Innovative pre-disposal projects: disposal containers and waste conditioning
The "Investing for the future" funding enables Andra to support innovative initiatives to optimize, upstream of storage, the management of radioactive decommissioning waste. The project presented on this page are such projects related to Characterization of decommissioning sites and facilities.
Endowed with nearly 47 billion euros, the Investissements d'Avenir program is an investment program of the French State, set up in 2010 to finance innovative and promising projects on the territory, with a principle of co-financing for each project.
Andra benefits, under the "Nuclear of Tomorrow" part of this program, from an allocation of € 75 million to develop innovative radioactive waste management solutions, upstream of storage: characterization, treatment, conditioning of Radioactive waste. By participating in these projects, Andra ensures that the constraints and requirements of storage are taken into account at the earliest, from the very design of radioactive waste treatment or conditioning solutions.
COCONUT
Composite container for long-term nuclear waste disposal
The COCONUT project intends to develop an innovative double-shell HLW disposal container concept with an internal steel shell and an external composite copper-ceramic shell, deposited as a thick coating via a cold gas dynamic spraying technique.
The use of copper/ceramic deposits is a new option for corrosion protection for HLW overpacks.
This container offers an alternative solution to the existing solution, and is likely to contribute to the development of new long-term disposal concepts for
high-level waste.
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DEM'N'MELT
IN CAN vitrification for conditioning HLW/ILW-LL waste from decommissioning operations
The DEM'N'MELT project seeks to develop and implement an innovative tool for high-level waste (HLW) and intermediate-level long-lived waste (ILW-LL), which: • is sufficiently flexible to adapt to the uncertainty of the composition of waste needing processing, but which nevertheless produces waste packages whose composition, structure and radiation containment performance are properly managed for disposal;
- is based on a vitrification procedure, whereby radioactive waste is contained within glass, a material already known and used for containing high-level waste;
- is small enough to be installed and operate in an existing facility or building;
- is designed for short usage periods, like a decommissioning tool, and can be easily dismantled straight after the processing operation;
- produces a small quantity of secondary waste;
- has a low investment and operating cost.
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INIFUGE
Development of an innovative fire-resistant geopolymer binder
INIFUGE is a research project that presents a fundamental approach to understanding the end properties (fire resistance, durability) of geopolymer materials depending on the properties of the raw materials used (aluminosilicate sources and activation solutions), and the protocols for using these materials. The project has three main objectives:
- develop methods for making raw materials highly reactive for geopolymer manufacture (aluminosilicates and activation solutions);
- develop different compositions for meeting mechanical or thermal requirements depending on the desired characteristics of the fresh and hardened geopolymer;
- understand and optimise performance in terms of rheological properties (viscosity), fire resistance and durability.
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MATRICE
Radiation-resistant cementitious materials
The aim of the MATRICE project is to provide solutions to incorporate significantly higher activities (generally a factor of 10), while maintaining levels of radiolysis gas release that are acceptable within current limits or that decrease compared to current conditioning solutions.
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MILOR
Mineralisation of radioactive organic liquids using plasma
The MILOR industrial research project aims to develop two complementary processes at the same time for the incineration of radioactive organic liquid waste using plasma:
• the first process, IDOHL (Liquid Organic Halogen Destruction Facility) processes organic liquid waste with a low mineral concentration (<1%) using low-power (5 electrical kW) airborne plasma (inductively coupled plasma). This mature system is in the pre-production phase and offers a service life of several thousand hours with limited maintenance. However, the flows are limited (around 100 mL/h) due to the relatively low plasma power (approx. 5 kW). A pilot facility will be installed for the project at the CEA Saclay Centre to process real radioactive organic liquid waste;
• the second process, ELIPSE (elimination of liquids using submerged plasma) uses a higher-powered (45 electrical kW) plasma immersed in an aqueous solution (submerged sprayed plasma arc). It can process liquid waste at higher rates (up to 3 L/h) and can handle waste with a high mineral fraction while also significantly simplifying the management of gases generated during processing. This process requires significant technological developments before commercial operation.
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PIVIC
In-Can incineration, melting and vitrification process
During the operations carried out by Orano to make MOX fuel, filters, cables and protective clothing become contaminated by radioactive matter, mainly from the plutonium. This intermediate-level long-lived radioactive waste (ILW-LL), made up of metal, glass and organic matter (plastic), is to be conditioned in metal containers for disposal in the planned Industrial Industrial Centre for Geological Disposal (Cigeo). The total volume will be around 3,000 m³. This type of waste does however present certain problems: due to the effects of irradiation, the organic matter it contains produces gas, primarily hydrogen gas, with the related risk of explosion, as well as corrosive compounds that impact on the durability of the metal containers containing the waste.
For disposal of this type of waste at Cigeo, the PIVIC process of In-Can incineration, melting and vitrification has been adopted. This process, a combination of processing by incineration and conditioning by melting/vitrification, should make it possible to:
- incinerate the organic matter contained in the waste using a plasma torch (Incineration);
- stabilize and condition the residue resulting from incineration in a glass matrix (Vitrification) ;
- melt the metal fraction by direct induction heating (Melting);
- perform the last two operations "In Can", i.e. the crucible in which melting and vitrification operations are carried out also serves as the waste container ("Can"). The Cans are thus replaced after every processing operation.
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SCELLMA
SEALING ceramic overpacks by plasma torch
The radioactive elements contained in High-level waste (HLW) are currently confined in a glass matrix poured into stainless steel drums to form "primary waste packages". After a period in storage to allow the waste to cool, these primary packages will be conditioned in disposal containers (overpacks) before eventual disposal in the Industrial Centre for Geological Disposal (Cigeo), currently at the project stage. These containers must protect the vitrified HLW from coming into contact with water during the thermal phase, i.e. until the temperature of the glass has decreased to between 70°C and 50°C. This function means that the disposal containers must remain watertight for around 500 years..
Since 2007, Andra has been studying the feasibility of using ceramic disposal containers, as an alternative to the use of metal. Advances have demonstrated the feasibility of making the container body and lid). The technological challenge regarding these new containers remains the method used to close the system (to seal the container body and lid together) at a temperature moderate enough to prevent damage to the primary package. The aim of the SCELLMA project is to develop a sealing process for these ceramic disposal containers using thermal plasma technology. The objective is to assemble two parts made of thick ceramic, the container body and lid, ensuring the whole is watertight and durable.
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UCOMP
Ultra-fluid cementitious composite for the disposal of radioactive waste subject to fire hazard
For the Cigeo project (disposal of the most highly radioactive waste 500 metres underground), it is necessary to consider a fire scenario at the end of which the containers must keep their function. However, such thermal loading can induce very large cracks on concrete, instability phenomena (explosion, chipping, etc.) that is highly detrimental to mechanical strength if the concrete formulation is not appropriate. It is therefore necessary to develop specific concretes capable of maintaining mechanical strength after a fire.
The goal of the UCOMP project is to design cementitious materials capable of withstanding very high temperatures (fire scenario) to be used in the manufacture of radioactive waste containers.