RD&D-Programme 2004 - SKB

1
2
3
5
6
7
8
4
16 17 18 19
20 9
15
14 13
12
11
10
Fuel assembly
Storage canister
Transfer canister
Encapsulation plant
Other SKB facility
Copper canister
Canister sleeve
Transport cask
Copper lid
Transport frame
Transport container
1 Clab
2 Handling pool
3 Handling cell
4 Transport corridor
5 Preparation station
6 Welding station
7 NDT station
8 Machining station
9 Transfer position in
transport corridor
10 Decontamination cell
11 Transfer position in
dispatch hall
12 Dispatch hall
13 Transport air lock
14 Transport cask store
15 Final repository
16 Canister factory
17 Canister warehouse
18 Active refuse room
19 Active workshop
20 Transfer position in
dispatch hall
Figure 8-1. Main process diagram for the encapsulation plant.
References are made in the following text to items 1 to 13 in Figure 8-1. An illustration of the
encapsulation plant is shown in Figure 8-2.
The fuel assemblies, which are stored in storage canisters, are moved to the encapsulation plant
via the existing fuel elevator in Clab (1). The storage canister is placed in the fuel elevator’s
water-filled elevator cage and lifted up from the storage section. The storage canister is then
taken to the encapsulation plant’s pools, which are situated directly adjacent to the fuel elevator.
In the handling pool (2), the fuel assemblies are moved from the storage canister to a transfer
canister, which is intended for internal fuel handling in the encapsulation plant. This transfer
is made for several reasons. The storage canisters contain more assemblies than fit in a copper
canister, while the transfer canister has the same number of positions as a copper canister.
Furthermore, the total decay heat in a canister may not exceed 1.7 kW. An attempt will be made
to have a uniform distribution of decay heat in the canisters. Since the safeguards system in
Clab contains all the necessary information regarding position, history, origin and physical data
for each stored fuel assembly, the selection to each copper canister can be made in good time. In
conjunction with the transfer to transfer canisters, the identity (marking) and decay heat output
of each assembly is checked. The verifying measurement of decay heat is done by a gamma
scanning equipment. Transfer of fuel assemblies is controlled by an operating order in the same
way as in Clab today.
94 RD&D-Programme 2004