Nuclear spent fuel management

The production of nuclear electricity results in the generation of spent fuel that requires safe, secure and efficient management National strategies for the management of spent fuel vary, ranging from reprocessing to direct disposal. This indicates that spent fuel is regarded differently by countries - as a resource by some and as a waste by others. Appropriate management of the resulting spent fuel is a key issue for the steady and sustainable growth of nuclear energy .For the example, at the end of 2005, 443 nuclear power reactors were operating in 30 countries worldwide, providing 16% of the global electricity supply. Over 10 000 t of heavy metal (t HM) are unloaded from these reactors each year, which will increase to ~11 500 t HM by 2010. This is the largest continuous source of civilian radioactive material being generated, and needs to be managed appropriately. At the moment most spent fuel is in storage at nuclear power plants, at a few centralized storage sites and at reprocessing facilities. Originally all spent fuel was expected to be reprocessed within a few years and the remaining fuel material recycled into new fuel. The waste from reprocessing was intended to be disposed of in geological repositories. The next steps towards the disposition of spent fuel are either reuse, through reprocessing, or disposal in geological repositories. Some countries are continuing the recycling route, while others have decided to regard the spent fuel as a waste intended for direct disposal .Because progress on implementing these strategies is slow in most countries; the amounts of spent fuel in storage are increasing. The prospect of a revival of the nuclear power industry in the next decades indicates that even more spent fuel could go into storage. On the other hand, spent fuel has been successfully and safely stored in wet and dry conditions for several decades without serious problems, but without decisions on more permanent solutions there could be the prospect of continued storage for times of up to and beyond one hundred years. The management of spent fuel is, for strategic, economic, safety and security reasons.

Reprocessing of spent fuel used

The used fuel dry storage process