CLINT A. SHARRAD, LAURENCE M. HARWOOD AND FRANCIS R. LIVENS*

ABSTRACT

The waste materials generated in the nuclear fuel cycle are very varied, ranging from the tailings arising from mining and processing uranium ore, depleted uranium in a range of chemical forms, to a range of process wastes of differing activities and properties. Indeed, the wastes generated are intimately linked to the options selected in operating the nuclear fuel cycle, most obviously to the management of spent fuel. An open fuel cycle implies the disposal of highly radioactive spent fuel, whereas a closed fuel cycle generates a complex array of waste streams. On the other hand, a closed fuel cycle offers options for waste management, for example reduction in highly active waste volume, decreased radiotoxicity, and removal of fissile material. Many technological options have been pro­posed or explored, and each brings its own particular mix of wastes and environmental challenges.

1 Nuclear Fission as an Energy Resource

The vast majority of nuclear reactors which operate, or have operated, have produced energy from uranium fuel. The neutron-induced fission of a uranium nucleus typically yields around 200 MeV of energy (compare ca. 4 eV per atom in the oxidation of carbon to CO2), so the energy density of nuclear fuel is very high, and the volumes of fuel required and waste produced are relatively small.

* Corresponding author

Issues in Environmental Science and Technology, 32 Nuclear Power and the Environment Edited by R. E. Hester and R. M. Harrison © Royal Society of Chemistry 2011

Published by the Royal Society of Chemistry, www. rsc. org

Nevertheless, because of their radioactivity, wastes from nuclear energy pro­duction are potentially very hazardous over long timescales and their man­agement is often both politically contentious and technically demanding. While there is considerable international cooperation in the area of nuclear energy, through for example the activities of the IAEA or the OECD’s Nuclear Energy Agency, and international commercial activities such as fuel reprocessing and fuel manufacture do occur, the management of radioactive wastes is presently seen as being a national responsibility. The following discussion is largely written from a UK perspective, although it draws on examples from overseas where appropriate.