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United States INL liquid waste processing The Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU) at the US Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is now fully operational, according to the Department of Energy’s Environmental Management (EM) Office. It is now treating sodium-bearing waste entirely, which is the next step in removing remaining liquid radioactive waste from nearby Cold War-era underground tanks and closing them to protect the environment. To date, IWTU has converted more than 14,700
US gallons (55,700 litres) of tank waste to a more stable, granular solid, EM said. Crews have filled 47 stainless-steel canisters with waste and safely stored them in the IWTU’s concrete storage vaults. When IWTU began radiological operations last month, the facility began by treating a blend that was 10% sodium-bearing waste and 90% non-radioactive simulated waste, or simulant. EM then increased the treatment blend to 50% waste and 50% simulant before progressing to 100% sodium-bearing waste based on plant operating conditions. In June, IWTU crews will initiate a system
performance test to demonstrate compliance with performance standards. The IWTU is a first-of-a-kind facility. IWTU uses a steam reforming technology to convert the liquid to a solid. This is packaged and stored in concrete vaults at the site. To date, according to DOE, the facility has
converted more than 8,550 US gallons (32,400 litres) of liquid tank waste.
Kazakstan Research reactor in LEU switch The IVG.1M research reactor at Kazakhstan’s National Nuclear Centre (NNC) in Kurchatov, has resumed formal operation using low-enriched uranium (LEU) fuel, following completion its conversion and subsequent licensing. Following the start-up, a round table,
“Power Startup of IVG.1M Reactor with LEU fuel: Achievements and Prospects”, was held attended by the Ministry of Energy; Canadian Ambassador Alan Hamson; the Director for the Office of Conversion at the US National Nuclear Security Administration, Christopher Landers; representatives of the US Embassy to Kazakhstan; and representatives of Kazakh and US scientific organisations. They noted that the conversion had not only resulted in an upgraded reactor using LEU fuel, but had also considerably improved the technical condition of reactor and auxiliary systems, as well as the infrastructure of Baikal-1 complex in Kurchatov. NNC said the IVG.1M reactor is now ready to
continue experiments and renewed research. Recent research at the reactor has included studies on ITER structural material interaction with hydrogen and its isotopes under reactor irradiation condition. Like many other research reactors, IVG.1M
originally used highly enriched uranium (HEU), which is now considered a proliferation risk. An agreement on the conversion of research
reactors to LEU fuel was signed by Kazakhstan in the early 2000s and a conversion project was launched in 2010 to reduce fuel enrichment to below 20% in accordance with IAEA requirements, while maintaining and improving its performance. NNC specialists, together with American and Russian partners, undertook computational and analytical justification for planned conversion. By the end of 2013, this work had been completed. In September 2020, Kazakhstan and the
USA signed a joint statement in which they committed to converting the IVG.1M research reactor from HEU to LEU fuel in 2021. The first technological channel with LEU fuel was loaded into the reactor in March 2022. NNC announced in May 2022 that workers at Kurchatov had successfully performed the physical start-up of IVG.1M using the new LEU fuel. Power start-up began in November 2022 US-Kazakh collaboration has also resulted in
conversion of the VVR-K reactor at the Institute of Nuclear Physics in Almaty, including the downblending of 49.3kg of unirradiated HEU and the removal of 158.3kg of irradiated HEU. Currently, NNC and the US Argonne National Laboratory are studying the possibility of converting the IGR at Kurchatov to use LEU fuel. Work on down-blending fresh HEU fuel for the IGR reactor at the Ulba Metallurgical Plant has already been completed.
United Kingdom Novel fuel sludge removal A new technique to remove sludge from nuclear fuel ponds has been successfully trialled at the Deep Recovery Facility (DRF) operated by UK engineering firm Forth. The facility has been used by the Decommissioning Alliance (TDA), which is tasked with installing equipment to allow operators to safely retrieve debris from the bottom of fuel ponds at sites operated by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA). For example, the Legacy Ponds and Silos (LP&S) at Sellafield represent some of the most complex and difficult decommissioning challenges in the world, and they remain the highest risk in the NDA estate. They date back to the very start of the nuclear industry and were constructed during the Cold War, when secrecy was paramount and safety was not a priority. As a result, decommissioning the LP&S at Sellafield is a complex task which remains a top priority for the NDA. Over some 65 years, sludge, formed from decaying nuclear fuel, natural growing algae and other debris, has accumulated in these ponds and must be removed before the facility can be safely decommissioned. Using the new technique, TDA representatives
will attach a Bulk Sludge Retrieval Tool (BSRT), which operates like an industrial vacuum, to a 40-metre “umbilical”, making it possible to retrieve the sludge. The procedure also involves the use of remotely operated vehicles to lock a hinged double boom arm in position. To test the new way of working, trials were undertaken at Forth’s DRF in Cumbria.
round up
COMPANY NEWS US POWER COMPANY Constellation is acquiring NRG Energy’s 44% ownership stake in the 2,645 MWe two-unit South Texas Project Electric Generating. The transaction is valued at $1.75bn, with an effective purchase price of $1.4bn after taking into account tax benefits to Constellation. The transaction will be financed with cash and debt.
NUCLEAR FUEL KAZAKHSTAN’S NUCLEAR FUEL company, Kazatomprom, has delivered to China a second batch of low enriched uranium fuel totalling more than 30 tonnes manufactured by the Ulba-FA Kazakh-Chinese joint venture. Ulba-FA began operation in November 2021, after it was certified by the owner of the AFA 3G fuel assembly production technology, French Framatome, and recognised as a certified supplier by end user China General Nuclear Power’s CGNPC-URC.
USED FUEL THE US DEPARTMENT of Energy (DOE) has announced funding of $26m for groups of university, nonprofit, and private-sector partners that will work with communities interested in storing and disposing of used nuclear fuel. Under its consent-based siting policy, DOE said that it will continue working with communities to ensure transparency and local support.
RADWASTE NORWAY’S NORSK KJERNEKRAFT has signed a memorandum of understanding with the US-based Deep Borehole Demonstration Center to collaborate on demonstration of deep borehole disposal technology in Norway.
THE NETHERLANDS AUTHORITY for Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection (ANVS) has granted the final permit to the Central Organisation for Radioactive Waste (COVRA) for the Multifunctional Storage Building at Borssele in Nieuwdorp, Zeeland. The new building will be able to accommodate waste stored in stackable containers, making transport and storage more efficient.
AN INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC Energy Agency Integrated Review Service for Radioactive Waste & Spent Fuel Management, Decommissioning & Remediation (ARTEMIS) team says Portugal is committed to ensuring the safe and effective management of radioactive waste. The mission also noted a need to further develop the national radioactive waste management programme and advised allocating adequate resources for its long-term implementation.
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