Prospects of Using Reprocessed Uranium in CANDU Reactors, in the U.S. GNEP Program
- ORNL
Current Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) plans envision reprocessing spent fuel (SF) with view to minimizing high-level waste (HLW) repository use and recovering actinides (U, Np, Pu, Am, and Cm) for transmutation in reactors as fuel and targets. The reprocessed uranium (RU), however, is to be disposed of. This paper presents a limited-scope analysis of possible reuse of RU in CANDU (Canada Deuterium Uranium) Reactors, within the context of the US GNEP program. Other papers on this topic submitted to this conference discuss the possibility of RU reuse in light-water reactors (LWRs) (with enrichment) and offer an independent economic analysis of RU reuse. A representative RU uranium 'vector', from reprocessed spent LWR fuel, comprises 98.538 wt% 238U, 0.46 wt% {sup 236}U, 0.986 wt% {sup 235}U, and 0.006 wt% {sup 234}U. After multiple recyclings, the concentration of {sup 234}U can approach 0.02 wt%. The presence of {sup 234}U and {sup 236}U in RU reduces the reactivity and fuel lifetime (exit burnup), which is particularly an issue in LWRs. While in PWR analyses, the burnup penalty caused by the concentration of {sup 236}U in RU needs to be offset by additional {sup 235}U enrichment in the amount of {approx}25% to 30% of the weight percentage of the {sup 236}U; however, the effect in CANDU is much smaller. Furthermore, since the {sup 235}U content in RU exceeds that of natural uranium, CANDU offers the advantageous option of uranium recycling without reenrichment. The exit burnup of CANDU RU-derived fuel is considerably larger than that for natural uranium-fueled scenario, despite the presence of {sup 234}U and {sup 236}U.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- NE USDOE - Office of Nuclear Energy
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC05-00OR22725
- OSTI ID:
- 1026704
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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