• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제54권11호
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• pp.4146-4158
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• 2022

Ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) has been widely utilized in military and civil protective structures to resist intensive loadings attributed to its excellent properties, e.g., high tensile/compressive strength, high dynamic toughness and impact resistance. At present, aiming to improve the defects of the traditional vertical concrete cask (VCC), i.e., the external storage facility of spent fuel, with normal strength concrete (NSC) shield, e.g., heavy weight and difficult to fabricate/transform, the feasibility of UHPC applied in the shield of VCC is numerically examined considering its high radiation and corrosion resistance. Firstly, the finite element (FE) analyses approach and material model parameters of NSC and UHPC are verified based on the 1/3 scaled VCC tip-over test and drop hammer test on UHPC members, respectively. Then, the refined FE model of prototypical VCC is established and utilized to examine its dynamic behaviors and damage distribution in accidental tip-over and end-drop events, in which the various influential factors, e.g., UHPC shield thickness, concrete ground thickness, and sealing methods of steel container are considered. In conclusion, by quantitatively evaluating the safety of VCC in terms of the shield damage and vibrations, it is found that adopting the 300 mm-thick UHPC shield instead of the conventional 650 mm-thick NSC shield can reduce about 1/3 of the total weight of VCC, i.e., about 50 t, and 37% floor space, as well as guarantee the structural integrity of VCC during the accidental drop simultaneously. Besides, based on the parametric analyses, the thickness of concrete ground in the VCC storage site is recommended as less than 500 mm, and the welded connection is recommended for the sealing method of steel containers.

• 한국압력기기공학회 논문집
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• 제16권1호
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• pp.110-116
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• 2020

As the management plan for domestic spent nuclear fuel is delayed, the storage of the operating nuclear power plant is approaching saturation, and the Kori 1 Unit that has reached its end of operation life is preparing for the dismantling plan. The first stage of dismantling is the transfer of spent nuclear fuel stored in storage at plants. The spent fuel management process leads to temporary storage, interim storage, reprocessing and permanent disposal. In this paper, the technical issues to be considered when transporting spent fuel in this process are summarized. The spent fuels are treated as high-level radioactive waste and strictly managed according to international regulations. A series of integrity tests are performed to demonstrate that spent fuel can be safely stored for decades in a dry environment before being transferred to an intermediate storage facility. The safety of spent fuel transport container must be demonstrated under normal transport conditions and virtual accident conditions. IAEA international standards are commonly applied to the design of transport containers, licensing regulations and transport regulations worldwide. In addition, each country operates a physical protection system to reduce and respond to the threat of radioactive terrorism.

• 방사성폐기물학회지
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• 제15권1호
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• pp.35-44
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• 2017

감마분광분석 시스템 상에서는 $^{226}Ra$(186.2 keV)과 $^{235}U$(185.7 keV)가 방출하는 감마선 에너지의 피크 중첩이 발생한다. $^{226}Ra$의 직접분석을 위해서는 중첩된 피크로부터 $^{235}U$의 기여를 제거해주거나 보정상수를 이용하여 실제 $^{226}Ra$의 방사능 값으로 보정 해주어야 한다. $^{235}U$가 방출하는 다른 감마선 피크를 참조하여 $^{235}U$의 기여를 제거할 경우 복잡한 수계산이 필요하며, 참조피크에서 기인하는 큰 불확도로 인해 높은 정량한계를 갖는다. 반면에 보정상수를 이용하여 $^{226}Ra$을 평가할 경우 간단한 계산으로 평가가 가능하며, 간접측정시 요구되는 $^{222}Rn$의 용기건전성과 방사평형 복구기간이 필요하지 않아 $^{226}Ra$의 신속 측정시 유용한 방법이다. 따라서 해당 방법을 통해 원료물질 3종과 공정부산물 3종, 총 93여개 시료에 대해서 보정상수로 산출된 $^{226}Ra$의 방사능 농도와 방사평형 된 $^{214}Bi$의 방사능 농도의 비교를 통해 유효성을 확인하였다. 대부분 ${\pm}20%$ 내에서 유효하였지만 인산석고의 경우 약 50%의 오차를 보였다. 이는 보정상수를 유도하기 위한 가정 중 $^{238}U$과 $^{226}Ra$의 방사평형 관계가 달라진 것으로 판단된다. 특이성을 반영한 보정상수를 적용하여 $^{226}Ra$의 방사능 농도에 대한 유효성을 평가한 결과 약 ${\pm}10%$로 좀 더 정밀한 결과를 얻을 수 있었다. 본 연구에서 산출된 보정상수를 통한 $^{226}Ra$의 방사능 농도 평가 방법은 복잡한 수계산이 필요하지 않고 용기선택으로부터 자유로우며 방사평형 복구를 위한 기간이 필요하지 않아 원료물질 및 공정부산물의 $^{226}Ra$의 신속한 농도 분포 평가시 유효한 방법이다.