The 12th International Conference on Environmental ... - Events

Session 37-38 Abstracts
cal uncertainty of the fitted parameters and thus the error in the derived depth. <strong>The</strong> paper describes the contributing effects of the
inherent prop- Address all correspondence to this author. erties of each detector; effects such as their energy resolution, absolute
efficiency as well as peak-to-Compton ratio. Finally a commentary on the applicability of each selected detector type is presented,
including a comment on the extension the technique to a more generic, real world solution.
8) REMOTE MEASUREMENTS OF RADIOACTIVITY DISTRIBUTION WITH BROKK ROBOTIC SYSTEM - 16147
Oleg Ivanov, Alexey Danilovich, Vyacheslav Stepanov, Sergey Smirnov, Victor Potapov, RRC Kurchatov Institute (Russia)
Robotic system for the remote measurement of radioactivity in the reactor areas was developed. <strong>The</strong> BROKK robotic system
replaces hand-held radiation measuring tools. <strong>The</strong> system consists of a collimated gamma detector, a standard gamma detector,
color CCD video camera and searchlights, all mounted on a robotic platform (BROKK). <strong>The</strong> signals from the detectors are coupled
with the video signals and are transferred to an operator’s console via a radio channel or a cable. Operator works at a safe position.
<strong>The</strong> video image of the object with imposed exposure dose rate from the detectors generates an image on the monitor screen,
and the images are recorded for subsequent analysis. Preliminary work has started for the decommissioning of a research reactor
at the RRC «Kurchatov Institute». Results of the remote radioactivity measurements with new system during radiation inspection
waste storage of this reactor are presented and discussed.
9) RADIOLOGICAL CHARACTERISATION THROUGHOUT THE UK NUCLEAR INDUSTRY - 16300
Chris Hannon, Studsvik UK (UK)
Radiological Characterisation is the technique of determining the radiological properties of a material using a combination of
studying the materials history, in-situ measurements and intrusive sampling.
To consign radioactive waste from a site in the UK knowledge of the wastes radiological content is required. Intermediate
Level Waste (ILW), Low Level Waste (LLW), exempt and excluded materials all require characterisation to different degrees and
certainty. Effective radiological characterisation will determine the most suitable waste treatment or disposal route. Money spent
by a project on characterisation up front will be recouped in the long term by efficient waste sentencing.
<strong>The</strong> first step in any campaign of radiological characterisation is to study the available information relating to the history of
the waste. By carefully studying the history of he waste the most likely waste treatment/disposal routes can be identified and the
most applicable types of in-situ measurements or intrusive sampling can be derived. Whilst it is not uncommon to have little or no
reliable historic information a logical and defensible hypothesis of the wastes likely classification can streamline the characterisation
project. However care must always be taken to not limit the types of measurements that will be undertaken so as to limit the
risk of missing some hard to measure radionuclides.
SESSION 38 - SITING, DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION, AND OPERATION OF L/ILW DISPOSAL FACILITIES
1) DESIGN OPTIONS FOR THE UKS ILW GEOLOGICAL DISPOSAL FACILITY - 16241
Tim Hicks, Matt White, Tamara Baldwin, Paul Hooker, Phil Richardson, Galson Sciences Ltd (UK); Neil Chapman,
Chapman & Co. Consulting (Switzerland); Fiona Neall, Neall Consulting Ltd (UK);
Ian McKinley, McKinley Consulting (Switzerland); Samantha King, NDA RWMD, (UK)
Over the last few years, a major national programme of public consultation has been under way in the UK resulting, in 2006,
in the announcement by government of geological disposal as the most appropriate solution for the long-term management of the
UKs long-lived and higher-activity radioactive waste and the launch, in 2008, of an implementation programme. <strong>The</strong> approach
being pursued is to solicit volunteer communities to host a geological disposal facility, which may contain not only intermediatelevel
waste (ILW) and some low-level waste (LLW), but also high-level waste (HLW), any spent fuel (SF) declared as waste, and
potentially other materials that may be declared as waste. <strong>The</strong>se wastes have different physical, chemical, thermal and radiological
characteristics, and different concepts will be required to accommodate their disposal, potentially in a single facility.
<strong>The</strong> volunteer approach means that the geological environment that might eventually emerge as the preferred location is not
known at the outset. Indeed, the siting process may require evaluation of several different geological environments because the UK
has rich geological variability for such a small landmass. Consequently, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), which is
charged with designing, developing and implementing a geological disposal facility, has investigated facility designs that could be
appropriate for a wide range of host rocks and geological environments.
2) LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE OPERATION OF A L/ILW NATIONAL DISPOSAL CENTRE:
THE CABRIL AND THE SPANISH CASE - 16029
Emilio Garcia Neri, Mariano Navarro, Fernando Gomez,ENRESA (Spain)
<strong>The</strong> Spanish experience holds a relatively important position in the field of the LILW management.
<strong>The</strong> management of LILW in Spain can be defined as an integrated system that includes from the controls of production and
the collection and transport of LILW to its disposal. In this system, the clear definition of the responsibilities of each one of the
actors has a fundamental paper.
ENRESA, the Radioactive Waste Management Organisation in Spain, operates the El Cabril centre from 1993, being this
installation a key component for the National LILW management programme.
Throughout these years, ENRESA is accumulated a significant operational experience from a multidisciplinary point of view,
that includes technical, economic and social aspects. From his phase of design to today, passed already more than fifteen years,
ENRESA has adopted a series of decisions and developed programs and activities that have allowed the evolution of the own installation
until the reality that is today.
This paper intends to present the lessons learned through this experience from a strategic perspective on more relevant and significant
aspects that they have facilitated the normal operation of the installation and the development of specific solutions to the
challenges proposed by the development of the activities and the new needs of the Spanish programme.
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