Development of a 500 litre drum for the encapsulation of steam-generating heavy-water reactor sludge at Winfrith

Abstract

AbstractWinfrith Technology Centre was once a leading UKAEA development site for nuclear technology. UKAEA's task now is to decommission the nuclear reactors and other facilities and restore the site for alternative use. On the site is the prototype steam-generating heavy-water reactor (SGHWR) that produced 100 MW(e) of electricity during its 22 year operational life. During this period the reactor produced large quantities of radioactive sludge and there are also the remains of ion exchange resins from various clean-up operations including the circuit decontamination campaigns at each annual shutdown. These sludges were directed to and stored in four external tanks and over the years there has been a steady build-up of sludge in these facilities, until 1990 when the reactor shut down permanently. Plans were made for the sludge in these tanks to be retrieved, encapsulated in drums and stored on site until a permanent national repository became available. Due to changes in circumstances following the relat...