The roundtable discussion "Closed Nuclear Fuel Cycle - New Opportunities and Products" was held on 22 November at the XII International Forum ATOMEXPO-2022. Representatives from the leading Russian and foreign power generating and industrial companies and scientific organizations took part in the event.
Roundtable participants discussed features of the nuclear fuel cycle (NFC) of nuclear reactors for power generation from the standpoint of nuclear reprocessing and treatment of radioactive waste that is generated during this process.
Vladislav Korogodin, Director of ROSATOM for Lifecycle Management of Nuclear Fuel Cycle (NFC) and NPPs, who delivered the welcome speech, emphasized that nuclear power as a source of affordable and clean energy has multiple advantages over other power generation technologies. At the same time, it faces a number of serious challenges, which include stopping the accumulation of spent nuclear fuel and ensuring recycling of fissionable materials. Closing the NFC offers a solution to these problems. This line of work within the commercial approach is therefore of the utmost importance for the global nuclear community.
Nobuo Tanaka, Chair of the Steering Committee, Innovation for Cool Earth Forum (ICEF), noted in his speech that developing a sustainable model for closing the NFC has important sociopolitical implications in addition to technological significance. A key role in developing such a model, in his view, lies with political leaders, such as the former Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe.
Igor Gusakov-Stanyukovich, Director for Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF) and Sustainable Nuclear Fuel Cycle (NFC), TENEX, ROSATOM, described solutions that underpin ROSATOM's balanced NFC product range, which is designed to address the accumulation of spent nuclear fuel from light water reactors in the most efficient way, as soon as possible. A sustainable NFC builds upon the existing Russian infrastructure of SNF and radioactive waste (RW) handling by enhancing it with a number of innovative solutions, including high level waste fractionation, minor actinide transmutation, efficient systems for SNF and RW transport, etc. In combination, these solutions help reduce the amount of waste that is sent for disposal.
Alexander Ugryumov, Senior Vice President for Scientific and Technical Activities, TVEL, described technical opportunities for transitioning to a sustainable fuel cycle. He noted that the Russian nuclear industry has extensive experience in operating experimental and commercial fast-neutron reactors, and existing plans call for developing dual-component nuclear power industry, which operates thermal- and fast-neutron reactors in parallel. This creates conditions for involving byproducts, such as depleted uranium and materials generated during irradiated fuel reprocessing, in the nuclear fuel cycle. Fast-neutron reactors can efficiently utilize uranium-plutonium fuels, MOX and MNUP fuel, and “burn” highly radioactive minor actinides isolated from spent fuel. Pilot utilization of uranium-plutonium REMIX fuel in a VVER-1000 reactor at the Balakovo NPP started in 2021 to gather reference data and demonstrate the usability of uranium-plutonium fuel in thermal-neutron reactors.
Experts are confident that technologies to close the NFC will expand the resource pool of nuclear energy almost indefinitely and will help substantially reduce volumes of spent nuclear fuel and nuclear waste in line with Sustainable Development Goals. Additionally, the Russian experience can lay the foundations for wide-ranging international cooperation and transformation of the global nuclear industry.
Regulatory control of NW generated during nuclear reprocessing in an international context was a key topic of the discussion. Roundtable mediator Sergey Utkin, Head of the department of long-term risk analysis in nuclear and radiation safety assurance at Nuclear Safety Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, stressed the need to harmonize international recommendations and national laws in the area of nuclear waste classification and disposal eligibility criteria.
Development of a global dual-component nuclear power industry was highlighted as a possible environmentally optimal solution for countries developing nuclear power generation. A sustainable NFC will solve the problem of accumulating irradiated fuel and nuclear waste and will rid future generations of the need to face problems of nuclear legacy.