Radioactive Waste Embedding in Cement Matrix and the Establishment of Cemented Waste Testing Laboratory at Paks Nuclear Power Plant

Abstract

For the treatment of low and intermediate level radioactive wastes generated at the Nuclear Power Plant of Paks, a new compact waste package will be created with a new cementation technology currently under construction. During the operation, the solid waste will be placed in steel drums, which then will be put into a thin-walled steel container. The cavity volume of the containers will be filled with cemented slurry made using liquid radioactive waste. The compact waste packages must comply with the waste acceptance criteria described in the National Radioactive Waste Repository Safety Report. The task of the cemented waste testing laboratory, which is under construction, will be the in-service inspection of the finished cemented material and the determination of properties such as compressive strength and leachability (diffusion coefficient) of the specimens made thereof. During the installation of the laboratory and testing of the devices used in the cement / concrete industry, it turned out that in many cases special moulds are required due to the low viscosity and corrosive properties of the radioactive paste. In addition, the collection of debris generated during the measurement of compressive strength of radioactive cement stone and the minimization of dusting are important requirements.