William D. Peterson has filed a patent for an alternative methodology for dealing with long-term spent nuclear fuel.
I first became aware of this specific technology in an opinion piece by Richard Stallings in the Las Vegas Sun concerning the situation at the Yucca Mountain Depository.
This approach sounds reasonable and promising. The Yucca Mountain disposal project appears to have lost momentum due to the political climate and it is hard to see may reasonable alternatives.
Here is the abstract for the patent:
A method including a combination of intermediate storage and reprocessing is utilized to process spent nuclear fuel (SNF) and thereby effect a disposition of that SNF within a period of 300 years. The method includes five or more years of pool water storage wherein ninety-nine percent (%) of the fission wastes energy decays. The waste material is then stored in an air convention storage facility, before processing to separate Cesium and Strontium from the waste is effected. This air convection cooling may be done in convection air-cooled concrete casks.
During 50 years of convection air-cooled storage the energy contained in the waste material declines another one half %. Thereafter, at any point the SNF is processed to sufficiently separate 99.999% of the 97% of actinides (approximately 95% U238 uranium, 1% U235 uranium, and 1% Pu239 plutonium) from the 3% fission wastes. Again, it is only necessary to provide approximately 99.999% separation of the TRU's (transuranic waste) from the fps (fission products)--more specifically, sufficient separation so that the residual fps are contaminated with less than 100 nCi/g TRU's, as defined in the Class C regulations--10CFR61.
The separated actinides and transuranics are thereafter utilized in the manufacture of MOX (mixed oxide) or fast burner reactor fuel pellets for future reactor fuel. The remaining fission wastes, containing Cesium and Strontium, are then placed into containers and subsequently put into dry storage for the remainder of around 300 years, where most of the remaining half % of its radiation energy material, i.e., Cesium and Strontium decays. Thereafter this fission waste is put into a low level Class-C nuclear waste repository, which may include leaving them in the intermediate storage facility that is also designed to accommodate and dispose Class C waste.
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2 comments:
For one thing, you seem to have forgotten that US law requires capture of the radioactive noble gasses which are liberated when the spent fuel rods are broken open for reprocessing. What's your plan for capturing that nasty contamination? And, where's the private money for reprocessing or are we facing yet another beggar at the tax payers' door? Please provide proof of private backing for this scheme.
I have forgotten nothing. I am posting information on a fuel recover/waste reduction process. It is not my process. It should be studied and considered since the industry and government have essentially painted themselves into a corner.
Noble gases will decay much sooner than most fission products. They will need to be captured or the law can be modified. Power plants currently hold these gases for decay anyway. What does France do with their noble gases?
Someone will pay for energy, either private industry or governments. There is not much free energy in the power industry. My guess is that it will be more efficient if private industry does this. The government's role will be regulation and enforcement.
The burial of spent fuel at Yucca Mt. seems to be an expensive and wasteful plan. The fuel is not all spent. But something must be done if our power industry continues to collect fuel bundles and store them in pools of water and dry storage. That seems very risky.
You ask me to provide proof for the private backing of this scheme. Why should I? It is not my scheme. It is an idea. What is your idea?
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