Abstract
Developing effective radioactive waste management practices is essential for ensuring the sustainability of the nuclear industry. The immobilization of radioactive wastes is one of the main activities conducted during the management of these wastes; it aims to produce a durable waste form that has sustainable performance over long periods of time. In this work, the challenges that face the design of durable cementitious waste forms are addressed for problematic operational wastes. In this respect, the problematic characteristics of evaporator concentrates, spent ion exchangers, and organic liquid wastes are overviewed, and the factors that affect the durability of their cementitious waste forms are identified. A summary of potential conventional and innovative cementitious matrices is presented by reviewing the cementation practices in national programs and recent research devoted to developing durable matrices. Finally, a guide to optimize the mix design of these waste forms was proposed that includes the selection of the testing procedure, factors that affect the waste form performance, and the optimization technique. This guide was presented with special focus on leaching tests, which are a means to test the stabilization performance of nuclear waste forms.
Highlights
The nuclear industry is supporting the sustainability of human life, as the continuous development of nuclear energy aims to secure sustainable, clean, and affordable energy and clean water
The main aim of this work is to summarize the key problematic characteristics of these waste streams, assess the factors that affect the durability of the produced cementitious waste forms, and identify the approaches used in designing these forms
Cementitious materials are widely applied as immobilization media to host radioactive wastes, including problematic waste streams for which routine technologies need modifications to account for their specific parameters
Summary
The nuclear industry is supporting the sustainability of human life, as the continuous development of nuclear energy aims to secure sustainable, clean, and affordable energy and clean water. The advance in isotopic techniques aims to improve the agricultural sector toward zero hunger, support the medical sector for good health and well-being, enhance industrial innovation and infrastructure, and support efforts to protect life below water and on land [1]. The operation of the energy production sector results in large extraction, processing, storing, and transportation of raw materials, as well as processed fuel utilization and management of the generated wastes and emissions. The amount of the generated solid wastes due to the production of unit energy (g/kW·h) is used as an environmental indicator on the sustainability of certain energy sectors [1,3,4].
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