An introduction to nuclear waste immobilisation

Drawing on the authors' extensive experience in the processing and disposal of waste, An Introduction to Nuclear Waste Immobilisation , Second Edition examines the gamut of nuclear waste issues from the natural level of radionuclides in the environment to geological disposal of waste-forms and their long-term behavior. It covers all-important aspects of processing and immobilization, including nuclear decay, regulations, new technologies and methods. Significant focus is given to the analysis of the various matrices used, especially cement and glass, with further discussion of other matrices such as bitumen. The final chapter concentrates on the performance assessment of immobilizing materials and safety of disposal, providing a full range of the resources needed to understand and correctly immobilize nuclear waste.

Author Notes

Dr Michael I. Ojovan is an Associate Professor (Reader) in Materials Science and Waste Immobilisation at the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The University of Sheffield, UK.

Preface to the Second Edition	p. xiii
1 Introduction to Immobilisation	p. 1
1.1 Introduction	p. 1
1.2 The Importance of Waste	p. 1
1.3 Radioactive Waste	p. 2
1.4 Recycling	p. 4
1.5 Waste Minimisation	p. 4
1.6 Processing and Immobilisation	p. 5
1.7 Time Frames	p. 5
Bibliography	p. 6
2 Nuclear Decay	p. 7
2.1 Nuclear Matter	p. 7
2.2 Radioactive Decay	p. 7
2.3 Decay Law	p. 8
2.4 Radioactive Equilibrium	p. 9
2.5 Activity	p. 11
2.6 Alpha Decay	p. 12
2.7 Beta Decay	p. 12
2.8 Gamma Decay	p. 14
2.9 Spontaneous Fission	p. 14
2.10 Radionuclide Characteristics	p. 15
Bibliography	p. 19
3 Contaminants and Hazards	p. 21
3.1 Elemental Abundance	p. 21
3.2 Migration and Redistribution	p. 23
3.3 Potential Hazard of Nuclear Waste	p. 25
3.4 Relative Hazards	p. 27
3.5 Importance of Wasteform: Real Hazard Concept	p. 28
3.6 Wasteform Durability and Hazard Diminishing	p. 29
Bibliography	p. 30
4 Naturally Occurring Radionuclides	p. 31
4.1 NORM and TENORM	p. 31
4.2 Primordial Radionuclides	p. 31
4.3 Use of Primordial Radionuclides for Dating	p. 33
4.4 Natural Nuclear Reactors	p. 33
4.5 Cosmogenic Radionuclides	p. 34
4.6 Natural Radionuclides in Igneous Rocks	p. 35
4.7 Natural Radionuclides in Sedimentary Rocks and Soils	p. 36
4.8 Natural Radionuclides in Sea Water	p. 37
4.9 Radon Emissions	p. 37
4.10 Natural Radionuclides in the Human Body	p. 39
Bibliography	p. 39
5 Background Radiation	p. 41
5.1 Radiation is Natural	p. 41
5.2 Dose Units	p. 41
5.3 Biological Consequences of Irradiation	p. 43
5.4 Background Radiation	p. 45
Bibliography	p. 47
6 Nuclear Waste Regulations	p. 49
6.1 Regulatory Organisations	p. 49
6.2 Protection Philosophies	p. 49
6.3 Regulation of Radioactive Materials and Sources	p. 51
6.4 Exemption Criteria and Levels	p. 51
6.5 Clearance of Materials from Regulatory Control - Moderate Amounts	p. 53
6.6 Clearance of Materials from Regulatory Control - Bulk Amounts	p. 53
6.7 Double Standards	p. 55
6.8 Dose Limits	p. 56
6.9 Control of Radiation Hazards	p. 56
6.10 Nuclear Waste Classification	p. 58
6.11 IAEA Classification Scheme	p. 59
6.12 Examples of Waste Classification	p. 61
References	p. 64
Bibliography	p. 64
7 Principles of Nuclear Waste Management	p. 65
7.1 International Consensus	p. 65
7.2 Objective of Radioactive Waste Management	p. 65
7.3 Fundamental Principles	p. 66
7.4 Comments on the Fundamental Principles	p. 67
7.5 Fundamental Safety Principles	p. 72
7.6 Ethical Principles	p. 72
7.7 Joint Convention	p. 73
7.8 International Cooperation	p. 74
References	p. 74
Bibliography	p. 74
8 Nuclear Waste Types and Sources	p. 75
8.1 Sources of Nuclear Waste	p. 75
8.2 Front-End and Operational NFC Waste	p. 78
8.3 Back-End Open NFC Waste	p. 81
8.4 Back-End Closed NFC Waste	p. 83
8.5 Back-End NFC Decommissioning Waste	p. 85
8.6 Non-NFC Wastes	p. 87
8.7 Accidental Wastes	p. 90
8.8 Global Inventory	p. 95
References	p. 96
Bibliography	p. 96
9 Short-Lived Waste Radionuclides	p. 99
9.1 Introduction	p. 99
9.2 Tritium	p. 99
9.3 Cobalt-60	p. 101
9.4 Strontium-90	p. 102
9.5 Cesium-137	p. 104
Bibliography	p. 106
10 Long-Lived Waste Radionuclides	p. 107
10.1 Introduction	p. 107
10.2 Carbon-14	p. 107
10.3 Technetium-99	p. 109
10.4 Iodine-129	p. 111
10.5 Plutonium	p. 112
10.6 Neptunium-237	p. 114
10.7 Nuclear Criticality	p. 114
References	p. 115
Bibliography	p. 115
11 Waste Processing Schemes	p. 117
11.1 Management Roadmap	p. 117
11.2 Waste Life Cycle	p. 117
11.3 Pre-disposal	p. 119
11.4 Disposal	p. 121
11.5 Categorisation for Processing	p. 123
11.6 Selection of Processing Technologies	p. 125
11.7 Wasteforms	p. 129
11.8 Waste Packages	p. 133
11.9 Processing of NORM waste	p. 133
References	p. 134
Bibliography	p. 134
12 Characterisation of Radioactive Waste	p. 137
12.1 Approaches to Waste Characterisation	p. 137
12.2 Characterisation of Radiation Fields	p. 138
12.3 Sampling and Characterisation of Surface Contamination	p. 140
12.4 Waste Characterisation Techniques	p. 143
12.5 Characterisation of Waste Packages and Wasteforms	p. 152
12.6 Characterisation of Environment and Personnel	p. 156
Bibliography	p. 158
13 Pre-treatment of Radioactive Wastes	p. 159
13.1 Pre-treatment Objectives	p. 159
13.2 Collection and Segregation	p. 159
13.3 Adjustment	p. 161
13.4 Size Reduction	p. 161
13.5 Packaging	p. 163
13.6 Decontamination	p. 164
Bibliography	p. 170
14 Treatment of Radioactive Wastes	p. 171
14.1 Treatment Objectives	p. 171
14.2 Treatment of Aqueous Wastes	p. 171
14.3 Treatment of Organic Liquid Wastes	p. 184
14.4 Treatment of Solid Wastes	p. 185
14.5 Treatment of Gaseous and Airborne Effluents	p. 198
14.6 Partitioning and Transmutation	p. 202
Reference	p. 202
Bibliography	p. 202
15 Immobilisation of Radioactive Waste in Cement	p. 205
15.1 Cementitious Wasteforms	p. 205
15.2 Hydraulic Cements	p. 206
15.3 Cement Hydration	p. 208
15.4 Phase Composition of Hydrated Cements	p. 214
15.5 Cementation of Radioactive Wastes	p. 215
15.6 Modified and Composite Cement Systems	p. 216
15.7 Alternative Cementitious Systems	p. 219
15.8 Cementation Technology	p. 225
15.9 Acceptance Criteria	p. 230
References	p. 231
Bibliography	p. 232
16 Immobilisation of Radioactive Waste in Bitumen	p. 233
16.1 Bituminisation	p. 233
16.2 Composition and Properties of Bitumen	p. 233
16.3 Bituminous Materials for Waste Immobilisation	p. 234
16.4 Waste Loading	p. 235
16.5 Bituminisation Technique	p. 236
16.6 Acceptance Criteria	p. 239
16.7 Bitumen Versus Cement	p. 241
Bibliography	p. 244
17 Immobilisation of Radioactive Waste in Glass	p. 245
17.1 Glasses and the Vitreous State	p. 245
17.2 Glasses for Nuclear Waste Immobilisation	p. 247
17.3 Immobilisation Mechanisms	p. 250
17.4 Borosilicate Glasses	p. 251
17.5 Cations in Silicate Glasses	p. 253
17.6 Degree of Polymerisation	p. 254
17.7 Role of Boron Oxide	p. 256
17.8 Role of Intermediates and Modifiers	p. 257
17.9 Difficult Elements	p. 258
17.10 Selection Rules for a Nuclear Wasteform Silicate Glass	p. 258
17.11 Phosphate Glasses	p. 260
17.12 Glass Composite Materials	p. 262
17.13 Vitrification Technology	p. 263
17.14 Development of Vitrification Technologies	p. 267
17.15 Calcination Processes	p. 272
17.16 Cold Crucible Melters	p. 275
17.17 In Situ Vitrification	p. 278
17.18 Radionuclide Volatility	p. 280
17.19 Acceptance Criteria	p. 281
References	p. 282
Bibliography	p. 282
18 New Immobilising Hosts and Technologies	p. 283
18.1 New Approaches	p. 283
18.2 Crystalline Wasteforms	p. 285
18.3 Radiation Damage	p. 288
18.4 Actinide-Hosting Ceramics	p. 290
18.5 Polyphase Crystalline Wasteforms: Synroc	p. 292
18.6 Polyphase Wasteforms: Glass-Crystalline Composites	p. 294
18.7 New Technological Approaches	p. 295
18.8 Metal Matrix Immobilisation	p. 301
References	p. 305
Bibliography	p. 305
19 Transport and Storage of Radioactive Waste	p. 307
19.1 Transportation	p. 307
19.2 Storage	p. 312
19.3 SNF Storage	p. 317
19.4 Storage Inventory	p. 318
Bibliography	p. 318
20 Nuclear Waste Disposal	p. 321
20.1 Disposal/Storage Concepts	p. 321
20.2 Retention Times	p. 321
20.3 Multi-Barrier Concept	p. 322
20.4 Disposal/Storage Options	p. 323
20.5 Role of the EBS	p. 327
20.6 Importance of NGB	p. 330
20.7 Transport of Radionuclides	p. 330
20.8 Disposal Experience	p. 333
20.9 Acceptance Criteria	p. 334
Bibliography	p. 335
21 Safety and Performance Assessments	p. 337
21.1 Safety Case	p. 337
21.2 Safety Requirements	p. 338
21.3 Safety Assessment Report	p. 339
21.4 Safety Assessment Process	p. 341
21.5 Cementitious Materials Performance	p. 343
21.6 Bitumen Performance	p. 347
21.7 Glass Performance	p. 349
21.8 Glass Corrosion Mechanisms	p. 349
21.9 Glass Performance in Confined Conditions (Geological Repository)	p. 354
21.10 Radiation Effects	p. 356
21.11 Research Laboratories	p. 359
21.12 Conclusion	p. 359
References	p. 361
Bibliography	p. 361

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