UK research on intermediate-level waste reduction

Trials have been completed by UK companies Costain and Tetronics International of new technology for the vitrification of intermediate-level radioactive waste (ILW). The partners claim the technology could reduce the volume of such waste from the nuclear industry by up to 90%.

The two companies collaborated in order to adapt and enhance Tetronics' existing plasma furnace technology to vitrify ILW. Such waste results from waste management and decommissioning and includes materials such as radioactive sludge and contaminated equipment.

The furnace operates at between 1000°C and 1400°C and takes about six to 12 hours to reduce waste to a glass-like substance. Test facilities were built at Tetronics' site in Swindon and the trials took two months to complete.

In the furnace, organic and carbonaceous material in the ILW is vaporized by the heat produced by the plasma torches. This waste gas is filtered, with any secondary waste collected fed back into the reactor chamber of the furnace for vitrification. The inorganic material in the waste, together with additives that reduce its melting point and increase fluidity, forms a pool of melted material in a water-cooled container. This material is cooled to form a stable, vitrified waste.

Costain's and Tectronics' investment in the project has been supported by the UK's innovation agency, Innovate UK, with the Department of Energy and Climate Change and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority also contributing.

Costain's head of technology and consultancy Bryony Livesey said, "We are now consulting with the nuclear industry on what the next steps should be. We're seeking to develop this further."

According to Costain, reducing the volume of ILW "would immediately ease the burden on the UK's waste storage facilities and could mean considerable savings".

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News