What does management of irradiated fuel considered as waste involve?
If the open cycle strategy is chosen, the irradiated fuel should be managed as a solid, high-activity waste. In this strategy, the irradiated fuel passes through three stages before final storage: • Storage in reactor pools. • Interin storage. • Encapsulation for final storage. When the irradiated fuel is removed from the reactor, it is put into the plants own pools, where it will stay temporarily while the short-lived isotopes decay. As the capacity of these pools is limited, the fuel must be moved after a certain period of time to interin storages, while waiting for its radioactivity and residual heat to fall below acceptable levels for final storage. There are two techniques used for interin storage of irradiated fuel: pool storage and dry storage (metal or concrete containers, modular chambers, etc.). During pool storage, any secondary radioactive waste generated must be accounted for to maintain the water quality. During dry storage, secondary waste is reduced. To date the third s
