36Th Annual Radioactive Waste Management Symposium 2010
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Spent Nuclear Fuel Pools in the US
Spent Nuclear Fuel Pools in the U.S.: Reducing the Deadly Risks of Storage front cover WITH SUPPORT FROM: WITH SUPPORT FROM: By Robert Alvarez 1112 16th St. NW, Suite 600, Washington DC 20036 - www.ips-dc.org May 2011 About the Author Robert Alvarez, an Institute for Policy Studies senior scholar, served as a Senior Policy Advisor to the Secre- tary of Energy during the Clinton administration. Institute for Policy Studies (IPS-DC.org) is a community of public scholars and organizers linking peace, justice, and the environment in the U.S. and globally. We work with social movements to promote true democracy and challenge concentrated wealth, corporate influence, and military power. Project On Government Oversight (POGO.org) was founded in 1981 as an independent nonprofit that investigates and exposes corruption and other misconduct in order to achieve a more effective, accountable, open, and ethical federal government. Institute for Policy Studies 1112 16th St. NW, Suite 600 Washington, DC 20036 http://www.ips-dc.org © 2011 Institute for Policy Studies [email protected] For additional copies of this report, see www.ips-dc.org Table of Contents Summary ...............................................................................................................................1 Introduction ..........................................................................................................................4 Figure 1: Explosion Sequence at Reactor No. 3 ........................................................4 Figure 2: Reactor No. 3 -
Table 2.Iii.1. Fissionable Isotopes1
FISSIONABLE ISOTOPES Charles P. Blair Last revised: 2012 “While several isotopes are theoretically fissionable, RANNSAD defines fissionable isotopes as either uranium-233 or 235; plutonium 238, 239, 240, 241, or 242, or Americium-241. See, Ackerman, Asal, Bale, Blair and Rethemeyer, Anatomizing Radiological and Nuclear Non-State Adversaries: Identifying the Adversary, p. 99-101, footnote #10, TABLE 2.III.1. FISSIONABLE ISOTOPES1 Isotope Availability Possible Fission Bare Critical Weapon-types mass2 Uranium-233 MEDIUM: DOE reportedly stores Gun-type or implosion-type 15 kg more than one metric ton of U- 233.3 Uranium-235 HIGH: As of 2007, 1700 metric Gun-type or implosion-type 50 kg tons of HEU existed globally, in both civilian and military stocks.4 Plutonium- HIGH: A separated global stock of Implosion 10 kg 238 plutonium, both civilian and military, of over 500 tons.5 Implosion 10 kg Plutonium- Produced in military and civilian 239 reactor fuels. Typically, reactor Plutonium- grade plutonium (RGP) consists Implosion 40 kg 240 of roughly 60 percent plutonium- Plutonium- 239, 25 percent plutonium-240, Implosion 10-13 kg nine percent plutonium-241, five 241 percent plutonium-242 and one Plutonium- percent plutonium-2386 (these Implosion 89 -100 kg 242 percentages are influenced by how long the fuel is irradiated in the reactor).7 1 This table is drawn, in part, from Charles P. Blair, “Jihadists and Nuclear Weapons,” in Gary A. Ackerman and Jeremy Tamsett, ed., Jihadists and Weapons of Mass Destruction: A Growing Threat (New York: Taylor and Francis, 2009), pp. 196-197. See also, David Albright N 2 “Bare critical mass” refers to the absence of an initiator or a reflector. -
The Nuclear Waste Primer September 2016 What Is Nuclear Waste?
The Nuclear Waste Primer September 2016 What is Nuclear Waste? Nuclear waste is the catch-all term for anything contaminated with radioactive material. Nuclear waste can be broadly divided into three categories: • Low-level waste (LLW), comprised of protective clothing, medical waste, and other lightly-contaminated items • Transuranic waste (TRU), comprised of long-lived isotopes heavier than uranium • High-level waste (HLW), comprised of spent nuclear fuel and other highly-radioactive materials Low-level waste is relatively short-lived and easy to handle. Currently, four locations for LLW disposal exist in the United States. Two of them, Energy Solutions in Clive, Utah and Waste Control Specialists in Andrews, Texas, accept waste from any U.S. state. Transuranic waste is often a byproduct of nuclear weapons production and contains long-lived radioactive elements heavier than uranium, like plutonium and americium. Currently, the U.S. stores TRU waste at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad, New Mexico. High-level waste includes spent nuclear fuel and the most radioactive materials produced by nuclear weapons production. Yucca Mountain is the currently designated high-level waste repository for the United States. 1 | What is Spent Nuclear Fuel? Spent nuclear fuel (SNF), alternatively referred to as used nuclear fuel, is the primary byproduct of nuclear reactors. In commercial power reactors in the U.S., fuel begins as uranium oxide clad in a thin layer of zirconium-aluminum cladding. After several years inside of the reactor, around fi ve percent of the uranium has been converted in some way, ranging from short-lived and highly radioactive fi ssion products to long-lived actinides like plutonium, americium, and neptunium. -
FT/P3-20 Physics and Engineering Basis of Multi-Functional Compact Tokamak Reactor Concept R.M.O
FT/P3-20 Physics and Engineering Basis of Multi-functional Compact Tokamak Reactor Concept R.M.O. Galvão1, G.O. Ludwig2, E. Del Bosco2, M.C.R. Andrade2, Jiangang Li3, Yuanxi Wan3 Yican Wu3, B. McNamara4, P. Edmonds, M. Gryaznevich5, R. Khairutdinov6, V. Lukash6, A. Danilov7, A. Dnestrovskij7 1CBPF/IFUSP, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2Associated Plasma Laboratory, National Space Research Institute, São José dos Campos, SP, Brazil, 3Institute of Plasma Physics, CAS, Hefei, 230031, P.R. China, 4Leabrook Computing, Bournemouth, UK, 5EURATOM/UKAEA Fusion Association, Culham Science Centre, Abingdon, UK, 6TRINITI, Troitsk, RF, 7RRC “Kurchatov Institute”, Moscow, RF [email protected] Abstract An important milestone on the Fast Track path to Fusion Power is to demonstrate reliable commercial application of Fusion as soon as possible. Many applications of fusion, other than electricity production, have already been studied in some depth for ITER class facilities. We show that these applications might be usefully realized on a small scale, in a Multi-Functional Compact Tokamak Reactor based on a Spherical Tokamak with similar size, but higher fields and currents than the present experiments NSTX and MAST, where performance has already exceeded expectations. The small power outputs, 20-40MW, permit existing materials and technologies to be used. The analysis of the performance of the compact reactor is based on the solution of the global power balance using empirical scaling laws considering requirements for the minimum necessary fusion power (which is determined by the optimized efficiency of the blanket design), positive power gain and constraints on the wall load. In addition, ASTRA and DINA simulations have been performed for the range of the design parameters. -
Molten Salt Reactor: Sustainable and Safe Reactor for the Future?
WIR SCHAFFEN WISSEN –HEUTE FÜR MORGEN Jiří Křepel :: MSR activity coordinator :: Paul Scherrer Institut Molten Salt Reactor: sustainable and safe reactor for the future? NES colloquium 14.09.2016 [email protected] INTRODUCTION Page 2 History of Molten Salt Reactor (MSR) Illustration, not MSR started at Oak Ridge National Laboratory 1950s • Aircraft Reactor Experiment (ARE)* 1960s • Molten Salt Reactor Experiment (MSRE)* 1970s • Molten Salt Breeder Reactor (MSBR)* 1970s • EIR (PSI) study (report nr. 411, 1975) fast spectrum, chlorides 1980s • Denatured Molten Salt Reactor (DMSR)* * ORNL <= <= <= Page 3 History of MSR: revival 100 90 80 1990s • Accelerator-driven transmutation 70 keff=0.95 [mA] of Nuclear Waste - ATW (LANL) 60 keff=0.97 curent 2000s • Generation IV, Amster, Sphinx, … 50 keff=0.98 40 2010s • MSFR, Mosart, … fast spectrum, fluorides Accelerator 30 keff=0.99 FHR (fluorides cooled HTR) 20 keff=0.995 2015+ • MCFR, Breed & Burn (TerraPower, PSI, …) 10 keff=0.997 WR at PSI 2.3mA 0 keff=1 fast spectrum, chlorides 0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 ADS reactor power [GWth] <= <= <= Page 4 Classification of MSR MSR is a class of reactors with two groups Type of: Molten salt Application Molten salt fueled reactors cooled reactors Reactor Thermal reactors Fast reactors Fission reactors Fusion reactors Salt Fluorides Fluorides or Chlorides Fluorides Fluorides Core Graphite moderated “Empty” cylinder Graphite based fuel Blanket of the core (ZrH, H2O, D2O, Be, … (TRISO particles) (coolant and/or needs barrier) tritium production) Page 5 Anions in the salts Fluorides Chlorides 19 35 37 100% F 76% Cl + 24% Cl ] 1000 ‐ 1 [ 35Cl 37Cl 19F 0.1 100 interaction 0.01 [b] per XS 10 0.001 Total 0.0001 probabilty 1 0.00001 Capture 35Cl 37Cl 19F 0.1 0.000001 0.001 0.1 10 1000 100000 10000000 0.001 0.1 10 1000 100000 10000000 Incident neutron energy [eV] Incident neutron energy [eV] Number of collision to slow-down fast neutron (2MeV->1eV) 19F 35Cl 37Cl 142 (+big inelastic XS) 258 273 For instance: Iodine as the fission product is the next possible anion. -
Nuclear Transmutation Strategies for Management of Long-Lived Fission
PRAMANA c Indian Academy of Sciences Vol. 85, No. 3 — journal of September 2015 physics pp. 517–523 Nuclear transmutation strategies for management of long-lived fission products S KAILAS1,2,∗, M HEMALATHA2 and A SAXENA1 1Nuclear Physics Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400 085, India 2UM–DAE Centre for Excellence in Basic Sciences, Mumbai 400 098, India ∗Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected] DOI: 10.1007/s12043-015-1063-z; ePublication: 27 August 2015 Abstract. Management of long-lived nuclear waste produced in a reactor is essential for long- term sustenance of nuclear energy programme. A number of strategies are being explored for the effective transmutation of long-lived nuclear waste in general, and long-lived fission products (LLFP), in particular. Some of the options available for the transmutation of LLFP are discussed. Keywords. Nuclear transmutation; long-lived fission products; (n, γ ) cross-section; EMPIRE. PACS Nos 28.41.Kw; 25.40.Fq; 24.60.Dr 1. Introduction It is recognized that for long-term energy security, nuclear energy is an inevitable option [1]. For a sustainable nuclear energy programme, the management of long-lived nuclear waste is very critical. Radioactive nuclei like Pu, minor actinides like Np, Am and Cm and long-lived fission products like 79Se, 93Zr, 99Tc, 107Pd, 126Sn, 129I and 135Cs constitute the main waste burden from a power reactor. In this paper, we shall discuss the management strategies for nuclear waste in general, and long-lived fission products, in particular. 2. Management of nuclear waste The radioactive nuclei which are produced in a power reactor and which remain in the spent fuel of the reactor form a major portion of nuclear waste. -
小型飛翔体/海外 [Format 2] Technical Catalog Category
小型飛翔体/海外 [Format 2] Technical Catalog Category Airborne contamination sensor Title Depth Evaluation of Entrained Products (DEEP) Proposed by Create Technologies Ltd & Costain Group PLC 1.DEEP is a sensor analysis software for analysing contamination. DEEP can distinguish between surface contamination and internal / absorbed contamination. The software measures contamination depth by analysing distortions in the gamma spectrum. The method can be applied to data gathered using any spectrometer. Because DEEP provides a means of discriminating surface contamination from other radiation sources, DEEP can be used to provide an estimate of surface contamination without physical sampling. DEEP is a real-time method which enables the user to generate a large number of rapid contamination assessments- this data is complementary to physical samples, providing a sound basis for extrapolation from point samples. It also helps identify anomalies enabling targeted sampling startegies. DEEP is compatible with small airborne spectrometer/ processor combinations, such as that proposed by the ARM-U project – please refer to the ARM-U proposal for more details of the air vehicle. Figure 1: DEEP system core components are small, light, low power and can be integrated via USB, serial or Ethernet interfaces. 小型飛翔体/海外 Figure 2: DEEP prototype software 2.Past experience (plants in Japan, overseas plant, applications in other industries, etc) Create technologies is a specialist R&D firm with a focus on imaging and sensing in the nuclear industry. Createc has developed and delivered several novel nuclear technologies, including the N-Visage gamma camera system. Costainis a leading UK construction and civil engineering firm with almost 150 years of history. -
Radiation Hazard Location
Radiation Hazard Location Radiation Detector JS Stanley US Patent 8,399.859 B2 March 19, 2013 Using semi spherical PRESAGE with a lead collimator to detect contaminated Hot Cells Improving the Presage Polymer Radiosensitivity for Hot Cell and Glovebox 3D Characterization Adamovics, John; Farfan, Eduardo B.; Coleman, J. Rusty Health Physics (2013), 104(1), 63-67. RadBall is a novel, passive, radiation detection device that provides 3D mapping of radiation from areas where measurements have not been possible previously due to lack of access or extremely high radiation doses. This kind of technol. is beneficial when decommissioning and decontamination of nuclear facilities occur. The key components of the RadBall technol. include a tungsten outer shell that houses a radiosensitive PRESAGE polymer. The 1.0-cm-thick tungsten shell has a no. of holes that allow photons to reach the polymer, thus generating radiation tracks that are analyzed. Submerged RadBall Deployments in Hanford Site Hot Cells Containing 137CsCl Capsules Farfan, Eduardo B.; Coleman, J. Rusty; Stanley, Steven; Adamovics, John; Oldham, Mark; Thomas, Andrew Health Physics 103:100-106 (2012) The overall objective of this study was to demonstrate that a new technol., known as RadBall, could locate submerged radiol. hazards. RadBall is a novel, passive, radiation detection device that provides a 3-D visualization of radiation from areas where measurements have not been previously possible due to lack of access or extremely high radiation doses. This technol. has been under development during recent years, and all of its previous tests have included dry deployments. This study involved, for the first time, underwater RadBall deployments in hot cells contg. -
Security of Supply of Medical Radioisotopes - a Clinical View Dr Beverley Ellis Consultant Radiopharmacist
Security of Supply of Medical Radioisotopes - a clinical view Dr Beverley Ellis Consultant Radiopharmacist Nuclear Medicine Centre Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust Nuclear Medicine § Approx 35 million clinical radionuclide imaging procedures worldwide § Globally 2nd most common imaging technique after CT (higher than MR) 20 million in USA 9 million in Europe 3 million in Japan 3 million in rest of the world Approx 700, 000 nuclear medicine procedures per year in UK Myocardial Perfusion - Ischaemia Stress Stress SA Rest Stress VLA Rest Stress HLA Rest Rest Tc-99m Bone Scans Normal Metastases Mo-99/Tc-99m Generator Supply Tc-99m Radiopharmaceutical Production Mo-99 Shortages Design of Clinical Services to Reduce Tc-99m Use § Optimisation of generator management – Efficiency savings – Delivery and extraction schedules – Patient scheduling § Improved communication – Customers – Suppliers § Improved software – gamma cameras – Produce comparable quality images using less radioactivity Global Situation § OECD/Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) – Set up High Level Group (HLG-MR) in 2009 – Security of supply of Mo-99 and Tc-99m – Established 6 principles e.g. full cost recovery and outage reserve capacity – Issued a series of publications Global Situation § AIPES (Association of Imaging Producers & Equipment supplies) (Now called Nuclear Medicine Europe) – Support coordination of research reactor schedules Global Situation § Increased Mo-99 Production Capacity – Mo-99 suppliers – acquire additional capacity to cover shortfalls (Outage -
Depleted Uranium Technical Brief
Disclaimer - For assistance accessing this document or additional information,please contact [email protected]. Depleted Uranium Technical Brief United States Office of Air and Radiation EPA-402-R-06-011 Environmental Protection Agency Washington, DC 20460 December 2006 Depleted Uranium Technical Brief EPA 402-R-06-011 December 2006 Project Officer Brian Littleton U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Radiation and Indoor Air Radiation Protection Division ii iii FOREWARD The Depleted Uranium Technical Brief is designed to convey available information and knowledge about depleted uranium to EPA Remedial Project Managers, On-Scene Coordinators, contractors, and other Agency managers involved with the remediation of sites contaminated with this material. It addresses relative questions regarding the chemical and radiological health concerns involved with depleted uranium in the environment. This technical brief was developed to address the common misconception that depleted uranium represents only a radiological health hazard. It provides accepted data and references to additional sources for both the radiological and chemical characteristics, health risk as well as references for both the monitoring and measurement and applicable treatment techniques for depleted uranium. Please Note: This document has been changed from the original publication dated December 2006. This version corrects references in Appendix 1 that improperly identified the content of Appendix 3 and Appendix 4. The document also clarifies the content of Appendix 4. iv Acknowledgments This technical bulletin is based, in part, on an engineering bulletin that was prepared by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Radiation and Indoor Air (ORIA), with the assistance of Trinity Engineering Associates, Inc. -
Radiation Quick Reference Guide Recommend Contacting Your State Fusion Center
Domestic Nuclear Detection Office If you encounter something suspicious follow your specific local protocols. Radiation Quick Reference Guide Recommend contacting your state fusion center. DNDO is available 24/7 to assist at 1-877-DNDO-JAC / 1-877-363-6522 JAC Information Line 202-254-7179 Email: [email protected] Nuclear Concerns/ Threats 1. Nuclear Weapon - a device that releases nuclear energy in an ex- Isotopes of Concern for use in RDDs - with common uses plosive manner. Uses Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU) and/or 1. Cobalt-60 – cancer treatment, level/ Plutonium. density gauge, teletherapy, radiography, 2. Improvised Nuclear Device (IND) - a nuclear weapon fabricated food sterilization/irradiation, by a terrorist organization or rogue nation. brachytherapy 2. Iridium-192 – Radiography/non- destructive testing, flaw detection, brachy- therapy “cancer seed”, skin cancer Cobalt 60 sources Uranium “superficial” brachytherapy Plutonium 3. Uranium a. Uranium exists naturally in the earth’s crust. Of the different “isotopes” of uranium, U-235 is the one required to produce a Iridium sentinel and nuclear weapon. gamma camera b. Natural uranium contains a small amount of U-235 (<1%) which Cesium Seeds must be separated in complex extraction processes to create HEU. The predominant uranium isotope is U-238. 3. Cesium-137 - Gauge/level gauge, industrial radiography, brachyther- c. Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU) refers to uranium usable in weap- apy/teletherapy, well logging/density gauges ons due to its enrichment in U-235. 4. Strontium-90 – Radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG), fis- d. Approximately 25 kg of HEU is required for a nuclear weapon. sion product, industrial gauges, medical treatment e. -
The Potential Impact of Molten Salt Reactors on the UK Electricity Grid
The Potential Impact of Molten Salt Reactors on the UK Electricity Grid Charles Denbowa,b, Niccolo` Le Bruna, Niall Mac Dowella, Nilay Shaha, Christos N. Markidesa aDepartment of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London, SW7 2AZ bDepartment of Materials, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London, SW7 2AZ Abstract The UK electricity grid is expected to supply a growing electricity demand and also to cope with electricity generation variability as the country pursues a low-carbon future. Molten Salt Reactors (MSRs) could offer a solution to meet this demand thanks to their estimated low capital costs, low operational risk, and promise of reliably dispatchable low-carbon electricity. In the published literature, there is little emphasis placed on estimating or modelling the future impact of MSRs on electricity grids. Previous modelling efforts were limited to quantifying the value of renewable energy sources, energy storage and carbon capture technologies. To date, no study has assessed or modelled MSRs as a competing power generation source for meeting decarbonization targets. Given this gap, the main objective of this paper is to explore the cost benefits for policy makers, consumers and investors when MSRs are deployed between 2020 and 2050 for electricity generation in the UK. This paper presents results from electricity systems optimization (ESO) modelling of the costs associated with the deployment of 1350 MWe MSRs, from 2025 onwards to 2050, and compares this against a UK grid with no MSR deployment. Results illustrate a minimum economic benefit of £1.25 billion for every reactor installed over this time period. Additionally, an investment benefit occurs for a fleet of these reactors which have a combined net present value (NPV) of £22 billion in 2050 with a payback period of 23 years if electricity is sold competitively to consumers at a price of £60/MWh.