Izvestiya vuzov. Yadernaya Energetika

The peer-reviewed scientific and technology journal. ISSN: 0204-3327

Forming a supply of protected nuclear fuel based on RepU for countries recipients of Russian nuclear technologies

4/04/2015 2015 - #01 Fuel cycle and nuclear waste management

Fedorov M. I. Dyachenko A. I. Balagurov N. A. Artisyuk V. V.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.26583/npe.2015.1.14

UDC: 621.039.543.4

This paper presents the estimation of the time required for the formation of a protected fuel loading of the reactor WWER-1000 based on reprocessed uranium (RepU) recovered from spent fuel of reactors of the same type is estimated. So for this purpose various strategies of conversion of WWER-1000 reactors to the reprocessed uranium fuel were considered depending on the existing resource base of the reprocessed uranium: from one reactor (the case of newcoming countries), six reactors (for countries with well-developed nuclear power industry such as in Bulgaria), and six reactors together with the reprocessed nuclear fuel formed from accumulated spent nuclear fuel in the storage. What is more, the change of protection of the produced plutonium in spent nuclear fuel of WWER-1000 reactor, which is achieved by means of plutonium denaturation by increasing the concentration of 238Pu in the spent fuel is shown in the paper. Apart from it the work presents the influence of the initial presence of uranium 236U isotope in fresh uranium fuel of WWER-1000 reactor on the core in terms of non-proliferation issues accumulation of plutonium 238Pu isotope. Further on additionally the analysis of uranium resources saving for the considered strategies of conversion of WWER-1000 reactor to the fuel from reprocessed uranium in order to expand the resource basefor nuclear power plants in Russia and the recipient countries is performed.

References

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reprocessed uranium burnup resources saving spent nuclear fuel WWER-1000

Link for citing the article: Fedorov M. I., Dyachenko A. I., Balagurov N. A., Artisyuk V. V. Forming a supply of protected nuclear fuel based on RepU for countries recipients of Russian nuclear technologies. Izvestiya vuzov. Yadernaya Energetika. 2015, no. 1, pp. 128-135; DOI: https://doi.org/10.26583/npe.2015.1.14 (in Russian).

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