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The French approach for management of depleted uranium a constantly improved technology

Abstract

COGEMA provides uranium enrichment services to the nuclear industry worldwide. To meet general French safety requirements related to environmental protection issues, COGEMA has developed, as an extension of the enrichment operation, a facility to convert DUF{sub 6} into a stable, fluorine-free compound. After 5 years demonstration of the process on a pilot plant, COGEMA placed a facility in industrial operation in 1984 to convert DUF{sub 6} into stable oxide U{sub 3}O{sub 8}; a second facility was commissioned in 1993, doubling the capacity. Since the beginning of its industrial de-fluorination operations, COGEMA has ever been concerned to make its technology as reliable and as cost effective as possible. Accordingly, an improvement work has been constantly under way which already benefited to the construction of the second facility, completed in 1993. This paper will give an overview of the improvement work performed over the years, relating not only to the technology (optimizing the de-fluorination output, reducing the corrosion inside the kilns, improving the uranium oxide powder compaction factor,...), but also to the process itself (hydrodynamic modeling of the process reactions inside the kiln) and maintenance issues (systematic monitoring of filters plugging, recycling of cartridge filters,...). (authors)
Authors:
Hartmann, D; Le Motais, B; Duperret, B [1] 
  1. Cogema, 78 - Velizy Villacoublay (France)
Publication Date:
Jul 01, 2001
Product Type:
Conference
Report Number:
INIS-FR-1950
Resource Relation:
Conference: Research approach for management of depleted uranium a constantly improved technology, Tucson, AZ (United States), 25 Feb - 1 Mar 2001; Other Information: PBD: 2001
Subject:
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS; APPROPRIATE TECHNOLOGY; COGEMA; COMPACTING; CORROSION; DEPLETED URANIUM; FLUORINE; KILNS; MAINTENANCE; PERFORMANCE; SAFETY
OSTI ID:
20393575
Country of Origin:
France
Language:
English
Other Identifying Numbers:
TRN: FR0202640069245
Availability:
Available from INIS in electronic form
Submitting Site:
FRN
Size:
[7] pages
Announcement Date:
Nov 20, 2003

Citation Formats

Hartmann, D, Le Motais, B, and Duperret, B. The French approach for management of depleted uranium a constantly improved technology. France: N. p., 2001. Web.
Hartmann, D, Le Motais, B, & Duperret, B. The French approach for management of depleted uranium a constantly improved technology. France.
Hartmann, D, Le Motais, B, and Duperret, B. 2001. "The French approach for management of depleted uranium a constantly improved technology." France.
@misc{etde_20393575,
title = {The French approach for management of depleted uranium a constantly improved technology}
author = {Hartmann, D, Le Motais, B, and Duperret, B}
abstractNote = {COGEMA provides uranium enrichment services to the nuclear industry worldwide. To meet general French safety requirements related to environmental protection issues, COGEMA has developed, as an extension of the enrichment operation, a facility to convert DUF{sub 6} into a stable, fluorine-free compound. After 5 years demonstration of the process on a pilot plant, COGEMA placed a facility in industrial operation in 1984 to convert DUF{sub 6} into stable oxide U{sub 3}O{sub 8}; a second facility was commissioned in 1993, doubling the capacity. Since the beginning of its industrial de-fluorination operations, COGEMA has ever been concerned to make its technology as reliable and as cost effective as possible. Accordingly, an improvement work has been constantly under way which already benefited to the construction of the second facility, completed in 1993. This paper will give an overview of the improvement work performed over the years, relating not only to the technology (optimizing the de-fluorination output, reducing the corrosion inside the kilns, improving the uranium oxide powder compaction factor,...), but also to the process itself (hydrodynamic modeling of the process reactions inside the kiln) and maintenance issues (systematic monitoring of filters plugging, recycling of cartridge filters,...). (authors)}
place = {France}
year = {2001}
month = {Jul}
}