Every discarded appliance, tailings, slag, ash and other materials that contain radionuclides, discarded matter, objects exposed to radiation, even the ground and plants that were exposed to radionuclides can be considered radioactive waste.
Click on the barrel to
view its contents.
view its contents.
After being collected RW is treated and stored in special containers. Method of preparation and type of container depend on its aggregate state, composition and activity.
Design of the RW storage facility must allow for stacking, sorting, measuring and visual inspection of the waste containers.
The design of RW repositories depends on the waste type. Low and intermediate radioactive waste is stored in near surface or shallow repositories, while long-lived and high level radioactive waste is stored in deep geological repositories.
We can classify RW according to its properties into:
- VERY LOW LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE
- LOW LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE
- INTERMEDIATE LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE
- HIGH LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE
90% vol. / 1% act.
6% vol. / 4% act.
4% vol. / 95% act.
Volume of radioactive waste
Volume of radioactive waste is almost reciprocal to its activity, therefore low level radioactive waste has the greatest volume and lowest activity, while high level waste has the smallest volume and highest activity.
Volume of radioactive waste is almost reciprocal to its activity, therefore low level radioactive waste has the greatest volume and lowest activity, while high level waste has the smallest volume and highest activity.
Treatment and storage of RW
RW storage facility
RW repositories
Repositories are designed to safely isolate the stored RW until its activity is below the level hazardous to people and the environment.
Different engineering barriers are used for that purpose – steel containers and impermeable layers of bentonites.
Different engineering barriers are used for that purpose – steel containers and impermeable layers of bentonites.
VERY LOW LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE
Contains negligible specific activity and therefore isn't hazardous to the environment and health, and may be disposed in near surface repositories with a simple system of protective layers.
Contains negligible specific activity and therefore isn't hazardous to the environment and health, and may be disposed in near surface repositories with a simple system of protective layers.
LOW LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE
Contains radionuclides with short half-lives, low activity and negligible quantities of radionuclides with long half-lives, and is disposed in near surface repositories with a complex system of protective layers.
Contains radionuclides with short half-lives, low activity and negligible quantities of radionuclides with long half-lives, and is disposed in near surface repositories with a complex system of protective layers.
INTERMEDIATE LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE
SHORT-LIVED contains radionuclides with short half-lives and is disposed in near surface repositories, while
LONG-LIVED waste, which contains radionuclides with long half-lives, is disposed in geological repositories.
SHORT-LIVED contains radionuclides with short half-lives and is disposed in near surface repositories, while
LONG-LIVED waste, which contains radionuclides with long half-lives, is disposed in geological repositories.
HIGH LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE
Contains a large share of radionuclides in the form of fission products and transuranic (long-lived) elements generated in the reactor core, and is disposed in deep geological repositories. SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL that will not be processed is in this waste class.
Contains a large share of radionuclides in the form of fission products and transuranic (long-lived) elements generated in the reactor core, and is disposed in deep geological repositories. SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL that will not be processed is in this waste class.
RW is treated in order to stabilize the material and reduce the volume, and may include chipping, incineration, compaction, drying and solidification using a cement mixture.
Supercompaction compacts three barrels into one.
Up until its disposal into specially designed repositories, low and intermediate level radioactive waste is kept in specially designed storage facilities.
Detailed records of the materials stored in the storage facility are kept, so it is clear what type of waste, activity and composition is in each container.
State of the containers is regularly checked in order to prevent contamination of the storage facility.
Detailed records of the materials stored in the storage facility are kept, so it is clear what type of waste, activity and composition is in each container.
State of the containers is regularly checked in order to prevent contamination of the storage facility.
Radioactive material is brought to the storage facility in adequate packaging that meets the conditions prescribed for transport.
Prescribed conditions for transport of radioactive materials include:
Prescribed conditions for transport of radioactive materials include:
- technical inspection of the vehicle and the state of the load before and after transport
- appropriate labeling of the load
- escort (safeguard) of the vehicle
- GPS tracking monitoring system
- certified drivers who have completed training for transport of radioactive material
- personal dosimeters
- inspection of the vehicle for radioactivity after transport.
Lifetime of the storage facility and materials used for its construction must correspond to the scheduled storage time period.
Storage conditions maintain the integrity of waste containers for the scheduled waste storage time period.
Besides the container integrity inspection, an inspection of the level of radioactivity in the storage facility and its surroundings is continuously performed. Quality control and a special air recirculation system ensure prescribed work conditions and make airborne contamination impossible. RW is safely stored in the storage facility and the level of radioactivity in its surroundings must not increase.
Monitoring of the facility and materials is continuously performed in the storage facility and its surroundings, and the storage facility, as a high security facility, is under 24 hour protection.
Monitoring of the facility and materials is continuously performed in the storage facility and its surroundings, and the storage facility, as a high security facility, is under 24 hour protection.
A Wasteater unfortunately does not exist.
That is why we must ensure that waste is properly disposed.
After it is removed from the reactor, spent nuclear fuel (SNF) is cooled in boron water pools, at the depth of around 14 m, which also serve as a radiation shield.
The pools are situated inside the nuclear power plant, in the reactor's immediate vicinity.
SNF must be kept in the pool for at least one year, and the level of radioactivity in the pools drops considerably within 2-4 years of storage, as does the temperature.
After it is removed from the cooling pool, SNF is transferred to a dry storage facility where it is stored until its storage in deep geological repositories.
In dry storage facilities, SNF is stored inside special containers (for example, CASTOR® type) with ribbed walls for easier cooling.
In near surface repositories (5) steel 200-liter drums of low and intermediate level radioactive waste (1) are stacked in concrete containers (2). These are stacked in reinforced concrete vaults (3), which are filled and protected from rainfall by a sliding roof (4). The repository is then covered with protective layer systems which prevent rainfall from getting into the body of the repository, and they also serve as a biological barrier (against the intrusion of flora, fauna and people).
Shallow repositories may be buried 50-100m under ground, or they may be tunnel-type (5) under a terrain overlay of matching height. Steel drums (1) of low and intermediate level radioactive waste are stacked in concrete containers (2), which are then transported to underground rooms (3) of the repository. The layout of the underground rooms may be a series of tunnel-like chambers (4).
Deep geological repositories are facilities designed to enable safe storage of high level radioactive waste (HLRW) or spent nuclear fuel (SNF) for a period of 100,000 years, until the level of activity falls to the level of activity of uranium ore.
Surface facility (1), underground rooms (2), bore hallways (3), RW or SNF container (4), bentonites (5).
