ASME Best Oral Presentation/Paper Waste Management 2019
March 10, 2020, 9:02AMRadwaste SolutionsThao Do, Jiju Joseph, Giles Whitaker, Barb Noye, Vasile Bostan, Don Jarron, and J. Clara Wren As nuclear power plants age and retire from service, many countries face significant challenges concerning the safe long-term storage and disposal of large volumes of low- and intermediate-level radioactive wastes (L&ILW). In Canada, Ontario Power Generation (OPG) is currently in the process of obtaining regulatory approval for a deep geological repository (L&ILW DGR) for such wastes from decommissioning and refurbishment of its heavy water reactors. OPG is exploring innovative methods and technologies to improve safety and reduce the processing, transportation, and disposal costs of these wastes. The volumes of metallic waste are of particular concern, because when metal corrodes it produces hydrogen that could lead to pressure buildup in the L&ILW DGR.
ANS Best Oral Presentation/Paper Waste Management 2019
March 10, 2020, 8:42AMRadwaste SolutionsLaura Merlo-Sosa, Hugh Boniface, Richard Prokopowicz, and Sam Suppiah Heavy water is used both for moderating nuclear fission and transporting heat in CANDU reactors. As a result of heavy water use in these systems, tritium is produced in small quantities from thermal neutron activation of deuterium. The presence of tritium in the heavy water contributes to the radiation dose of the reactor staff and radioactive emission from the reactor facility. Tritium dose is usually controlled through design and operating procedures that minimize leaks and limit exposure to the tritiated water. Many of the CANDU operators have also reduced the operational tritium concentration through detritiation of the heavy water from the reactor. Detritiation is carried out in a centralized facility, such as the Tritium Removal Facility in Darlington, which provides this service to Ontario’s nuclear reactor fleet. Detritiation reduces both tritium emission and dose to workers and the public from reactor operation.
As demands for a comprehensive U.S. waste management plan increase, private vendors are certifying new SNF/HLW transportation cask designs.
A large-scale campaign to move spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste in the United States to a central repository or interim storage site does not appear to be coming anytime soon. External pressures, however, including a growing number of nuclear power plant closures and increased stakeholder demand to remove stranded spent fuel and HLW, are shifting focus to building the infrastructure needed to move large volumes of waste. This includes the design and manufacture of shielded transportation casks for shipping the waste by truck or rail.
The awards will fund research into artificial intelligence and machine learning approaches to developing fusion energy, as well as fundamental theory and simulation.
The Department of Energy announced on March 4 that it will provide $30 million for new research on fusion energy. The funding will provide $17 million for research focused specifically on artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) approaches for the prediction of key plasma phenomena, management of facility operations, and accelerated discovery through data science, among other topics. An additional $13 million under a separate funding opportunity will be devoted to fundamental fusion theory research, including computer modeling and simulation, focused on factors affecting the behavior of hot plasmas confined by magnetic fields in fusion reactors.
Introducing “Nuclear Power: Let’s Keep It Running,” a fundraiser to support students in nuclear science and technology.
To raise awareness about safe, clean, and reliable nuclear energy and enrich the experiences of students in nuclear science and technology, ANS student sections around the country will soon be hosting a first-ever 5K fundraiser.
“Nuclear Power: Let’s Keep It Running” is launching on Earth Day (April 22) and will consist of an online donation platform where student sections can form teams, organize runs, and connect to donors within their communities and throughout the country. Proceeds will support ANS student section activities and the ANS Student Program.