The Indefinite Containment of Nuclear Fuel Wastes

Abstract

AbstractThe safe disposal of used fuel or vitrified reprocessed waste could be guaranteed if the containers remained intact indefinitely (> 106 a). Justification of indefinite containment may be possible if two criteria are met; (i) a sound mechanistic understanding of the corrosion and mechanical behaviour of the container material is available, and (ii) the disposal environment and its evolution with time can be confidently predicted. In disposal vaults in which the environmental conditions evolve from a short aggressive period to a long-term benign period, long container lifetimes are achievable. This approach is illustrated by discussing the possibility of indefinite containment of used fuel in a Canadian disposal vault using Ti alloys or Cu.