• Title/Summary/Keyword: Radioactive metal waste

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Activation Analysis of Dual-purpose Metal Cask After the End of Design Lifetime for Decommission (설계수명 이후 해체를 위한 금속 겸용용기의 방사화 특성 평가)

  • Kim, Tae-Man;Ku, Ji-Young;Dho, Ho-Seog;Cho, Chun-Hyung;Ko, Jae-Hun
    • Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
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    • v.14 no.4
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    • pp.343-356
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    • 2016
  • The Korea Radioactive Waste Agency (KORAD) has developed a dual-purpose metal cask for the dry storage of spent nuclear fuel that has been generated by domestic light-water reactors. The metal cask was designed in compliance with international and domestic technology standards, and safety was the most important consideration in developing the design. It was designed to maintain its integrity for 50 years in terms of major safety factors. The metal cask ensures the minimization of waste generated by maintenance activities during the storage period as well as the safe management of the waste. An activation evaluation of the main body, which includes internal and external components of metal casks whose design lifetime has expired, provides quantitative data on their radioactive inventory. The radioactive inventory of the main body and the components of the metal cask were calculated by applying the MCNP5 ORIGEN-2 evaluation system and by considering each component's chemical composition, neutron flux distribution, and reaction rate, as well as the duration of neutron irradiation during the storage period. The evaluation results revealed that 10 years after the end of the cask's design life, $^{60}Co$ had greater radioactivity than other nuclides among the metal materials. In the case of the neutron shield, nuclides that emit high-energy gamma rays such as $^{28}Al$ and $^{24}Na$ had greater radioactivity immediately after the design lifetime. However, their radioactivity level became negligible after six months due to their short half-life. The surface exposure dose rates of the canister and the main body of the metal cask from which the spent nuclear fuel had been removed with expiration of the design lifetime were determined to be at very low levels, and the radiation exposure doses to which radiation workers were subjected during the decommissioning process appeared to be at insignificant levels. The evaluations of this study strongly suggest that the nuclide inventory of a spent nuclear fuel metal cask can be utilized as basic data when decommissioning of a metal cask is planned, for example, for the development of a decommissioning plan, the determination of a decommissioning method, the estimation of radiation exposure to workers engaged in decommissioning operations, the management/reuse of radioactive wastes, etc.

A study on the effect of material impurity concentration on radioactive waste levels for plans for decommissioning of nuclear power plant

  • Gilyong Cha;Minhye Lee;Soonyoung Kim;Minchul Kim;Hyunmin Kim
    • Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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    • v.55 no.7
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    • pp.2489-2497
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    • 2023
  • Co and Eu impurities in the SSCs are nuclides that dominantly influence the neutron-induced radioactive inventory in metal and concrete radwastes (radioactive wastes) during NPP decommission. The impurity concentrations provided by NUREG/CR-3474 were used for the practical range of Co and Eu impurity concentrations to be applied to the code calculations. Metal structures near the core were evaluated to be ILW (intermediate-level waste) for the whole range of Co impurity concentration, so the boundary line between ILW and LLW (low-level waste) has no change for the whole concentration range provided by NUREG/CR-3474. Also, the boundary line between VLLW (very low-level waste) and CW (clearance waste) in the concrete shield could alter a little depending on the Eu impurity concentration within the range provided by NUREG/CR-3474. From this work, it is found that the concentration of material impurities of SSCs gives no critical impact on determining radwaste levels.

Leaching Characteristic Analysis of Cement Solidified Radioactive Waste Attached by Yellow Sand Rain (황사빗물의 영향에 의한 방사성 폐기물 시멘트 고화체의 침출특성 분석)

  • 김혜진;이수홍;황주호;이재민
    • Proceedings of the Korean Radioactive Waste Society Conference
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    • 2003.11a
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    • pp.244-250
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    • 2003
  • With a recent public concern rising on the radioactive waste, it is disclosed that the problem is more serious than expected. This research has been conducted to find effects of yellow sandy rainwaters on the solidified cement of mid-and-low level radioactive waste. The ANS 16.1 standard test method was chosen for this leaching experiment. Make a cement solidified radioactive waste that contains Co nuclide, and fabricate it for over 28 days. Then, decide on the volume of leaching water and the concentration of ion and metal in leachate from the mass concentration of yellow sands in atmosphere. In this paper, we have taken a short look at characteristics of yellow sand. Before going into the leaching experiment, we decided experimental conditions first. Then, it was evaluated and analyzed how sandy rainfalls have impact on the cement solidified radioactive waste based on data from 90 days of leaching experiment.

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The Operation Experience of the Concentrated Waste Drying System with Variation in the Mole Ratio of Boron to Sodium (방사성 폐액중의 붕소와 나트륨의 몰비 변화에 따른 농축폐액건조설비 운전 경험사례)

  • 김영식;김세태;안교수;박진석;박종길
    • Proceedings of the Korean Radioactive Waste Society Conference
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    • 2003.11a
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    • pp.220-225
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    • 2003
  • Generally, liquid radioactive wastes generated in nuclear power plant exist in powder form which do not contain moisture through the evaporating process of the Liquid Waste Management System and drying process of the Concentrated Waste Drying System. This powder form wastes are blended homogeneously with paraffin solidification agent and packed in metal drum to ensure its stability during handling and disposal. However, it was experienced that the powder form wastes were not blended homogeneously and separated into two layers in metal drum, on the other hand, a Portion of powder was adhered and solidified to the Inside parts of facility during the blending process. And the flaw of blending process above would come in case the mole ratio of Boron to Sodium in liquid radioactive wastes exceeds 0.2.

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Melting and draining tests on glass waste form for the immobilization of Cs, Sr, and rare-earth nuclides using a cold-crucible induction melting system

  • Choi, Jung-Hoon;Lee, Byeonggwan;Lee, Ki-Rak;Kang, Hyun Woo;Eom, Hyeon Jin;Park, Hwan-Seo
    • Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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    • v.54 no.4
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    • pp.1206-1212
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    • 2022
  • Cold-crucible induction melting (CCIM) technology has been intensively studied as an advanced vitrification process for the immobilization of highly radioactive waste. This technology uses high-frequency induction to melt a glass matrix and waste, while the outer surface of the crucible is water-cooled, resulting in the formation of a frozen glass layer (skull). In this study, for the fabrication of borosilicate glass waste form, CCIM operation test with 60 kg of glass per batch was conducted using surrogate wastes composed of Cs, Sr, and Nd as a representative of highly radioactive nuclides generated during spent nuclear fuel management. A 60 kg-scale glass waste form was successfully fabricated through melting and draining processes using a CCIM system, and its physicochemical properties were analyzed. In particular, to enhance the controllability and reliability of the draining process, an air-cooling drain control method that can control draining through air-cooling near drain holes was developed, and its validity for draining control was verified. The method can offer controllability on various draining processes, such as molten salt or molten metal draining processes, and can be applied to a process requiring high throughput draining.