Research activities on radioactive waste management and on the back-end of the nuclear fuel cycle performed by the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission

The Euratom Research and Training Programme contributes, within its portfolio of activities, to establish and improve the scientific basis of knowledge for the safe management of spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste. This includes research and innovation activities undertaken by the Joint Research Centre (or JRC, the European Commission’s science and knowledge service) in its laboratories. This paper provides an overview and some highlights of the Joint Research Centre (JRC) activities which are dedicated to the safety of spent fuel and high level radioactive waste forms. The fields of experimental and modelling research address various stages of spent fuel management after discharge from the reactor core: cooling in the spent fuel pool; handling, transport, extended interim storage and retrieval thereafter; disposal in a deep geological repository and long term behaviour of the spent fuel/waste form after disposal. The safety of the “back-end” of nuclear fuel cycles which include U-Pu recycling and/or a “fully closed” cycle with minor actinides separation and transmutation is also a major area of research. Both normal operation and accident scenarios, which cause fuel degradation/melting, are investigated. Possible applications for legacy waste management, decommissioning, and safeguards are considered. The relevance of the research is linked to the possibility of investigating “real” spent fuel and highly radioactive compounds using JRC’s research infrastructure, which includes hot cells and shielded facilities, and state of the art experimental methods that are (in some cases) rare or even unique. The activities are performed in collaboration with partners and/or in the context of international initiatives. Opportunities and perspectives for enhanced cooperation, including access and sharing of infrastructure are being developed

Quality Assurance for the Measurements and Monitoring of Radioactivity in the Environment.

Abstract not availableJRC.E-Institute for Transuranium Elements (Karlsruhe

Sample Clean-up by On-line Chromatography for the Determination of Am in Sediments and Soils by Alpha-Spectrometry.

Abstract not availableJRC.E-Institute for Transuranium Elements (Karlsruhe

Effects of Colloidal and Dissolved Silica on the Dissolution of UO2 Nuclear Fuel in Groundwater Leaching Tests.

Abstract not availableJRC.E-Institute for Transuranium Elements (Karlsruhe

Investigation on Mechanisms of Corrosion Due to Impurities Diffusion by Direct Current Flow Discharge Mass Spectrometry Depth Profiling.

Abstract not availableJRC.E-Institute for Transuranium Elements (Karlsruhe

The European RetD project INSIDER Acting on the upstream stages

International audienceThe EURATOM work programme project INSIDER (Improved Nuclear Site Characterization for Waste minimization in Decommissioning under Constrained Environment) was launched June 2017. This 4 year project has 18 partners. It aims at improving the management of contaminated materials arising from Decommissioning and Dismantling (DetD) operations by proposing an integrated methodology for radiological characterization. This methodology is based on advanced statistical processing and modelling, coupled with adapted and innovative analytical and measurement methods, with respect to sustainability and economic objectives. In order to achieve these objectives, the approaches will be then applied to common case studies in the form of Inter-laboratory comparisons on matrix representative reference samples and benchmarking. Assessment of the outcomes will be used for providing recommendations and guidance resulting in pre-standardization texts

Monitoring of depth distribution of trace elements by GDMS

The depth distribution of B and Li have been studied in ZrO layers by GDMS. Zr alloy has been corroded to 2 ZrO in an autoclave in solutions containing Li and B. Samples were collected at different reaction times and 2 analyzed. The GDMS crater depth and the sputter rate could be determined by profilometry for the discharge conditions used. In the analyzed samples three zones could be identified: oxide, interface and zircaloy. The concentration of Li and B was followed in each of the three zones

Monitoring of Depth Distribution of Trace Elements by GDMS.

Abstract not availableJRC.E-Institute for Transuranium Elements (Karlsruhe