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Title: Characteristics and Dose Levels for Spent Reactor Fuels

Conference ·
OSTI ID:932072

Current guidance considers highly radioactive special nuclear materials to be those materials that, unshielded, emit a radiation dose [rate] measured at 1 m which exceeds 100 rem/h. Smaller, less massive fuel assemblies from research reactors can present a challenge from the point of view of self protection because of their size (lower dose, easier to handle) and the desirability of higher enrichments; however, a follow-on study to cross-compare dose trends of research reactors and power reactors was deemed useful to confirm/verify these trends. This paper summarizes the characteristics and dose levels of spent reactor fuels for both research reactors and power reactors and extends previous studies aimed at quantifying expected dose rates from research reactor fuels worldwide.

Research Organization:
Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
DOE Contract Number:
DE-AC05-00OR22725
OSTI ID:
932072
Resource Relation:
Conference: 48th Annual INMM Meeting, Tucson, AZ, USA, 20070708, 20070712
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English