in below ground tube stores. Existing containers are not suitable for long term storage, many are already badly corroded, so the waste must be efficiently processed and repackaged in order to achieve passive safety. The Harwell site is currently being decommissioned and the land is being restored. The site is being progressively delicensed, and redeveloped as a business park, which can only be completed when all the nuclear liabilities have been removed. The recovery and processing of old waste in the solid waste plant is a key project linked to delicensing of a section of the site. Increasing the operational efficiency of the waste processing plant could shorten the time needed to clear the site and has the potential to save money for the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA). The waste processing facility was constructed in the mid 1990s, and commissioned in 1999. Since operations began, the yearly throughput of the cells has increased significantly every year. To achieve targets set out in the lifetime plan (LTP) for the site, throughput must continue to increase. The operations department has measured the overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) of the process for the last few years, and has used continuous improvement techniques to decrease the average cycle time. Philosophies from operational management practices such as ‘lean’ and ‘kaizen’ have been employed successfully to drive out losses and increase plant efficiency. This paper will describe how the solid waste plant at Harwell has continuously increased the throughput of RHILW, which should lead to significant programme savings.

An Integrated Safety Assessment System for Near-Surface Disposal of Low- and Intermediate-Level Radioactive Waste in Korea

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
JooWan Park ◽  
Chang-Lak Kim ◽  
Jin Beak Park ◽  
Eun Yong Lee ◽  
Youn Myoung Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Radioactive Waste ◽  
Safety Assessment ◽  
Assessment System ◽  
Intermediate Level ◽  
Radioactive Waste Disposal ◽  
System Level ◽  
Assessment Methodology ◽  
Regulatory Requirements ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Intermediate Level Radioactive Waste

An integrated safety assessment system to be used for evaluation of near-surface disposal concept has been developed within the framework of safety assessment methodology taken for low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste disposal in Korea. It is to provide an evaluation of the safety of the disposal system in a clear, comprehensive and well-documented manner, and to integrate the results into a defensible package showing reasonable assurance of compliance with regulatory requirements for licensing application. This system is made up of two key components, a system-level safety assessment code and an input database/quality assurance module for safety assessment, which both are interfaced with each other.

Assessment of Package Performance During Long-Term Storage of Intermediate-Level Radioactive Waste

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. V. Chambers ◽  
W. R. Rodwell ◽  
M. Kelly ◽  
A. R. Hoch ◽  
A. J. Baker
Keyword(s):  
Extended Period ◽  
Intermediate Level ◽  
Passive Safety ◽  
Long Term Storage ◽  
Waste Storage ◽  
Disposal Option ◽  
Intermediate Level Radioactive Waste ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact

In the UK, the need for the long-term management of intermediate-level radioactive wastes arises from the absence of an established deep disposal option. As a consequence there is a requirement to demonstrate the ‘passive safety’ of waste packages in stores over a necessarily lengthy period (perhaps 150 years or more). ‘Passive safety’ is taken here to imply that the waste packages themselves would remain safe without intervention; it is assumed however, that the store building and associated infrastructure would need to be actively maintained and that the store may need to be ventilated. Importantly, methods for waste storage also need to ensure that possible future options for disposal are not foreclosed. An extended period of storage suggests that emphasis will need to be placed by waste producers on understanding a number of issues such as: • the impact of corrosion on container integrity; • the assessment of container vents and other features as a pathway for the release of radioactivity; • the extent to which wastes are conditioned for storage and the selection of appropriate methods; • the generation and behaviour of toxic or flammable gases in the storage facility; and the mitigating steps that might be needed to address adverse impacts (e.g. the type of ventilation that the store requires). In this paper, we review the requirements and current state of knowledge relevant to the assessment of operational releases of radioactive, flammable and toxic gases from wastes in long-term interim storage.

Measurement Methodology for Fulfilling of Waste Acceptance Criteria for Low and Intermediate Level Radioactive Waste in Storages

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Sokcic-Kostic ◽  
F. Langer ◽  
R. Schultheis
Keyword(s):  
Radioactive Waste ◽  
Waste Treatment ◽  
Storage Period ◽  
Intermediate Level ◽  
Acceptance Criteria ◽  
Waste Storage ◽  
Measurement Methodology ◽  
Treatment Facilities ◽  
Intermediate Level Radioactive Waste ◽  
Radioactive Waste Storage

Low and intermediate level radioactive waste must be sorted and treated before it can be sent to radioactive waste storage. The waste must fulfil an extensive amount of acceptance criteria (WAC) to guarantee a safe storage period. NUKEM Technologies has a broad experience with the building and management of radioactive waste treatment facilities and has developed methods and equipment to produce the waste packages and to gather all the required information.

Commercialization Project of Ulchin Vitrification

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hyun-Jun Jo ◽  
Cheon-Woo Kim ◽  
Tae-Won Hwang
Keyword(s):  
Radioactive Waste ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Cold Test ◽  
Intermediate Level ◽  
Performance Tests ◽  
Cold Crucible ◽  
Commercial Operation ◽  
Intermediate Level Radioactive Waste ◽  
Hot Test

The Ulchin Vitrification Facility (UVF), to be used for the vitirification of low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste (LILW) generated by nuclear power plants (NPPs), is the world’s first commercial facility using Cold Crucible Induction Melter (CCIM) technology. The construction of the facility was begun in 2005 and was completed in 2007. From December 2007 to September 2009, all key performance tests, such as the system functional test, the cold test, the hot test, and the real waste test, were successfully carried out. The UVF commenced commercial operation in October 2009 for the vitrification of radioactive waste.

A radionuclide outlier identification and correlation analysis on low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste

2021 ◽  
Vol 151 ◽  
pp. 107947
Author(s):  
Sung-Chan Jang ◽  
Hyunjong Woo ◽  
Jeong-Guk Kim ◽  
Dong-Ju Lee ◽  
Il-Sik Kang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Correlation Analysis ◽  
Radioactive Waste ◽  
Intermediate Level ◽  
Outlier Identification ◽  
Intermediate Level Radioactive Waste
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