• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.40 no.7
• /
• pp.581-592
• /
• 2008

In this study, a conceptual pyroprocess flowsheet has been devised by combining several dry-type unit processes; its applicability as an alternative fuel cycle technology was analyzed. A key point in the evaluation of its applicability to the fuel cycle was the recovery yield of fissile materials from spent fuels as well as the proliferation resistance of the process. The recovery yields of uranium and transuranic elements (TRU) were obtained from a material balance for every unit process composing the whole pyroprocess. The material balances for several elemental groups of interest such as uranium, TRU, rare earth, gaseous fission products, and heat generating elements were calculated on the basis of the knowledge base that is available from domestic and foreign experimental results or technical information presented in open literature. The calculated result of the material balance revealed that uranium and TRU could be recovered at 98.0% and 97.0%, respectively, from a typical PWR spent fuel. Furthermore, the anticipated TRU product was found to emit a non-negligible level of $\gamma$-ray and a significantly higher level of neutrons compared to that of a typical plutonium product obtained from the PUREX process. The results indicate that the product from this conceptual pyroprocessing should be handled in a shielded cell and that this will contribute favorably to retaining proliferation resistance.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
• /
• v.21 no.3
• /
• pp.383-395
• /
• 2023

Since 1997, the Republic of Korea (ROK) has been developing pyro-processing (Pyro) technology to reduce the disposal burden of high-level radioactive waste by recycling spent nuclear fuel (SNF). Compared to plutonium and uranium extraction process, Korean Pyro technology has relatively excellent proliferation resistance that cannot separate pure plutonium owing to its intrinsic characteristics. Regarding Pyro technology development of ROK, the Bush administration considered that Pyro is not reprocessing under the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership, whereas the Obama administration considered that Pyro is subject to reprocessing. However, the Bush and Obama administrations did not allow ROK to conduct full Pyro activities using SNF, even though ROK had faithfully complied with international nonproliferation obligations. This is because the US nuclear nonproliferation policy to prevent the spread of sensitive technologies, such as enrichment and reprocessing, has a strong effect on ROK, unlike Japan, on a bilateral level beyond the NPT regime for non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.

• Proceedings of the Korean Radioactive Waste Society Conference
• /
• 2017.05a
• /
• pp.41-42
• /
• 2017

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
• /
• v.8 no.4
• /
• pp.261-267
• /
• 2010

The pyrometallurgical nuclear fuel recycle process, called pyroprocessing, has been known as a promising nuclear fuel recycling technology. Pyroprocessing technology is crucial to advanced nuclear systems due to increased nuclear proliferation resistance and economic efficiency. The basic concept of pyroprocessing is group actinide recovery, which enhances the nuclear proliferation resistance significantly. One of the key steps in pyroprocessing is "electrowinning" which recovers group actinides with lanthanide from the spent nuclear fuels. In this study, a vertical cadmium distiller was manufactured. The evaporation rate of pure cadmium in vertical cadmium distiller varied from 12.3 to $40.8g/cm^2/h$ within a temperature range of 773 923 K and pressure below 0.01 torr. Uranium - cadmium alloy was fabricated by electrolysis using liquid cadmium cathode in a high purity argon atmosphere glove box. The distillation behavior of pure cadmium and cadmium in uranium - cadmium alloy was investigated. The distillation behavior of cadmium from this study could be used to develop an actinide recovery process from a liquid cadmium cathode in a cadmium distiller.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
• /
• v.32 no.1
• /
• pp.17-26
• /
• 2013

Objective: The aim of this study is ergonomic analysis of tele-operation tasks using modified remote handling devices dedicated to the cell of PRIDE(PyRoprocess Integrated inactive DEmonstration facility) in KAERI(Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute). Background: Tele-operation manipulators of the PRIDE are applied to perform the remote handling and management of pyroprocessing facilities. Generally, these kinds of systems are composed of master-slave system and its peripherals installed along a wall or ceiling of the cell, and the manipulators transmit the user's own motion to grippers directly. However, a user convenience and intuitiveness while operating the manipulators have not been fully considered in research fields. Method: This study tries to analyze the ergonomic performance of remote handling manipulators in the developed cell facility. It was included that the analysis of operator's capability for his/her own motion range of upper arm while manipulating the MSM, considerations of its manipulation margin and related tool modifications to improve the remote handling performance. Conclusion: The test results of several remote handling tasks performed in PRIDE are represented, and adequate operation strategies for the tele-operation system of hot-cell type facilities are proposed. Application: The knowledge represented in this study can be utilized to improve a tele-operation system operated in a large-scale hot-cell system.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.54 no.12
• /
• pp.4431-4440
• /
• 2022

An advanced nuclear reactor based on molten salts including a molten salt reactor and pyroprocessing needs a sensitive monitoring system suitable for operation in harsh environments with limited access. Multi-element detection is challenging with the conventional technologies that are compatible with the in-situ operation; hence laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) has been investigated as a potential alternative. However, limited precision is a chronic problem with LIBS. We increased the precision of LIBS under high temperature by protecting optics using a gas protective layer and correcting for shotto-shot variance and lens-to-sample distance using a laser-induced acoustic signal. This study investigates cerium as a surrogate for uranium and corrosion products for simulating corrosive environments in LiCl-KCl. While the un-corrected limit of detection (LOD) range is 425-513 ppm, the acoustic-corrected LOD range is 360-397 ppm. The typical cerium concentrations in pyroprocessing are about two orders of magnitude higher than the LOD found in this study. A LIBS monitoring system that adopts these methods could have a significant impact on the ability to monitor and provide early detection of the transient behavior of salt composition in advanced molten salt-based nuclear reactors.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
• /
• v.7 no.4
• /
• pp.237-242
• /
• 2009

In the pyroprocessing of spent nuclear fuels, fuel materials are recovered by electrochemical reactions on the surface of electrodes as well as stirring the electrolyte in electrolytic cells such as electrorefiner, electroreducer and electrowinner. The system with this equipment should first be scaled-up in order to commercialize the pyroprocessing. So in this study, the scale-up for those electrolytic cells was studied to design a large-scale system which can be employed in a commercial process in the future. Basically the dimensions of both electrolytic cells and electrodes should be enlarged on the basis of the geometrical similarity. Then the criterion of constant power input per unit volume, characterizing the fluid behavior in the cells, was introduced in this study and a calculation process based on trial-and-error methode was derived, which makes it possible to seek a proper speed of agitation in the electrolytic cells. Consequently examples of scale-up for an arbitrary small scale system were shown when the criterion of constant power input per unit volume and another criterion of constant impeller tip speed were respectively applied.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.52 no.9
• /
• pp.2025-2033
• /
• 2020

Signature-based safeguards (SBS) is being developed to assist tradition nuclear material accountancy methods in tracking material in pyroprocessing facilities. SBS involves identifying off-normal scenarios that would result in improper movement of material in a pyroprocessing facilities and determining associated sensor response signatures. SBS investigations are undertaken in the computational space utilizing an electrochemical transport code known as enhanced REFIN with anodic dissolution (ERAD) to calculate the affect of off-normal conditions in the electrorefiner (ER) on material movement. Work is undertaken to experimentally validate the predictions and assumptions made by ERAD for off-normal occurrences. These experiments were undertaken on a benchtop scale and involved operating an electrochemical cell at 10 separate current densities for constant current operations to deposit U and Gd at a W cathode. These experiments were then modeled using ERAD to compare calculated predictions versus analytical experimental results it was found. It was discovered both the experimental and calculated results reflect a trend of increased codeposition of U and Gd with increasing current density. ERAD was thus demonstrated to be useful for predicting trends from anomalous operation but will require further optimization to be utilized as a quantitative design tool.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.113-118
• /
• 2020

An options study was performed for the treatment of residual elemental sodium in driver plenums following the chopping operation during the pyroprocessing of used nuclear fuel. Given the pending availability of a multi-function furnace for distillation and consolidation operations in the Fuel Conditioning Facility, the furnace was considered for the processing of driver plenums. Although two options (oxidation and distillation) could be performed in the multi-function furnace, neither option has been developed sufficiently to date to warrant the use of the furnace for treatment operations. Thus, it was decided to defer the treatment of elemental sodium from driver plenums in the multi-function furnace until more developed technologies and/or furnaces become available. In the interim, storage of the plenums and characterization efforts are recommended.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.49 no.8
• /
• pp.1727-1732
• /
• 2017

Pyroprocessing is an alternative method of reprocessing spent fuel, usually involving the dissolving spent fuel in a molten salt media. The National Nuclear Laboratory designed, built, and commissioned a molten salt dynamics rig to investigate the transfer characteristics of molten lithium chloride-potassium chloride eutectic salt. The efficacy and flow characteristics of a high-temperature centrifugal pump and argon gas lift were obtained for pumping the molten salt at temperatures up to $500^{\circ}C$. The rig design proved suitable on an industrial scale and transfer methods appropriate for use in future molten salt systems. Corrosion within the rig was managed, and melting techniques were optimized to reduce stresses on the rig. The results obtained improve the understanding of molten salt transport dynamics, materials, and engineering design issues and support the industrialization of molten salts pyroprocessing.