Experiences on a Regulatory Clearance of the Radioactive Wastes at KAERI

Conference · Tue Jul 01 04:00:00 EDT 2008

OSTI ID:21323104

Hong, D S; Ji, Y Y; Shon, J S; Hong, S B ^[1]

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1. Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Yuseong, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

At the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) in Daejeon, about 4,500 drums of old radioactive soil and concrete wastes have been stored since their generation and transport to Daejeon in 1988. The wastes have been stored for more than 18 years. So, according to the analysis result for their radioactivity, some of them can be regularly cleared. In addition to that, about 2,200 tonnes of decommissioning wastes were generated during the dismantling of Korean research reactors no.1 and no.2 (KRR-1 and KRR-2) from 1997 to 2005. Among those, only 13% were classified as radioactive wastes and part of remains were cleared. In this paper, the experiences on a regulatory clearance of radioactive wastes at KAERI were discussed. First, for the old wastes, a working procedure for representative sampling of each drum and an analysis was developed. Also, as these old wastes are already in a storage facility, some equipment and tools for easy sampling and restricting a contamination of a storage facility were developed and applied. Following the working procedure, the old wastes with a surface dose rate less than 0.3 {mu}Sv/hr were selected for an analysis. Based on the analysis results of a sample, the waste with a radioactivity concentration less than 0.4 Bq/g was classified as an object for regulatory clearance. According to the radiological dose assessment result and the dose criteria regulated by Atomic Energy Act of Korea (individual dose<10 {mu}Sv/yr, collective dose<1 man.Sv/yr), about 2,800 drums of wastes were determined for a clearance and they are under process for a license. After a clearance, it is scheduled for the wastes to be disposed of at a public dumping ground. Second, for the recently generated decommissioning wastes, the analysis for their radioactive characteristics was simpler than that for the old wastes. The distribution of a radioactivity levels, a gross alpha/beta contamination and a surface dose rate was measured to assess the radiological dose for the biological shielding concrete. According to the radiological dose assessment result, about 800 tonnes of the concrete will be disposed of conventionally by a recycling or landfill disposal after approval of the clearance plan by the regulatory authority. (authors)

• Research Organization: WM Symposia, 1628 E. Southern Avenue, Suite 9 - 332, Tempe, AZ 85282 (United States)
• OSTI ID: 21323104
• Report Number(s): INIS-US--10-WM-08323
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
ATOMIC ENERGY ACT
CONCRETES
CONTAMINATION
DECOMMISSIONING
DOSE RATES
KAERI
LICENSES
RADIATION DOSES
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
RADIOACTIVITY
REPUBLIC OF KOREA
RESEARCH REACTORS
SOILS
STORAGE FACILITIES