Conveners
Session 4.1: Recycling as a spent fuel management option
- céline Roussel (Orano)
- ANDREY KIRKIN (Scientific and Engineering Centre on Nuclear and Radiation Safety)
Over 35 000 tons of used fuel have been processed in La Hague so far, and more than 8000 MOX and 7200 ERU Fuel Assemblies have been produced from recycled material. These experiences together with fairly stable yearly production levels for 40 years clearly demonstrate the industrial maturity of those technologies.
In France, used fuel reprocessing and recycling facilities continue their...
Development of atomic power engineering on a global scale has made it necessary to address problems associated with spent nuclear fuel (SNF) management. Operation of nuclear facilities resulted in accumulation of large amount of SNF with various compositions and geometries. The SNF is accumulated both during electric power generation at NPPs and operation of naval propulsion reactors by...
In the geological disposal of high-level radioactive waste, the amount and properties of waste buried deep underground depends on various process conditions, starting with nuclear fuel. To reduce the environmental load of geological disposal, we evaluated the effects on vitrified waste heat generation of fuel burn-up, spent fuel cooling period, separation of heat-generating nuclides, and waste...
The paper describes the opportunity of reprocessing damaged multi design fuel assemblies (of PWR, BWR or VVER origin), which is an effective solution in terms of global risk reduction. The paper also broaches the necessary associated packaging and transport logistics, the legal framework, and the management options for separated materials.
A number of European reactors (PWR, VVER1000, BWR)...
The experience of nuclear fuel cycle facilities operation shows that explosions during reprocessing of radioactive material could lead to release of radioactive elements with consequences for environmental. The root cause of many of them is chemical interactions with heat and gas generation. Hazard identification methods have been developing for many years, but the specifics of the nuclear...
