The universal canister strategy
- Cogema Etablissement de La Hague, 50444 Beaumont La Hague Cedex (France)
- Cogema, 1 rue des Herons, 78181 St Quentin en Yvelines (France)
The RCR strategy allows to reduce the radiotoxicity as well as the quantity of ultimate waste. By separating and recycling Uranium and Plutonium (U, Pu) from other elements contained in used fuel, Reprocessing-Conditioning- Recycling (RCR) strategy drastically reduce the very long term radiotoxicity confined in packages to be sent to final disposal. Having reach a high degree of industrial performance, the process implemented by COGEMA at its La Hague plant allows a (U,PU) recovery rate of about 99.8 O/O.7000 years from now, spent fuel radiotoxicity did not significantly decrease (a factor of approximately 20) while reprocessing leads to radiotoxicity level in glass canisters inferior by a factor of 300. In 1991, COGEMA launched a strategy of drastic minimization of the waste volume. The waste conditioning at the La Hague plant was completely redesigned. The base of the policy developed lies expressly on the standardization of the conditioning of High Level and Intermediate Level waste (HLW, ILW). That means that HLW as well as ILW, regardless of its form, its activity and its final destination, will be fitted in the same type of packaging. This packaging standardization is called Universal Canister Strategy (UCS). Its implementation will be effective by the year 2000 when the volume of HLW-ILW reaches approximately 0.5 m{sup 3}/t HM. This paper gives an outlook of the Universal Canister Strategy: the development, the implementation and the advantages.
- Research Organization:
- American Nuclear Society - ANS, 555 North Kensington Avenue, La Grange Park, IL 60526 (United States)
- OSTI ID:
- 23142061
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: Global'99: International Conference on Future Nuclear Systems - Nuclear Technology - Bridging the Millennia, Las Vegas, NV (United States), 29 Aug - 3 Sep 1999; Other Information: Country of input: France; available from American Nuclear Society - ANS, 555 North Kensington Avenue, La Grange Park, IL 60526 (US)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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