International audienceTransuranic wastes are produced by the nuclear fuel cycle management, essentially from MOX fuel production units. These waste, contaminated with Uranium and Plutonium, have large composition variability and enclose, in current temporary conditioning, mixed metals and organics. Metals are mainly stainless steel, aluminum or copper and organics are composed of different kind of plastics, highly chlorinated for some.On purpose, a new treatment process is being studied to incinerate the organics, melt the metallic fraction and incorporate the mineral residue fraction in a glass matrix. This paper presents the outlines of the process feasibility studies waste main characteristics, process specifications and main technical options, RetD strategy, mixed glass / metal package description, basic studies needed to develop the process and the matrix (glass/metal redox reactions, actinides partitioning 

Ben Lagha, S.

Catherin, S.

Charvin, P.

Girold, C.

Hugon, I.

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Mixed Metallic and Organic Transuranic Waste
Incineration / Vitrification - 17539
C. Girold, P. Charvin, I. Hugon, S. Ben Lagha, S. Catherin
To cite this version:
C. Girold, P. Charvin, I. Hugon, S. Ben Lagha, S. Catherin. Mixed Metallic and Organic Transuranic
Waste Incineration / Vitrification - 17539. WM2017 - Waste Management Conference, Mar 2017,
Phoenix, United States. ￿cea-02437089￿
WM2017 Conference, March 5-9, 2017, Phoenix, Arizona, USA 
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Mixed Metallic and Organic Transuranic Waste Incineration / Vitrification - 17539 
 
Christophe GIROLD*, Patrice CHARVIN*, Isabelle HUGON*, 
Sabah BEN LAGHA+, Stéphane CATHERIN° 
 
* Commissariat à l’Énergie Atomique, Nuclear Energy Division 
Waste Treatment and Conditioning Research Department 
CEA, DEN, DTCD 
CEA-AREVA Joint Vitrification Lab 
30207 Bagnols-sur-Cèze Cedex, France 
+ AREVA NC, Business Unit Recycling 
Tour AREVA - 1 place Jean Millier 
92084 Paris La Défense Cédex 
° National Radioactive Waste Management Agency (ANDRA) 
Research and Development Division, Waste Packages and Material Department 
1-7, rue Jean-Monnet - 92298 Châtenay-Malabry Cédex - FRANCE 
 
ABSTRACT 
 
Transuranic wastes are produced by the nuclear fuel cycle management, essentially 
from MOX fuel production units. These waste, contaminated with Uranium and 
Plutonium, have large composition variability and enclose, in current temporary 
conditioning, mixed metals and organics. Metals are mainly stainless steel, 
aluminum or copper and organics are composed of different kind of plastics, highly 
chlorinated for some. 
On purpose, a new treatment process is being studied to incinerate the organics, 
melt the metallic fraction and incorporate the mineral residue fraction in a glass 
matrix. This paper presents the outlines of the process feasibility studies: waste 
main characteristics, process specifications and main technical options, R&D 
strategy, mixed glass / metal package description, basic studies needed to develop 
the process and the matrix (glass/metal redox reactions, actinides partitioning …). 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
The alpha technological wastes (PCM, Plutonium Contaminated Material) are 
produced during the operation of glove boxes in which are handled MOX powders 
and pellets for fuel manufacturing. Their characteristic is to contain a mixture of 
organic elements, metal and mineral materials contaminated with uranium, 
plutonium and americium. One scenario under study is to process the waste before 
disposal in deep geological formations. It consists in the mineralization of organics 
and in the stabilization of mineral and metal fractions of the waste. 
Among the considered options, thermal processes are capable of achieving the 
mineralization of all organic material while fusing the mineral and metal fractions. 
This is to develop such a process and the associated vitrified packaging material 
that a Research program was developed: PIVIC (Process for Incineration and 
Vitrification In Can). PIVIC is an innovative packaging process responding to a 
complex issue: the critical specification to recover the wastes without prior sorting 
WM2017 Conference, March 5-9, 2017, Phoenix, Arizona, USA 
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or pretreatment. PIVIC will produce a multiphasic glass / metal package 
conditioning the actinides, without organic material. 
 
 
PIVIC PROJECT SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES 
 
The Transuranic Mixed Metallic and Organic Waste 
 
The PIVIC process will have to treat technological wastes containing organic and 
metallic waste contaminated with alpha emitter elements. These wastes mainly 
come from MOX fuel production units in France (Melox) but also from AREVA spent 
fuel reprocessing plants (La Hague). They are mainly generated by the process 
operations and the maintenance of those facilities.  
 
In the existing process, these wastes are packaged in drums of 118 or 120 L, and 
are mainly put in interim storage at La Hague. Currently the wastes are source-
separated and are collected in a selective way according to their “families”. The 
different families are:  
 
• Organic wastes: gloves from glove boxes, wipes, windows of glove boxes, 
plastics (PVC…). 
• Metallic wastes and various elements: electric equipments, defective mechanical 
products, tooling … 
• Filters: first filtration barrier, second filtration barrier, grinding machine pre-
filters, labs filters … 
 
Organic wastes are present in all drums because of a technical producing 
requirement. Indeed, to assure the protection of the employees and the 
containment of radioactive materials, the wastes must be bring out of glove boxes 
in a double welded bag (PVC). 
 
Industrial Specifications and Technical Challenges 
 
Following some preliminary studies, a new and innovative way of management has 
been chosen by Areva, in partnership with CEA and Andra. The new conditioning 
process has to follow some requirements: 
 
• Full destruction of organic matter  
• Confinement of the radionuclides  
• No pre-treatment (the drums will not be opened and not sort out) 
• The process will have to reduce the waste volume 
• The final package has to be compliant with final disposal  
 
Regarding these requirements, the PIVIC process has been selected and is under 
development. It will incinerate the organics, melt the metallic fraction and 
incorporate the mineral residue fraction in a glass matrix so as to obtain the PIVIC 
package (see Process Description part for more details). 
 
WM2017 Conference, March 5-9, 2017, Phoenix, Arizona, USA 
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The industrial PIVIC process is planned to start operations in 2042. At this date, 
around 30,000 drums should be produced. With a mean rate of 2,000 drums 
treated per year, the PIVIC process should produce 100 packages per year. 
 
Expected Benefits of Incineration / Vitrification 
 
This new process has number of expected benefits, listed hereafter: 
 
• Provide better safety in final disposal thanks to the removal of reactive material 
(organic material are mineralized) and to the production of a stable matrix (two 
phase matrix: the upper one is glass, the lower one is metal). 
• The actinides are stabilized in a solid matrix. 
• The waste is treated in a single step process. 
• Preserve disposal resources thanks to a noticeable reduction of the volume of 
actual waste packaging to be disposed of (volume reduction up to 7).  
• Offer a new option of management for soft operational waste (incl. PCM) in 
France but also in other countries. 
 
THE PIVIC PROCESS 
 
Process Description 
 
The purpose of this process is to achieve, in a single reactor, the pyrolysis of the 
organic fraction of the waste, followed by the full combustion of gases, the fusion of 
the metallic fraction, and the incorporation of the ashes coming from incinerated 
organics in a glass matrix (figure 1). 
 
 
 
Fig. 1. Functions of the PIVIC process. 
 
WM2017 Conference, March 5-9, 2017, Phoenix, Arizona, USA 
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To comply with operation in contaminated environment, the following basics 
requirements guided the PIVIC design: 
• A limited number of apparatus,  
• A process as compact as possible, 
• A minimum inlet of gas to minimize the size of gas treatment equipment, 
• A minimum generation of secondary waste, 
• A resistance to aggressive corrosion. 
 
Main development constraints (the most dimensioning being no sorting and/or 
grinding of waste) resulted in retaining a process decoupled in a lower part ensuring 
the fusion function and an upper part providing the combustion of the organic. This 
set schematically shown in Figure 2 has the characteristics described below. 
 
 
 
 
 
Fig. 2. Heart of the PIVIC process schematic diagram. 
 
 
Direct feeding without preprocessing: 
 
This arrangement requires significant process flexibility since a wide range of waste, 
organic, inorganic or metal may be introduced into the process. The feeding mode 
selected is the gradual lowering of the load to the bottom of the reactor. Pyrolysis 
of organic is mastered by the position of the load. Then, after complete combustion, 
it is deposited in the crucible. 
WM2017 Conference, March 5-9, 2017, Phoenix, Arizona, USA 
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Pure oxygen plasma combustion: 
 
The combustion of the waste is obtained thanks to a pure oxygen plasma torch.  
This concept of coupling induction and plasma heating ensures optimization of the 
thermal power required, firstly to burn the organic fraction of the waste, secondly 
to elaborate the biphasic material. 
The use of oxygen instead of air (conventionally used in incineration) can 
substantially reduce the volume of gas in the process and thus reduce the size of 
gas treatment equipment. The use of pure oxygen supplied in the form of plasma 
also optimizes combustion kinetics and therefore the waste residence time before 
complete oxidation. 
The performances of total combustion of the gas in this case are likely to be 
sufficient to avoid a post-combustion step in the treatment of gases [5]. In the next 
steps of gas treatment, the gas cooling is provided by simple dilution in order to 
simplify the system and consequently the cleaning operations; prefiltration gas 
process benefits from developments in electro filtration to limit point losses and the 
production of secondary waste. The dust retained by the electro filter will be 
recycled in the process. 
 
In can melting: 
 
The characteristic of the IN CAN MELTING is to use the elaborating crucible as the 
final container.  This crucible is used as a part of the process (the oven for fusion) 
for all the duration of its filling. In the case of PIVIC, the filling time is evaluated to 
be less than 48h. This configuration simplifies the control devices, the maintenance 
and minimizes corrosion problems; unlike other technologies, it more easily 
accommodates a biphasic metal / glass content. 
 
A metallic / glass biphasic package: 
 
The process is not designed to perform the oxidation of metals present in waste and 
this is not a requirement. This leads to the production of a biphasic package with 
metal at the bottom and glass as a supernatant due to the difference in density. 
This new characteristic involves new knowledge requirements to optimize the glass 
composition and to describe the produced package: interactions between glass and 
metal [1], localization of actinides in the package and long-term behavior of the full 
package including metallic fraction [2]. 
From a material point of view, an aluminosilicate glass has been preferred [3] to 
more conventional borosilicate glass, because of the volatility of boron at high 
temperature (stainless steel must be heated up to 1450°C to melt).  
 
The final package is constituted by stacking two PIVIC canisters in a container 
(figure 3). 
 
WM2017 Conference, March 5-9, 2017, Phoenix, Arizona, USA 
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Fig. 3. PIVIC Package concept and vertical cut of a scale 1 canister produced with 
the first prototype of the project. 
 
Low frequency induction melting: 
 
The power deposition to melt the metal is obtained by means of a low-frequency 
induction device through a multilayer wall partially metallic and internally lined with 
ceramic [4]. This heating method ensures electromagnetic stirring of the metal that 
drags along the glass phase; it is then not necessary to resort to a mechanical 
homogenization system. 
 
R&D DEVOLOPMENT PLAN 
 
Strategy 
 
For the development and the qualification of the process and the package, a 
strategy of using inactive full scale prototypes has been chosen, technologically as 
close as possible to an industrial nuclearized release. Full scale prototypes are 
essential for the development of thermal processes and their similarity to the final 
design of the plant will save time for engineering studies. 
 
These tools are some particularly structuring elements for the project from the 
point of view of planning (construction and implementation), the validation process 
or the associated budget. 
 
Figure 4 shows the evolution of the tools used in the project. Each tool is 
specifically associated with a project phase. The complexity of tools is gradual, and 
goes as far as the final prototype which is similar to the final process. From the 
fusion module, each new tool is an evolution of the previous one. This deployment 
mode allows optimization and smoothing of investment. 
 
The project is divided into four gradual development phases (Figure 5): 
• Phase 1: Specify the input data and establish the basic concepts of the process 
• Phase 2: Demonstrate the feasibility of concepts 
• Phase 3: Develop the full process 
• Phase 4: Qualify the process 
WM2017 Conference, March 5-9, 2017, Phoenix, Arizona, USA 
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Fig. 4. Structuring tools of the PIVIC Project. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Fig. 5. Phases of the PIVIC Project. 
WM2017 Conference, March 5-9, 2017, Phoenix, Arizona, USA 
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Main themes of R&D 
 
From a functional analysis coupled with a risks analysis, a R&D development plan 
was built to provide all the necessary informations for the industrial process data 
book and the waste package description for safety authorities. This plan is divided 
into three main areas (Table 1): technological development, process development 
and containment material development. 
 
TABLE I. Main themes of R&D 
 
Technological 
Development 
Process 
Development 
Containement Material 
Development 
Can docking and sealing Combustion management Glass composition tuning 
adapted to the process 
Waste feeding Electromagnetic stirring Incorporation of ashes in the 
glass 
Oxygen plasma technology Glass phase homogenization Glass tolerance to waste 
variability 
Reactor cooling Criticality management Glass / Metal interaction 
management 
Corrosion Level measurement Actinides location 
 Chlorides management Package Description and its 
long term behavior 
 Temperature measurement  
 Off gas treatment  
 
State of the R & D 2016 
 
The R&D started in 2011 with paper work, lab scale tests and mockup. The first 
mockup (fusion module) was started in 2014 and is still under exploitation. Below 
are the significant achievements of the R&D program: 
 
• The IN CAN low frequency induction melting concept of a biphasic material has 
been validated with the elaboration of twenty canisters of roughly 200 kg of 
metallic alloy made of stainless/copper/Aluminum (melting temperature 
~ 1450 °C) and 50 kg of glass (melting temperature ~1250 °C). The canister is 
correctly cooled and the internal ceramic liner has sufficient corrosion resistance 
both to the glass and metal phases.  
• The metallic fraction is strongly agitated by the electromagnetic forces. As an 
example, the surface velocity is around 0.1 m.s-1. The glass phase is also 
correctly agitated, being dragged by the molten metal, the surface velocity is 
around 0.01 m.s-1. 
• An aluminosilicate glass composition has been developed incorporating 15 % of 
ashes from the organic fraction of the waste. During elaboration, the ashes 
incorporation is fast due to the good agitation. 
• The package has good macroscopic separation of glass and metal phases 
(figure 3). In the absence of aluminum in the metals, the glass is homogeneous 
with a low enrichment of oxidized steel elements (Cr, Mn and Fe) which can 
crystallize at high concentrations. High concentrations of aluminum in the metals 
WM2017 Conference, March 5-9, 2017, Phoenix, Arizona, USA 
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lead to a more crystalline oxide phase since the aluminum is fully oxidized by 
the glass phase. 
• The simulants of the actinides are exclusively found in oxides form, dissolved in 
the glass or in the form of silicates in the case of high concentrations of 
aluminum. 
• Thanks to an oxygen plasma mockup, the feasibility to manage the combustion 
of the organics by the selected feeding mode (gradual lowering of the load to 
the bottom of the reactor) has been validated. 
• Early studies, based on thermal / hydrodynamic modeling and plasma 
benchscale with surrogates has shown that the plutonium retention rate will be 
low enough to be compatible with industrial exploitation. 
 
CONCLUSION AND PERSPECTIVES 
 
Early studies and first tests on bench scale and mockup have demonstrated the 
feasibility of the concept to treat mixed organics and metallic alpha waste by, 
incorporate simulated mineral fraction in a glassy material and melt the metallic 
part, using induction heating. 
 
Thanks to the good results obtain during the first two phases of the PIVIC project; 
the project is now leaving the phase 2 to enter the phase 3 with the building of the 
full pilot which is planned to be available in 2018. The next tests will permit to 
demonstrate the faisability of the full process including incineration part. 
 
REFERENCES 
 
1. Pierrick CHEUVREUX, Anabelle LAPLACE, Etienne DELOULE, Laurent TISSANDIER, 
« Interactions between an aluminosilicate glass melt and molten metals investigated by 
SEM analysis for a nuclear issue”, Glass and Optical Materials Division meeting, Madison 
- USA (2016). 
2. Anabelle LAPLACE, Stéphane GOSSE, Isabelle HUGON, Théodore COZZIKA, “Modelling 
of a metallic phase coming from nuclear waste after high temperature treatment”, MRS 
Scientific Bases for Nuclear Waste Management, Montpellier – France (2015). 
3. Damien PERRET, Isabelle HUGON, Olivier PINET, Patrice CHARVIN, Florent LEMONT, 
“Glass formulation approach for mixed nuclear waste treatment using PIVIC 
incineration-vitrification in can process”, Glass Science and Technology Conference, 
Sheffield - UK (2016). 
4. Patrice CHARVIN, Florent LEMONT, Aldo RUSSELLO, Arnaud QUINTAS, “Innovative glass 
melting and stirring process via molten metal”, Glass Science and Technology 
Conference, Sheffield – UK (2016). 
5. Arnaud QUINTAS, “Comparative assessment of plasma torch technologies for 
incineration reactor through numerical modeling”, 27th Symposium on Plasma Physics 
and Technology, Prague - Czech Republic (2016). 
 
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 
 
The PIVIC project is a partnership between Areva, CEA and Andra. It is supported 
by the French government program “Programme d’Investissements d’Avenir” whose 
management has been entrusted to Andra. 


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Mixed Metallic and Organic Transuranic Waste Incineration / Vitrification - 17539

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