Transmutation of fission products and transuranium by 14-MeV neutrons

Conference · Tue Dec 31 23:00:00 EST 1991 · Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States)

OSTI ID:6985705

Harada, H; Takahashi, H; Aronson, A ^[1]; Takashita, H; Konashi, K; Kase, T; Sasao, N ^[2]

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1. Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States)
2. Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuels Development Corp., Ibaraki-ken (Japan)

Methods of incinerating radioactive wastes, fission products and transuranic (TRU), have been vigorously investigated in the last decade. The use of the neutron capture reaction and the fission reaction has received the greatest attention as ways to incinerate fission products and TRU, respectively. Recent measurements showed the thermal neutron capture cross sections of [sup 90]Sr and [sup 137]Cs were 15.3 mb and 0.25 b, respectively. If a fission reactor, similar to that proposed by Taube, were used to transmute these nuclei with the required incineration half life of 2 years, the thermal neutron flux in the device would have to be as high as 6.5 x 10[sup 17] and 4 x 10[sup 16] n/cm[sup 2] x (s) for [sup 90]Sr and [sup 137]Cs, respectively. Such a high flux is beyond the technology of current reactors. To overcome this difficulty, we have investigated the incinerator systems utilizing high energy neutrons, especially 14-MeV neutrons.

• OSTI ID: 6985705
• Report Number(s): CONF-921102--
• Journal Information: Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States), Journal Name: Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States) Vol. 66; ISSN 0003-018X; ISSN TANSAO
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

052001* -- Nuclear Fuels-- Waste Processing
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS
990200 -- Mathematics & Computers
COMPUTER CODES
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
FISSION PRODUCTS
INCINERATORS
ISOTOPES
M CODES
MATERIALS
NEUTRON TRANSPORT THEORY
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
SIMULATION
TRANSMUTATION
TRANSPORT THEORY
WASTES