Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-7cvxr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T09:48:41.294Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Development of nuclear criticality safety controls on intermediate-level waste packages

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 July 2018

T. W. Hicks ,
P. Wood ,
D. Putley  and
T. D. Baldwin
T. W. Hicks
Affiliation:
Galson Sciences Limited, 5 Grosvenor House, Melton Road, Oakham, Rutland LE15 6AX, UK
P. Wood
Affiliation:
NDA Radioactive Waste Management Directorate, Building 587, Curie Avenue, Harwell, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 ORH, UK
D. Putley
Affiliation:
Serco Technical Consulting Services, Thomson House, Warrington, Cheshire WA3 6GA, UK
T. D. Baldwin
Affiliation:
Galson Sciences Limited, 5 Grosvenor House, Melton Road, Oakham, Rutland LE15 6AX, UK
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Intermediate-level wastes (ILW) include substantial quantities of fissile material and controls are required to ensure that its storage, transport and disposal does not present a nuclear criticality hazard. This paper describes the Radioactive Waste Management Directorate's research to develop package fissile material limits (in the form of screening levels) for four different categories of ILW, defined according to uranium or plutonium composition: (1) irradiated natural and slightly enriched uranium (uranium containing up to 1.9 wt.% 235U); (2) low-enriched uranium (uranium containing up to 4 wt.% 235U); (3) high-enriched uranium (uranium containing up to 100 wt.% 235U); and (4) separated plutonium (plutonium containing up to 100 wt.% 239Pu).

The derivation of package screening levels was supported by neutron transport calculations that addressed conditions during waste package transport to a geological disposal facility (GDF), during the GDF operational phase and after GDF closure. The analysis included consideration of combinations of events and processes that could result in fissile material accumulation and concentration after GDF closure, when waste packages have deteriorated sufficiently for fissile material to be mobilized. The results of the calculations have provided input to Radioactive Waste Management Directorate's decision making on setting waste package screening levels.

Keywords

Ilw packagescriticality hazard
Type
Research Article
Information
Mineralogical Magazine , Volume 76 , Issue 8 , December 2012 , pp. 2949 - 2956
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
© [2012] The Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © The Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland 2012

References

Department for Environment Fisheries and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) and the Devolved Administration for Wales and Northern Ireland. (2008) Managing Radioactive Waste Safely: A Framework for Implementing Geological Disposal. DEFRA, London, 100 pp.Google Scholar
Environment Agency and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (2009) Geological Disposal Facilities on Land for Solid Radioactive Wastes: Guidance on Requirements for Authorisation. Environment Agency, Bristol, UK and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, Belfast, UK.Google Scholar
Hicks, T.W. (2007a) FEPs and Scenarios for Developing Criticality Screening Levels. Galson Sciences Limited Report to NDA RWMD, 0465–2. Version 1.Google Scholar
Hicks, T.W. (2007b) Generic Waste Stream Definitions for Developing Criticality Screening Levels. Galson Sciences Limited Report to NDA RWMD, Report 0465–1. Version 3.Google Scholar
Hicks, T.W. (2007c) Criticality Safety Assessment for Waste Packages Containing Irradiated Natural Uranium. Galson Sciences Limited Report to NDA RWMD, 0560–1. Version 1.1.Google Scholar
Hicks, T.W. (2007d) Criticality Safety Assessment for Waste Packages Containing Low-enriched Uranium. Galson Sciences Limited Report to NDA RWMD, 0465–4. Version 2.Google Scholar
Hicks, T.W. (2007e) Criticality Safety Assessment for Waste Packages Containing High-enriched Uranium. Galson Sciences Limited Report to NDA RWMD, 0560–3. Version 1.Google Scholar
Hicks, T.W. (2007f) Criticality Safety Assessment for Waste Packages Containing Separated Plutonium. Galson Sciences Limited Report to NDA RWMD, 0560–2. Version 1.1.Google Scholar
Hicks, T.W. (2009) The General Criticality Safety Assessment. Galson Sciences Limited Report to NDA RWMD, 0914–1. Version 1.1.Google Scholar
Hicks, T.W. Baldwin, T.D., Putley, D. and Wood, P. (2011) Development of Fissile Material Limits for ILW Disposal Packages. International Conference on Nuclear Criticality, Edinburgh, 19–22.September 2011.Google Scholar
Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (2010a) Geological Disposal, Criticality Safety Status Report. NDA Report NDA/RWMD/038.Google Scholar
Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (2010b) Geological Disposal, Near-field Evolution Status Report. NDA Report NDA/RWMD/033.Google Scholar