Starting in 2003, Belgoprocess will proceed with the treatment and conditioning of some 200 m3 of widely varying high- and medium-level waste from earlier research and development work, to meet standard acceptance criteria for later disposal. The gross volume of primary and secondary packages amounts to 2,600 m3. The waste has been kept in decay storage for up to 30 years. The project was started in 1997. Operation of the various processing facilities will take 7–8 years. The overall volume of conditioned waste will be of the order of 800 m3. All conditioned waste will be stored in appropriate storage facilities onsite. In November 2002, a new processing facility has been constructed, the functional tests of the equipment have been performed and the start-up phase has been started. Several cells of the Pamela vitrification facility onsite will be adapted for the treatment of high-level and highly α-contaminated waste; low-level β/γ waste will be treated in the existing facility for super compaction and conditioning by embedding into cement (CILVA). The bulk of these waste, of which 95% are solids, the remainder consisting of mainly solidified liquids, have been produced between 1967 and 1988. They originate from various research programmes and reactor operation at the Belgian nuclear energy research centre SCK-CEN, isotope production, decontamination and dismantling operations. The waste is stored in 4800 primary packages, of which 700 contain 120 g (5.1012 Bq) radium. Half the radium inventory is present in 25 containers. The presence of radium in waste packages, resulting in the emission of radon gas, requires particular measurements. The total activity at the moment of production amounted to 18,811 TBq β/γ and 34.4 TBq α, with individual packages emitting up to 555 TBq β/γ and 2.2 TBq α. According to calculations, the β/γ activity has decreased to some 2,000 TBq, with individual packages up to 112 TBq. The extreme diversity of the waste is not only expressed in their radiological characteristics, but also in their chemical composition, physical state, the nature and condition of the packages. Radioactivity ranges between 0.01 mCi to 1,000 Ci per package. Some packages contain resins, Na, NaK and Al containing waste, poison rods, residues of fuel elements. Although most of the liquid waste are solidified, a small fraction — both aqueous and organic — still remains liquid. Primary packages may be plastic bags, metal boxes, wire gauze, La Cale`ne boxes; secondary packages may be steel drums and concrete containers. Solid waste may be sources, counters, nuclear fuel residues, filters, synthetic materials, metals, resins, granulates, rock, sludges, cables, glass, etc. Some 1000 primary packages are stored in a dry storage vault comprising 20 concrete cells, while 3800 primary packages are stored in some 2,000 concrete containers, on a concrete floor, surrounded by an earth bank to the height of the waste stacking and covered by a metal construction. At present, the annual production of similar waste amounts to 2 m3 divided over some 30 containers. Generally, the primary waste packages will be loaded in 80-1 drums (an average of 2 packages per drum), and compacted in a 150 ton hydraulic press. The pellets will be collected in 100 1 drums (an average of 3 pellets per drum). Low-level β/γ waste is transferred to the CILVA facility for further treatment, while the other 100-1 drums are filled up with sand and, in the case of radium-contaminated waste, tight-welded. Subsequently, the 100-1 drums are loaded into 400-1 drums and embedded into cement. Certain packages, for example solidified radium-contaminated liquids in welded metal containers, are conditioned as such in overpacks. Specific procedures will be established for the various non-standard waste, such as sources, control and poison rods, resins and filters, fuel residues. Highly active and/or heavily α-contaminated waste are transferred to the existing Pamela facility for treatment and conditioning. Ideally, gamma spectrometry measurements are carried out on the primary packages, but due to the extreme diversity of these packages, ranging from plastic bags containing cardboard to highly active steel valves, preference was given to measurements on the conditioned waste, or at least on already pre-compacted waste in the case of treatment in the 2,000 ton press of the CILVA facility. Thus tremendous problems of calibration can be largely avoided. All operations are remotely controlled. Transfers between buildings are carried out within appropriately shielded containers and secondary waste will be treated in existing facilities onsite. The new processing facility is being built partly over the dry storage vaults, in the immediate vicinity of the already covered storage area.
The alpha-contaminated solid waste generated in Belgium results from past activities in the fuel cycle (R&D + Reprocessing and MOX fabrication pilot plants) and operation of BELGONUCLEAIRE’s MOX fuel fabrication plant. After the main steps in the management of alpha-contaminated solid waste were established, BELGONUCLEAIRE, with the support of BELGOPROCESS and ONDRAF/NIRAS, started the design and construction of the T & C and interim-storage facilities for this alpha waste. The accumulated solid alpha radwaste containing a mixture of combustible and non-combustible material must be sorted and characterized. After sorting, both the accumulated and recently-generated alpha waste will be compacted and the pellets will be embedded in a cement matrix in a 400-1 drum. The commissioning of the sorting unit which includes glove boxes was completed at BP, at the beginning of year 2005; the sorting campaign of 30-1 cans has been achieved in March 2007. The paper describes the project environment and gives a short description of the used facilities; the lessons learned from the sorting campaign and from the first T/C period, will be presented, as well.
Since the very beginning of nuclear activities in Belgium, the incineration of radioactive waste was chosen as a suitable technique for achieving an optimal volume reduction of the produced waste quantities. An experimental furnace “Evence Coppée” was built in 1960 for treatment of LLW produced by the Belgian Research Centre (CEN.SCK). Regulatory this furnace has been modified, improved and equipped with additional installations to obtain better combustion conditions and a more efficient gas cleaning system. Based on the 35 years of experience gained by the operation of the “Evence Coppée”, a new industrial nuclear incineration installation was set into operation in May 1995, as a part of the Belgian Centralised Treatment/Conditioning Facility CILVA. Up to the end of 2000, the CILVA incinerator has burnt 703 tons of solid waste and 343 tons of liquid waste. This paper describes the type of waste and the allowable radioactivity, the incineration process, heat recovery and the air pollution control devices. Special attention is given to the operation experience, capacity, volume reduction, chemical and radiological emissions and maintenance. The most important changes which improved safety, reliability and capacity are also mentioned. BELGOPROCESS, a company set up in 1984 at Dessel (Belgium) where a number of nuclear facilities were already installed is specialised in the processing of radioactive waste. It is a subsidiary of ONDRAF/NIRAS, the Belgian Nuclear Waste Management Agency. According to its mission statement, the activities of BELGOPROCESS focus on three areas: treatment, conditioning and interim storage of radioactive waste; decommissioning of shut-down nuclear facilities and cleaning of contaminated buildings and land; operating of storage sites for conditioned radioactive waste.
At the end of the 80’s, the Belgian State ordered an inventory of the liabilities of the Belgian nuclear programme, to be fully or partially financed by them. ONDRAF/NIRAS (National Agency for Radioactive Waste and Enriched Fissile Materials) was entrusted with the management of the waste and the development of a programme for the clearance of the identified liabilities. One of these liabilities is the treatment and conditioning of some 200 m3 of widely varying high- and medium level waste. The gross volume of primary and secondary packages amounts to 2,600 m3. As the waste is stored in vaults or in concrete shielding containers and no appropriate treating and conditioning facilities are in operation, the HRA/SOLARIUM project was launched. The bulk of these wastes, of which 95% are solids, the remainder consisting of mainly solidified liquids, have been produced between 1967 and 1988. They originate from various research programmes and reactor operation at the Belgian nuclear energy research centre SCK·CEN, isotope production, decontamination and dismantling operations. About 4,800 packages of various types are concerned and must be treated (standard steel barrels, special containers, shielded overpacks,…); they contain medium-active wastes (solid or liquid), radium bearing or not, β/γ or α/β/γ, and special wastes (Al, spent resins, Na/Nak, …). The new HRA/SOLARIUM facilities, located on site 2 of Belgoprocess in Mol, have been commissioned in the 2nd semester 2003. The paper describes the project itself and focuses on the lessons learned from first operation years.
Up to 1998, spent ion exchange resins have been fed to the incinerator in combination with various other solid combustible wastes at Belgoprocess. However, thanks to sustained efforts to reduce radioactive waste production in all nuclear facilities in Belgium, the annual production of solid combustible waste is now much too small to allow this practice to be continued. Since the incinerator at Belgoprocess is not capable of treating spent ion exchange resins as such, it was decided to adopt the use of foam as a carrier to feed the resins to the incinerator. The mixture is a pseudohomogeneous charged foam, ensuring easy handling and allowing incineration in the existing furnace, while a number of additives may be included, such as oil to increase the calorific value of the mixture and accelerate combustion. The first incineration campaign of spent ion exchange resins in a triphasic foam mixture, in conjunction with other liquid and solid combustible wastes, will be started in January 2000. The foam, comprising 70% by weight of resins, 29% by weight of water and 1% by weight of surfactant will be pulverized in the incinerator through an injection lance, at a feed rate of 40 to 100 kg/h. The incinerator and associated off-gas treatment system can be operated at standard conditions. Belgoprocess is the subsidiary of the Belgian national agency for the management of radioactive waste, known by its Dutch and French acronyms, NIRAS and ONDRAF respectively. The company ensures the treatment, conditioning and interim storage of nearly all radioactive waste produced in Belgium.
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