Author: Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :
Book Description
Use of advanced carbide or nitride fuels in place of the reference oxide fuel in LMFBRs may be required in the future to optimize the utilization of this reactor system. Differences in the environmental impact associated with such fuel substitutions are of critical importance in determining the real future viability of various advanced fuels. Calculations indicate that the concentration of 14C can be significantly different in the various fuels following their residence in the reactor. Most of the 14C present in the spent fuels is converted to 14CO2 during fuel reprocessing, and 14C released to the environment will be in this form. Best estimates indicate a release to the environment of no more than 1 percent of the 14C contained in the spent fuels. Radiation dose commitments due to 14CO2 release from advanced-fuel reprocessing plants were calculated. They range between 1.5 x 10−5 mrem from nitride fuel containing no 14N to a maximum of 50 mrem from nitride fuel synthesized with natural nitrogen. Population doses within an 80-km (50-mile) radius of the reprocessing plant were calculated to be 13 man-rems for carbide fuel containing 1000 ppm 14N and 760 man-rems for nitride fuels synthesized from natural nitrogen.
