DOE: Plan in the works to handle damaged Yucca waste containers
Las Vegas SUN: DOE: Plan in the works to handle damaged Yucca waste containers: "LAS VEGAS (AP) - Plans are being developed to handle damaged radioactive fuel assemblies at the planned Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository, an Energy Department spokesman said.
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Benson was responding to questions raised about a March report by engineers hired to troubleshoot repository design. They found that some nuclear waste containers are expected to arrive at the Yucca site with undetected leaks and cracks, potentially exposing workers to high levels of radioactive contamination.
The contractors conducted the study so there wouldn't be any surprises when a license application is submitted to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Benson said. The department plans to submit a formal application for a license to the NRC next year.
"We are in the process of refining the design to accommodate the issue identified in the report," Benson told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "It will be dealt with through refinement of design or operational techniques."
Plans currently call for fuel assemblies to be removed from rail and truck transportation casks in aboveground facilities, inspected and repackaged before being entombed in permanent storage tunnels 1,000 feet below the mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas.
The study said 4 percent, or about 8,880 assemblies are expected to have varying amounts of damage to the zirconium-alloy cladding surrounding spent fuel pellets.
Engineers believe that unless repackaging is conducted in an oxygen-free environment, the fuel could oxidize and release highly radioactive powder.
Benson said there will be a complete surface facility design for Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff to review in a license application for the repository.
In the past, critics of the project including consultants for Nevada's state Nuclear Projects Agency have expressed concerns about the potential for accidents during surface transfer operations.
Officials say up to 20,000 tons of spent fuel casks could be left on pads outside the repository where the decaying waste will age before it is put below ground.
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Information from: Las Vegas Review-Journal, http://www.lvrj.com
--"
...
Benson was responding to questions raised about a March report by engineers hired to troubleshoot repository design. They found that some nuclear waste containers are expected to arrive at the Yucca site with undetected leaks and cracks, potentially exposing workers to high levels of radioactive contamination.
The contractors conducted the study so there wouldn't be any surprises when a license application is submitted to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Benson said. The department plans to submit a formal application for a license to the NRC next year.
"We are in the process of refining the design to accommodate the issue identified in the report," Benson told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "It will be dealt with through refinement of design or operational techniques."
Plans currently call for fuel assemblies to be removed from rail and truck transportation casks in aboveground facilities, inspected and repackaged before being entombed in permanent storage tunnels 1,000 feet below the mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas.
The study said 4 percent, or about 8,880 assemblies are expected to have varying amounts of damage to the zirconium-alloy cladding surrounding spent fuel pellets.
Engineers believe that unless repackaging is conducted in an oxygen-free environment, the fuel could oxidize and release highly radioactive powder.
Benson said there will be a complete surface facility design for Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff to review in a license application for the repository.
In the past, critics of the project including consultants for Nevada's state Nuclear Projects Agency have expressed concerns about the potential for accidents during surface transfer operations.
Officials say up to 20,000 tons of spent fuel casks could be left on pads outside the repository where the decaying waste will age before it is put below ground.
---
Information from: Las Vegas Review-Journal, http://www.lvrj.com
--"
posted by Greta Jane at Tuesday, August 16, 2005
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