Target/blanket design for LANL's accelerator transmutation of waste

Conference · Tue Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1991 · Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States)

OSTI ID:5782450

Cappiello, M; Ireland, J; Rider, W ^[1]

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1. Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)

The Los Alamos accelerator transmutation concept is directed at the problems associated with high-level wastes stored at several US Department of Energy sites. A more advanced long-term effort is investigating the potential of an accelerator-driven system to produce fission energy with a minimal nuclear waste stream. Both concepts employ a high-energy (1,600-MeV), high-current (25- to 60-mA) proton accelerator as the driver. The protons are directed onto a spallation target to produce neutrons, which are then moderated in the surrounding blanket. Because of the intense flux of neutrons generated, low-cross-section fission products such as {sup 99}Tc are easily transmuted, and higher actinide waste such as {sup 237}Np can be transmuted with a simple two-step capture/fission process. Also, very dilute mixtures are used, reducing the potential for criticality and power excursions. A layout for the target/blanket design is depicted. The most serious design challenges are associated with the flowing Pb-Bi target. Research is required to verify the thermal-hydraulic design and determine compatible container materials that can withstand the neutron environment.

• OSTI ID: 5782450
• Report Number(s): CONF-910603--
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States) Journal Volume: 63
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

052000* -- Nuclear Fuels-- Waste Management
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS
430100 -- Particle Accelerators-- Design
Development
& Operation
ACCELERATORS
ACTINIDE ISOTOPES
ACTINIDE NUCLEI
ACTINIDES
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BEAMS
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
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CROSS SECTIONS
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ELEMENTS
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HEAT TRANSFER
HEAVY NUCLEI
HEAVY WATER
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
HOURS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
HYDRAULICS
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
INTERNAL CONVERSION RADIOISOTOPES
ISOMERIC TRANSITION ISOTOPES
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MECHANICS
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NEPTUNIUM 237
NEPTUNIUM ISOTOPES
NUCLEAR REACTIONS
NUCLEI
NUCLEON BEAMS
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PARTICLE BEAMS
PHYSICAL RADIATION EFFECTS
PROCESSING
PROTON BEAMS
RADIATION EFFECTS
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT
RADIOACTIVE WASTE PROCESSING
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
RADIOISOTOPES
SERVICE LIFE
SPALLATION
SPONTANEOUS FISSION RADIOISOTOPES
TARGETS
TECHNETIUM 99
TECHNETIUM ISOTOPES
TRANSMUTATION
US DOE
US ORGANIZATIONS
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE PROCESSING
WASTES
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YEARS LIVING RADIOI
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