Decommissioning Of Nuclear Facilities

Once a nuclear installation has reached the end of its safe and economical operational lifetime, the need for its decommissioning arises. Different strategies can be employed for nuclear decommissioning, based on the evaluation of particular hazards and their attendant risks, as well as on the analysis of costs of clean-up and waste management. This allows for decommissioning either soon after permanent shutdown, or perhaps a long time later, the latter course allowing for radioactivity levels to drop in any activated or contaminated components. It is crucial for clear processes and best practices to be applied in decommissioning such installations and sites, particular where any significant health and environmental risks exist. This book critically reviews the nuclear decommissioning processes and technologies applicable to nuclear power plants and other civilian nuclear facilities. Part one focuses on the fundamental planning issues in starting a nuclear decommissioning process, from principles and safety regulations, to financing and project management. Part two covers the execution phase of nuclear decommissioning projects, detailing processes and technologies such as dismantling, decontamination, and radioactive waste management, as well as environmental remediation, site clearance and reuse. Finally, part three details international experience in the decommissioning of nuclear applications, including the main nuclear reactor types and nuclear fuel cycle facilities, as well as small nuclear facilities and legacy nuclear waste sites. Critically reviews nuclear decommissioning processes and technologies applicable to nuclear power plants and other civilian nuclear facilities Discusses the fundamental planning issues in starting a nuclear decommissioning process Considers the execution phase of nuclear decommissioning projects, including dismantling, decontamination, and radioactive waste management, as well as environmental remediation, site clearance and reuse

This vOlume contains the invited and contributed papers pre sented at the American Nuclear Society (ANS) meeting on Decontamina tion and Decommissioning (D & D) of Nuclear Facilities, held Septem ber 16-20, 1979, in Sun Valley, Idaho. This was the first U. S. meeting of the ANS which addressed both of these important and related subjects. The meeting was attended by more than 400 engineers, scientists, laymen, and representatives of federal, state, and local governments, including participants from eleven foreign countries. The technical sessions included several sessions concentrating on ongoing D & D programs in the U. S. and abroad. In addition, "new ground" was broken in such areas as decommissioning costs and cost recovery, advanced programs on reactor coolant filtration, and other areas of continuing and increasing importance to the nuclear industry and to consumers. The dual sponsorship of the meeting (The ANS Reactor Operations Division and the Eastern Idaho Section of the ANS) helped spur a high quality program, a pleasant location, and a high degree of suc cess in technical interchange between the attendees. As guest speaker, we were honored to have Mr. Vince Boyer of Philadelphia Electric Company. Mr. Boyer is both a past chairman of the ANS Reactor Operations Division and a past president of the American Nuclear Society. His views on the nuclear industry and of its current status were informative and interesting.

Describes the rationale and vision for the peaceful use of nuclear energy. The publication identifies the basic principles that nuclear energy systems must satisfy to fulfil their promise of meeting growing global energy demands.