Nuclear waste criticality analysis. Final report, 1 July 1995--30 June 1996
The natural reactors that occurred in Gabon, Africa over 2 billion years ago present an interesting analog to the underground repositories proposed around the world for the long-term storage of high-level spent nuclear fuel. Many articles have been written concerning the low migration rates of actinides and fission products from the Oklo reactor sites, but Oklo also presents researchers with an opportunity to discover the conditions that led to nuclear criticality in uranium oxides with low enrichments. A computer model was developed to predict the conditions that were necessary to lead to criticality in the Oklo reactors. Critical core dimensions and infinite multiplication factors are presented as a function of time, the porosity of the host rock, and the water and uranium content of the sandstone deposits at Oklo.
- Research Organization:
- Nevada Univ., Las Vegas, NV (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States); USDOE Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- FC08-90NV10872
- OSTI ID:
- 376414
- Report Number(s):
- DOE/NV/10872-T274; ON: DE96015285; TRN: 96:028408
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: 3 Jul 1996
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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