Disposition of Excess Fissile Materials in Deep Boreholes
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
- US Department of Energy (USDOE), Washington DC (United States)
As a result of recent changes throughout the world, a substantial inventory of excess separated plutonium is expected to result from dismantlement of US nuclear weapons. The safe and secure management and eventual disposition of this plutonium, and of a similar inventory in Russia, is a high priority. A variety of options (both interim and permanent) are under consideration to manage this material. The permanent solutions can be categorized into two broad groups: direct disposal and utilization. Plutonium utilization options have in common the generation of high-level radioactive waste which will be disposed of in a mined geologic disposal system to be developed for spent reactor fuel and defense high level waste. Other final disposition forms, such as plutonium metal, plutonium oxide and plutonium immobilized without high-level radiation sources may be better suited to placement in a custom facility. This paper discusses a leading candidate for such a facility; deep (several kilometer) borehole disposition. Conceptual design studies have been prepared to serve as the basis for assessing the feasibility of deep borehole Pu disposition, and to allow comparison to other options in a systematic way. Issues of concern include the regulatory, statutory and policy status of such a facility, the availability of sites with desirable characteristics and the technologies required for drilling deep holes, characterizing them, emplacing excess plutonium and sealing the holes. Input data has been developed for a programmatic environmental impact statement (PEIS). This PEIS, along with the conceptual designs and analyses will serve as the basis for a decision on which concept(s) to pursue for plutonium disposition.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Nuclear Criticality Safety Program (NCSP)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 178127
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-950917; ISBN 0-7918-1219-7
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Regulatory Issues for Deep Borehole Plutonium Disposition
Repository and deep borehole disposition of plutonium
Related Subjects
98 NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT, SAFEGUARDS, AND PHYSICAL PROTECTION
CRITICALITY
DESIGN
Defense High Level Waste
Direct Disposal
Dismantlement of US Nuclear Weapons
Excess Separated Plutonium
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
LICENSING
Mined Geologic Disposal
NUCLEAR MATERIALS MANAGEMENT
NUCLEAR WEAPONS DISMANTLEMENT
Nuclear Criticality Safety Program (NCSP)
PLUTONIUM
Plutonium Immobilized Without High-Level Radiation Sources
Plutonium Metal
Plutonium Oxide
RADIOACTIVE WASTE FACILITIES
Russia
SAFETY ENGINEERING
Spent Reactor Fuel
UNDERGROUND DISPOSAL
Utilization
WASTE FORMS