Nuclear Plant Decommissioning

Challenges and Opportunities

OR:

How to spend a health physics career transitioning

from operations through decommissioning

Eric M. Goldin, CHP

Disclaimer: all the opinions expressed are mine and do not reflect any views of the HPS, SCE, BHI or anyone else.

If it sounds sarcastic, don't take it seriously. If it sounds dangerous, do not try this at home or at all. And if it offends you, just don't listen to it.

Dexter Holland, the Offspring © 1997

Outline

• Commercial Nuclear Power Operations

• Decommissioning

• Dismantlement

• Site Restoration

• License Termination & Final Status Survey

• Storage of Used Nuclear Fuel

• Health Physics Society

Chapter Visits 2

Commercial Nuclear Power

Chapter Visits 3

No Free Lunch

• Every form of electricity generation has pros and cons:

– Wind – raptor kills, construction, noise, visual, intermittent generation

– Solar PV – hazardous materials, intermittent generation

– Hydroelectric – environment, siting

– Coal – CO2 generation, particulates, mercury, mining

– Natural Gas – volatile pricing, hydrofracturing production, CO2 generation

– Nuclear – accident scenarios, waste disposal or reprocessing

– Conservation – is this realistic? Global issues

Chapter Visits 4

Almost 100 Operating Nuclear Power Reactors

Chapter Visits 5

How does a Nuclear Power Plant work?

Fission Process

• Uranium 235

• Atoms split into two or more fission fragments generating heat and additional

neutrons.

• Not capable of exploding

Chapter Visits 6

Nuclear Engineering

Chapter Visits 7

Fuel Equivalents

3 barrels of oil, 126 gallons

1 ton of coal, 2000

lbs

5000 lbs of wood

17,000 ft3 of natural gas

1 Uranium fuel

pellet

Source: www.cleanenergy4america.org

Chapter Visits 8

How the plant works

Chapter Visits 9

file:///F:/Work/Outreach/Nuclear Energy.wmv

Uranium Fuel Rod

Barrier #1

• Fuel and Control Rods

• Fuel pellets as big as the end of your finger and made of dense ceramic

materials

• Pellets are placed end to end and sealed inside long metal tubes called

fuel rods

• Rods are grouped in bundles and arranged so that control rods can be

placed into them

• Control rods contain a substance that absorbs

neutrons and are used to slow or stop

the fission process

Chapter Visits 10

Reactor Vessel

Barrier #2

• The reactor vessels are 8-inch thick steel structures,

43 ft high, over 14 ft diameter, 450 tons

• This is where the fission process occurs

• The energy released heats water to about 600

degrees Fahrenheit and 2,200 pounds per square inch

of pressure

• Reactor water creates a source of heat for the steam

generators and slows the movement of neutrons within

the fuel’s atoms

• The reactor and surrounding piping system are sealed

Chapter Visits 11

Containment Domes

Barrier #3

• Reinforced concrete structure 160-

foot high and at least 4-foot thick

• House steel nuclear reactor vessel

where the fission process occurs

• Air tight steel lining

• Design pressure: 60 psig

(car tire = 32 psig)

Chapter Visits 12

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Decommissioning

• What does it mean?

– Remove radioactive material or decontaminate

– Terminate license

• What does this entail?

– New and revised RP programs

– Materials and equipment release for unrestricted use, or for radwaste disposal

Chapter Visits 13

Decommissioning Process

• Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report

– Plans, schedule, finances, end-state, etc.

• Demolition & Dismantlement

• License Termination Plan (Decommissioning Plan for Mat’ls Licensees)

– Two years before forecast license termination

– Site Characterization

– Remaining dismantlement

– Site remediation

– End-state of site

– Final costs

– Environmental Report supplement

• Final Status Survey (MARSSIM)

Chapter Visits 14

Major tasks during decommissioning

Year Major Activities

Total Personnel

with Measurable

Doses

Collective Dose

(person-rem)

Average

Measurable Dose

(rem)

1999 Prep and ship spent resin, some RCS component removal,

decon containment and cavity 241 15.863 0.07

2000 RCS Severance, RVI preps, remove systems and interferences 416 71.214 0.17

2001 Large Component Removal Preps, RVI Segmentation Preps 338 57.785 0.17

2002 LCR, Reactor Vessel Segmentation, Turbine and Safety

Equipment Building Demolition 308 61.214 0.20

2003 Fuel transfer, containment systems removal, Turbine and Safety

Equipment Building Demolition 226 35.596 0.16

2004 Fuel transfer, Containment Building Demolition Preps 169 14.899 0.09

2005 Radwaste system and spent fuel removal 198 20.624 0.10

2006 Spent fuel pool liner removal, Containment Building Demolition 183 22.490 0.12

2007 Site Restoration. No major RP activities 20 0.417 0.02

2008 Site Restoration. No major RP activities 2 0.043 0.02

2009 Site Restoration. No major RP activities 0 0.000 ---

300.145 person-rem

Chapter Visits 15

Reactor Vessel Internals Segmentation

Chapter Visits 16

Large

Component

Removal

Chapter Visits 17

Large Component Lifts

Chapter Visits 18

Heavy Haul Shipments for Disposal

Chapter Visits 19

Burial at Energy Solutions Clive Facility

Chapter Visits 20

Building Demolition

Chapter Visits 21

Maine Yankee Containment Demolition

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kToZfbKbd4

Chapter Visits 22

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kToZfbKbd4

Materials Disposition

Chapter Visits 23

Materials Management

Chapter Visits 24

• Airborne contamination without confinement, controls

• Very large quantities of barely detectable contamination

• Surveys for release

Excavations for foundations

Chapter Visits 25

Time after shutdown implications

• What does this mean?

– Aged unit high on activation products

– Aged unit high on fission products

– Note that beta decay intensity may be important

• i.e. Cs-137 (95%), Cs-134 (70%), Co-58 (15%)

• Really old facility

– Alpha contribution builds in due to decay rates of beta-gamma emitters

• During decommissioning

– Instrument selection for Final Status Survey

Chapter Visits 26

MARSSIM – EPA, NRC, DOE, DOD

• Multi-Agency Radiation Survey and Site Investigation Manual

• Statistical approach to demonstrating that a site/area has been sufficiently

decontaminated to meet Derived Concentration Guideline Levels or the equivalent

of the license termination criterion

• Very rigorous process

• Multi-Agency Radiation Survey and Assessment of Materials and Equipment

Manual (MARSAME)

• Surveys for license termination – after remediation

– Planning – area classification, Final Status Survey design, MDCs

– Conducting – instrumentation requirements, samples

– Evaluating – review DQOs, statistical tests, elevated measurements

– Documenting – did survey unit demonstrate compliance with regulations?

Chapter Visits 27

And then there’s the “regulatory gap”

• Surface Contamination Guidance

– 5000 dpm/100 cm2 total

• License Termination Criterion

– 25 mrem per year

– 10,000 – 20,000 dpm/100 cm2 (based on radionuclide mix)

• Residual radioactivity left behind

• What to do with rad material and no license?

Chapter Visits 28

Used Nuclear Fuel

• Fuel is stored safely and securely in dry cask storage

facilities

• Used nuclear fuel has been safely stored for 50+

years

• Used nuclear fuel stored on site until the Department

of Energy has a permanent repository available to

accept the fuel (Yucca Mountain, Nevada)

29 Chapter Visits

Spent Fuel Pools

• Enclosed, steel-lined concrete pools

are filled with water

• Fuel assemblies are submerged with

23 feet of water above top

• Pool water is recirculated to ensure

cooling, remove residual heat and

provide radiation protection

• Designed to withstand seismic and

other external events

30 Chapter Visits

Dry Cask Storage

• Used nuclear fuel sealed in airtight stainless steel canisters

• Used nuclear fuel can be transferred from spent fuel pools to dry cask storage after

it has cooled in a pool for approximately 5 to 7 years

• Designed to withstand natural phenomena including floods, projectiles from a

tornado, temperature extremes, seismic events and lightning strikes

• Certified by the NRC as meeting strict design and performance specifications

31 Chapter Visits

NUHOMS Horizontal Storage Design

Chapter Visits 32

NUHOMS Dry Cask Storage Pad

Chapter Visits 33

Holtec Above Ground Vertical Storage Pad

Chapter Visits 34

Holtec Below Ground Vertical Cask Storage Pad

Chapter Visits 35

Dry cask loading

Chapter Visits 36

Holtec Vertical Cask Transporter

Chapter Visits 37

Spent Fuel Shipment for Offsite Disposal/Storage

• In 2006, The National Research Council’s Committee on Transportation of

Radioactive Waste found:

– There is no fundamental technical barrier to the safe transport of spent fuel in the U.S.

– U.S. regulations are adequate to ensure package containment effectiveness over a wide range of

transport conditions

– The accident fatality risk associated with spent fuel shipments is more than three orders of

magnitude less than for some other common hazardous materials

– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bu1YFshFuI4

– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1nvRBk4W3o

Chapter Visits 38

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bu1YFshFuI4https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1nvRBk4W3o

From this

Chapter Visits 39

To this

Health Physics Society

What can it do for you?

And what can you do for it?

Chapter Visits 40

Health Physics Society Strategic Plan

Chapter Visits 41

HPS is a professional organization whose mission is excellence in the science and practice of radiation safety. HPS activities include encouraging research in radiation science, developing standards, and disseminating radiation safety information. HPS members are involved in understanding, evaluating, and controlling the potential risks from radiation relative to the benefits. HPS is the largest radiation protection society in the world with members in many countries and has established numerous chapters in the United States, chapters in non-U.S. countries, student branches, and technical sections.

Our Mission

Excellence in the science and practice of radiation safety

Our Strategies

The strategies we employ to accomplish our mission are simple: Promote the science and sound practice of radiation safety Advance member careers Ensure HPS as the trusted source of expertise in radiation safety

Our Core Services

• For more than 60 years HPS has served its members, the public, and the radiation protection profession. HPS currently serves these stakeholders through the following core activities:

• Advocate for radiation safety and scientifically sound information

• Provide radiation safety information to the public and government

• Support academic programs and students

• Provide continuing education for radiation safety professionals

• Publish Health Physics/Operational Radiation Safety

• Publish Health Physics News and HPS.org

• Publish HPS standards, positions, and position papers

• Collaborate with international radiation safety organizations

• Host technical meetings, workshops and networking opportunities

• The core activities of the HPS serve our stakeholders well, but we know that stakeholders’ needs are dynamic. The HPS Board of Directors (Board) developed a vision for HPS to remain relevant to its members, the public, and the radiation protection profession.

• Our Vision

• HPS will be the home for radiation safety specialists and the trusted source of radiation safety information that enables the safe use of radiation to improve people’s lives.

Chapter Visits 42

Membership Benefits:

• Operational Radiation Safety and Health Physics Journal and HP News

• Full library of previous publications

• Members directory

• Discounted registration fees and hotel reservations for HPS meetings

• Discounts on registration for Radiation Research meetings

• Discounts on NCRP publications, PDFs of older publications are free

• Free ANSI standards developed by HPS

• Discounted subscription available for Physics Today

• Membership in IRPA, access to newsletters of some international societies

• Access to past HPS meeting presentations

• HP Tool Box – online resources (calculators, impact assessment, etc.)

• Employment postings

• Chapter resources

• Specialized Sections such as Medical, Academic/Industrial/Research, Accelerator, . . . .

• HPS membership is a pre-req for Section membership, local Chapter President

• Dues: free for first year students, then $40. Reduced for early associate or member

Chapter Visits 43

Chapter Visits 44

Questions?