A PERSPECTIVE ON U.S. SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL POLICY

Abstract

There are, in essence, three possible basic SNF policies: ‘full recycle’ where SNF is processed to recover nuclear fuel materials not used in the reactor to make new fuel; ‘once-through’ where the SNF is not processed and the fuel is stored essentially ‘as-is’ in interim storage or final storage or disposal (geologic repositories, ocean bed repositories, outer space, etc.); and hybrid policies which combine features of both full recycle and ‘once-through’. Even in the ‘full recycle’ mode, there are still nuclear waste products that must be disposed of. Early reprocessing technologies using the PUREX process were quite successful at separating unfissioned plutonium and the remaining uranium from the spent fuel that could be used in the production of new fuel for reactors. However, these earlier technologies also left substantial quantities of what is known in the U.S. as ‘high level’ nuclear waste which must be disposed of. Most of this waste has come from past reprocessing of government nuclear fuel used in production, naval, research, and test reactors. The legacy of these wastes is the subject to a massive environmental restoration program within the U.S. Department of Energy. Only a small quantity of commercial fuel in the U.S. was ever reprocessed (from 1966 to 1972). Most commercial spent fuel is stored in tact in storage pools or dry cask storage at the reactor sites around the U.S.