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Nuclear Engineering Program

A Look at NuclearScience and Technology

Larry Foulke

Module 1.5

Grand Tour of the Nuclear Fuel Cycle Back EndConcluded

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LWR Uranium Fuel Cycle

Reprocessing

Separate Nuclear Fuel from Structural

Components

Mechanical separation

Separate Fission Products from Heavy Metals

Chemical dissolution separation

Separate Uranium & Plutonium

Chemical separation

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Reprocessing

Basic Steps of Reprocessing Separate Fission Products from Heavy Metal

Separate Uranium & Plutonium

Image Source: See Note 1

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Spent Fuel ReprocessingReprocessing Complex

LaHague, France

Shielded

Canyon

ReprocessingE ui ment

Image Source:

See Note 3

Image Source:

See Note 2

Image Source:See Note 3

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Spent Fuel Reprocessing

Reprocessing Complex

LaHague, France

Image Source: See Note 4

Image Source:

See Note 2

Image Source: See Note 4

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Plutonium does not occur in nature, but is instead produced

from irradiation of 238U in a reactor.

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Transuranic Elements

Actinide Elements

Transuranic Elements

Elements with atomic numbers greater than 92

Actinide Elements

Major actinides = Uranium and Plutonium

Minor actinides = Americium and Curium (and

sometimes Neptunium)

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Actinides (>Atomic No 89)

All actinides are radioactive

Series named after Actinium

At No Name Symbol At No Name Symbol

89 Actinium Ac 96 Curium Cm

90 Thorium Th 97 Berkelium Bk

91 Protactinium Pa 98 Californium Cf

92 Uranium U 99 Einsteinium Es93 Neptunium Np 100 Fermium Fm

94 Plutonium Pu 101 Mendelevium Md

95 Americium Am 102 Nobelium No

103 Lawrencium Lr

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Spent Fuel Management Approaches

Long-Term

Transmuter

Trace Pu

Trace Actinides

Fission Products

Repository

(Gen IV Fast Reactor

or ADS

Spent Fuel From

Commercial Plants

Advanced

Separations

Direct

DisposalConventional

Reprocessing

PUREX

Spent

Fuel

Recycle

Spent

Fuel

Recycle

Pu U

MOX

Pu +

Actinide

U

MOX

Reactor LWR/ALWR Reactor

(Exist Fleet)

Pu

Actinides

Fission Products

Repository Repository

Less Pu

Actinides

Fission Products

Intermediate-Term

Advanced,

Proliferation-Resistant

Recycling

Transmutation

Image Source: See Note 5

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Spent PWR Fuel Decay Heat

Image Source: See Note 6

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Spent PWR Fuel Decay Heat

w/o Pu, Am & Np

Image Source: See Note 6

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Waste Categories Low-level waste [LLW]

Low enough radionuclide content that shielding notrequired

Low actinide content

High-level waste [HLW]

Liquid waste from extraction step of reprocessing(or solids)

Spent irradiated fuel assemblies

Intermediate-level waste [ILW]

Waste not defined as LLW or HLW

Transuranic waste for WIPP

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High-Level Waste Disposal

ALTERNATIVE APPROACHS

Predominant

Geologic disposal using conventional mining techniques

Alternates

Subseabed geologic disposal (not allowed by internationaltreaty)

Very deep borehole concept

Rock melting concept

Island disposal

Ice-sheet disposal

Space disposal

Partitioning and transmutation

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Yucca Mountain is about 100 miles

northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada.

Image Source: See Note 7 Image Source: See Note 8

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Yucca Mountain: NWPA

1982Congress established the

Nuclear Waste Policy Act

(NWPA) for the

disposition of high-levelradioactive waste and

commercial spent nuclear

fuel

1987NWPA as amended

eliminated all sites but

Yucca Mountain to be

characterized for a

potential repository

Image Source: See Note 9

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Yucca Mountain No More ?

DOE submitted a petition to the NRC on March 3, 2010

to withdraw its license application for Yucca. DOE filed

its petition with prejudice, which would prevent it from

being refiled.

NRCs Atomic Safety and Licensing Board denied

DOEs motion to withdraw the license application in

June 2010.

Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced the formation

of a Blue Ribbon Commission on Americas NuclearFuture that will provide recommendations on managingused fuel and nuclear waste.

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The ISFSI Initiative

To provide space in

spent fuel pools for fuel

being removed during

outages, older spent

fuel is taken out of thepool and placed in an

Independent Spent Fuel

Storage Installation, or

ISFSI.

The storage casks mustmeet rigorous testing

and design

requirements.

Image Source: See Note 10

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Disposal of TRU Waste

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant(WIPP)

Site in southeastern NewMexico selected in 1975

Disposal began in 1999 Site closure could be in 2025-

2030

Geology and hydrology provide

primary isolation Bedded salt host rock

Semiarid region, little potablewater, no significant aquifers

Image Source: See Note 12

Image Source: See Note 11

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LWR

FuelCycle

Closed

Image Source: See Note 1

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LWR

Fuel

Cycle

Closed

Transportation

Among Steps

Image Source: See Note 1

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Transportation

Waste Drum Containers

Spent-Fuel-Assembly Cask

New Fuel Shipping

Image Source:

See Note 13

Image Source: See Note 14

Image Source:

See Note 3

Image Source: See Note 15

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Cask Crash Test

Minimal Damage

No LeakageImage Source: See Note 16

Drop

Puncture

Fire Immersion

Cask Thermal Test

Image Source: See Note 17

Image Source: See Note 18

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Pressurized Water Reactor

(Light Water Thermal Reactors)

Image Source: See Note 19

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1. Reprinted with permission from the American NuclearSociety. Nuclear Engineering Theory and Technologyof Commercial Nuclear Powerby Ronald Allen Knief, 2ndEdition. Copyright 2008 by the American Nuclear Society,La Grange Park, Illinois. Figure 19-1.

2. Creative CommonsAttribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:UsineHague.jpg

3. Reprinted with permission from Ron Knief.

4. Reprinted with permission from Larry Foulke.

5. Goldner, F. (2003). Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative (AFCI)

- DOE Nuclear Energy International Programs - ADSRelated Activities. International Meeting on AcceleratorDriven Transmutation System Technologies, Las Vegas,Nevada.http://hrcweb.nevada.edu/rsatg/atw/pdffiles/MicrosoftPowerPoint - Goldner.pdf

Image Source Notes

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:UsineHague.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:UsineHague.jpghttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/deed.enhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:UsineHague.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:UsineHague.jpghttp://hrcweb.nevada.edu/rsatg/atw/pdffiles/Microsoft%20PowerPoint%20-%20Goldner.pdfhttp://hrcweb.nevada.edu/rsatg/atw/pdffiles/Microsoft%20PowerPoint%20-%20Goldner.pdfhttp://hrcweb.nevada.edu/rsatg/atw/pdffiles/Microsoft%20PowerPoint%20-%20Goldner.pdfhttp://hrcweb.nevada.edu/rsatg/atw/pdffiles/Microsoft%20PowerPoint%20-%20Goldner.pdfhttp://hrcweb.nevada.edu/rsatg/atw/pdffiles/Microsoft%20PowerPoint%20-%20Goldner.pdfhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:UsineHague.jpghttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/deed.en

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6. Wigeland, R. A. & Bauer, T. H. (2004). Repository Benefitsof AFCI Options. Nuclear Engineering Division, ArgonneNational Laboratory. ANL-AFCI-129.http://www.ipd.anl.gov/anlpubs/2005/07/53652.pdf

7. Reprinted with permission from Nuclear Energy Institute.http://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_nevada_map.jpg

8. Reprinted with permission from Nuclear Energy Institute.http://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_mountain_aerial_view.jpg

9. Public domain:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:United_States_Capitol_west_front_edit2.jpg

10. U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission:http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/dry-cask-storage.html

Image Source Notes

http://www.ipd.anl.gov/anlpubs/2005/07/53652.pdfhttp://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_nevada_map.jpghttp://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_nevada_map.jpghttp://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_nevada_map.jpghttp://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_nevada_map.jpghttp://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_mountain_aerial_view.jpghttp://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_mountain_aerial_view.jpghttp://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_mountain_aerial_view.jpghttp://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_mountain_aerial_view.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:United_States_Capitol_west_front_edit2.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:United_States_Capitol_west_front_edit2.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:United_States_Capitol_west_front_edit2.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:United_States_Capitol_west_front_edit2.jpghttp://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/dry-cask-storage.htmlhttp://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/dry-cask-storage.htmlhttp://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/dry-cask-storage.htmlhttp://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/dry-cask-storage.htmlhttp://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/dry-cask-storage.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:United_States_Capitol_west_front_edit2.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:United_States_Capitol_west_front_edit2.jpghttp://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_mountain_aerial_view.jpghttp://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_mountain_aerial_view.jpghttp://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_nevada_map.jpghttp://www.nei.org/corporatesite/media/filefolder/yucca_nevada_map.jpghttp://www.ipd.anl.gov/anlpubs/2005/07/53652.pdf

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11. Department of Energy.http://www.wipp.energy.gov/Photo_Gallery_Images/Photos/Entrance.jpg

12. Public domain:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:WIPP-04.jpeg

13. Reprinted with permission from NRC staff.

14. Transuranic Waste Transportation Containers FactSheet. Department of Energy.http://www.wipp.energy.gov/fctshts/truwastecontainers.pdf

Image Source Notes

http://www.wipp.energy.gov/Photo_Gallery_Images/Photos/Entrance.jpghttp://www.wipp.energy.gov/Photo_Gallery_Images/Photos/Entrance.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:WIPP-04.jpeghttp://www.wipp.energy.gov/fctshts/truwastecontainers.pdfhttp://www.wipp.energy.gov/fctshts/truwastecontainers.pdfhttp://www.wipp.energy.gov/fctshts/truwastecontainers.pdfhttp://www.wipp.energy.gov/fctshts/truwastecontainers.pdfhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:WIPP-04.jpeghttp://www.wipp.energy.gov/Photo_Gallery_Images/Photos/Entrance.jpghttp://www.wipp.energy.gov/Photo_Gallery_Images/Photos/Entrance.jpg

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15. Creative CommonsAttribution 3.0 Unported. BillEbbesen.http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en

16. Information Digest, 20122013 (NUREG-1350, Volume24). U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1350/

17. Creative CommonsAttribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs2.0 Generic. NuclearRegulatory Commission.http://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800273124/

18. Creative CommonsAttribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs2.0 Generic. NuclearRegulatory Commission.http://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800272402/andhttp://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800272614

19. Public domain:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PressurizedWaterReactor.gif

Image Source Notes

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.enhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.enhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.enhttp://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1350/http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1350/http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1350/http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1350/http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/deed.enhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/deed.enhttp://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800273124/http://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800273124/http://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800273124/http://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800273124/http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/deed.enhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/deed.enhttp://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800272402/http://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800272402/http://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800272402/http://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800272614http://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800272402/http://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800272614http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PressurizedWaterReactor.gifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PressurizedWaterReactor.gifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PressurizedWaterReactor.gifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PressurizedWaterReactor.gifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PressurizedWaterReactor.gifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PressurizedWaterReactor.gifhttp://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800272614http://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800272402/http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/deed.enhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/deed.enhttp://www.flickr.com/photos/nrcgov/6800273124/http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/deed.enhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/deed.enhttp://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1350/http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1350/http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.enhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en