Preparation and performance of the largest ever shipment of irradiated HEU fuel elements under the FRR program: the 2006 ANSTO HIFAR spent fuel transport from Sydney to the United States
Loading...
Date
2007-03-11
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
European Nuclear Society
Abstract
The HIFAR reactor was officially shut down on 30 January 2007. The management of spent fuel remains a very important aspect of the operation of research reactors for Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO). Between 1999 and 2004, a total of 1288 fuel assemblies were sent in four shipments to the La Hague reprocessing plant. For the remaining HIFAR fuel assemblies containing U.S. origin uranium, ANSTO decided to exercise its option to return the fuel assemblies to the U.S. under the Foreign Research Reactor Spent Nuclear Fuel (FRR-SNF) Acceptance program. The shipment consisted of 5 NAC-LWT casks containing 42 fuel elements each and 2 TN-7/2 casks each containing 60 fuel elements each, representing a total of 330 fuel elements. 3 types of fuel elements were part of the shipment: 2 types are cylindrical elements while the third type consists of fuel plates. The handling of large casks like NAC-LWT has required preparatory works like the availability of a reinforced concreted area. The use of NAC Dry Transfer System was necessary because the reactor pool at ANSTO is too swallow to permit a wet loading). This shipment was the largest shipment of HEU (high enrichment uranium) removed from one single facility under the FRR program. After a long maritime voyage, the 7 casks were delivered safely to the DOE site at Savannah River in South-Carolina. © The Authors
Description
Keywords
Administrative procedures, HIFAR Reactor, International cooperation, Maritime transport, Radioactive waste management, Spent fuel casks, Spent fuels, US DOE
Citation
Hart, K., Dimitrovski, L., & Anderson, M., Anne, C., & Adam, J. (2007). Preparation and performance of the largest ever shipment of irradiated HEU fuel elements under the FRR program: the 2006 ANSTO HIFAR spent fuel transport from Sydney to the United States. Paper presented to the RRFM/IGORR 2007, Lyon, France, 11.3 - 15. 3.2007. In Tranactions, 11th International Topical Meeting, Research Reactor Fuel Management (RRFM) and Meeting of the International Group on Reactor Research (IGORR). Centre de Congrès, Lyon, France 11– 15 March 2007. Retrieved from: https://inis.iaea.org/collection/NCLCollectionStore/_Public/39/023/39023398.pdf