Copper Cable Recycling System - The INEEL LSDDP Demonstration Project
The United States Department of Energy (DOE) continually seeks safer and more cost-effective technologies for the deactivation and decommissioning (D&D) of nuclear facilities. The Deactivation and Decommissioning Focus Area (DDFA) and the DOE’s office of Science and Technology (OST) sponsors Large Scale Demonstration and Deployment Projects (LSDDPs). The increasing number of deactivation and decommissioning (D&D) activities at nuclear facilities can generate hundreds of tons of cables per facility consuming valuable resources such as disposal space and copper. Driven by increasing environmental concerns as well as economical pressures there is a developing need for the recycling of the uncontaminated copper. As part of the LSDDP program the NUKEM Copper Cable Recycling System (CCRS) was demonstrated November 1999 at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL). This process allows recovering and recycling the uncontaminated copper contained in surface contaminated cables. The NUKEM CCRS was originally developed in Germany for the use during the D&D of commercial power plants. Up to date the CCRS has successfully processed in Germany more than 200 metric tons of contaminated cables resulting in virtually 100% free release of copper under the German standards. A total of 13.5 tons non and surrogate contaminated cables in a wide variety of sizes were successfully processed during the technology demonstration at INEEL. The assessment has demonstrated the mobility and flexibility of this new process.
- Research Organization:
- Idaho National Laboratory (INL)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC07-99ID13727
- OSTI ID:
- 910894
- Report Number(s):
- INEEL/CON-00-01124
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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