Red-impact : A European research programme to assess the impact of partitioning and transmutation on final nuclear waste disposal

• It is the objective of the EU-funded 'Red-Impact' project to analyse the impact of partitioning, transmutation and waste reduction technologies on the final nuclear waste disposal. The partnership of 25 organisations is originating from European nuclear industry, waste agencies, research centres and universities. The system studies focus on a realistic evolution of P&T technologies and advanced fuel cycles which can be deployed incrementally on an industrial scale as well as on future developments such as reactors of the third and fourth generation (Gen III & Gen IV) and Accelerator Driven Systems (ADS). A comprehensive inventory of all existing and foreseen nuclear fuel cycle facilities in Europe has been performed including a review on worldwide ongoing R&D programs on P&T. Thus, it was possible to select a set of three so-called "industrial scenarios", taking into account industrial feasibility of alternate strategies leading to increased actiniae burning and reduced actinide generation based on direct disposal (reference case) or MOXfuel for LWR and plutonium recycle in Sodium Fast Reactors (SFR). R&D needs for the development of processes and technologies have also been addressed. In addition, three 'innovative scenarios ' have been identified allowing multi-recycling of plutonium and minor actinides in SFR and Accelerator-Driven Systems (ADS) as well as GANEX or COEXprocess and PYRO reprocessing technologies. Waste streams have been calculated for all of these scenarios including the transition from the present situation towards new fuel cycle options. These data provide the input to specific analyses on the impact on geological disposal in different host formations such as granite, clay and salt. The results show that advanced fuel cycles influence the required size of the geological repository in case of disposal in clay, salt or hard rock formations. Recycling of all the actinides results in a reduction of the necessary gallery length (depending on geology and design) at least by a factor 3. If additionally cesium and strontium are extracted from the high-level waste for separate decay, the reduction factor will become 10 or more. In the frame of the project, the feasibility and the impact of the Cs or Sr separated management were not assessed or evaluated. Transmutation of the actinides fast neutron spectrum reactors (FR or ADS) results in a limited reduction of the maximum dose because the dose is essentially due to long-lived fission and activation products. On the other hand, reprocessing the spent fuel decreases the maximum dose at the storage with a factor 5 because a considerable fraction of the iodine is separated from the high level waste during reprocessing. The radiotoxicity in the high level waste or spent fuel as well as human intrusion doses after 500 years are drastically reduced by the transmutation of the actinides. Evaluating actinide minimization systems and industrialised P&T in general requires an assessment of relevant nuclear fuel cycles especially with regard to the economic, environmental and societal advantages/disadvantages (i.e. the sustainability of the fuel cycles). Thus, a set of indicators has been derived for each of these areas. The results are analysed using the multi-criterion analysis approach which allows the importance of each of the indicators to be specified.

Ämnesord

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Fysik (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Physical Sciences (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Accident prevention

Actinides

Alkaline earth metals

Cesium

Clay minerals

Earth sciences

Electric power plants

Fast reactors

Fuel storage

Fuels

Fusion reactions

Iodine

Light water reactors

Neutron detectors

Neutrons

Nuclear energy

Nuclear engineering

Nuclear fuel reprocessing

Nuclear fuels

Nuclear industry

Nuclear physics

Nuclear power plants

Nuclear reactors

Plutonium

Power plants

Radioactive wastes

Reactor cores

Recycling

Societies and institutions

Spent fuels

Strontium

Technology

Transuranium elements

Waste disposal

Accelerator-driven systems

Actinide

Activation products

Analysis approach

Direct disposal

European

European research

Fast neutrons

Fourth generation

Fuel cycles

Future developments

Geological disposals

Hard rocks

High-level waste

Human intrusion

Industrial scale

International Congress on Advances in Nuclear Power Plants

Minor actinides

Nuclear renaissance

Nuclear waste disposal

Nuclear-fuel cycles

Present situation

Radiotoxicity

Reduction factors

Research centres

Waste reduction

Waste streams

Radioactive waste disposal

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